Keeping Ducks with Chickens - What Do I Need To Know?

[All4Eggz]

A coworker of a family member offered to give us a few ducks. We have been thinking about it for a couple weeks now, but I still have some questions.

Right off the bat, I know I do NOT want any drakes, as I do not want to have them cause problems with my roosters.

I do not have an option to have a separate coop for the ducks either.

I’m thinking maybe to get 2-5 females.

Questions:
-Which breed(s) would do best with chickens?
-Do they absolutely NEED water? (A friend who lives in SC told me that they have dozens of ducks living with dozens of chickens, and they do not have a pond or water source for the ducks, and they are doing fine. Good idea or not?)
-Can they free range fine with the chickens and come back to the coop at night without issues?
-Are they any louder than chickens?
-If/When we get some, will All Flock Pellet feed be okay for all the birds (hens, roosters, ducks)

Thanks in advance for any responses.

@DucksAreBest @EverythingDucks

 

[ProudRedneck]

Q: Which breed(s) would do best with chickens?
A: I'm not sure if there are better breeds to keep with chickens, I leave this answer for the more experienced people on here.

Q: Do they absolutely NEED water? (A friend who lives in SC told me that they have dozens of ducks living with dozens of chickens, and they do not have a pond or water source for the ducks, and they are doing fine. Good idea or not?)
A: They "need" a water source deep enough to dip there whole bill in as that is how they keep their nares clean. However, a kiddie pool would be just fine to allow them to play in. I have found that is one thing that gives them a source of great enjoyment.

Q: Can they free range fine with the chickens and come back to the coop at night without issues?
A1: Yes they can free range just fine with the chickens
A2: ducks typically do not return to the coup on their own, although there are some outliers that tend to do this. However, I took a suggestion from a YouTube channel Gold Shaw farms and trained my ducks that when I yell "All ducks go to bed," they come running from wherever they are, and know to go directly into their run because they know there's a treat that will be waiting for them.

Q: Are they any louder than chickens?
A: Depends on the breed you get. For instance, the two extreme ends are Muscovies hardly make any sound and Pekins are constantly talking. Let us know what your options are and then we can go down that list and advise who would be the most quiet out of your choices.

Q: If/When we get some, will All Flock Pellet feed be okay for all the birds (hens, roosters, ducks)
A: Yes you can, but I would add nutritional yeast to provide extra niacin. It won't hurt the chickens and it will make sure the ducks get the amount of niacin they need.

 

[All4Eggz]

Q: Which breed(s) would do best with chickens?
A: I'm not sure if there are better breeds to keep with chickens, I leave this answer for the more experienced people on here.

Q: Do they absolutely NEED water? (A friend who lives in SC told me that they have dozens of ducks living with dozens of chickens, and they do not have a pond or water source for the ducks, and they are doing fine. Good idea or not?)
A: They "need" a water source deep enough to dip there whole bill in as that is how they keep their nares clean. However, a kiddie pool would be just fine to allow them to play in. I have found that is one thing that gives them a source of great enjoyment.

Q: Can they free range fine with the chickens and come back to the coop at night without issues?
A1: Yes they can free range just fine with the chickens
A2: ducks typically do not return to the coup on their own, although there are some outliers that tend to do this. However, I took a suggestion from a YouTube channel Gold Shaw farms and trained my ducks that when I yell "All ducks go to bed," they come running from wherever they are, and know to go directly into their run because they know there's a treat that will be waiting for them.

Q: Are they any louder than chickens?
A: Depends on the breed you get. For instance, the two extreme ends are Muscovies hardly make any sound and Pekins are constantly talking. Let us know what your options are and then we can go down that list and advise who would be the most quiet out of your choices.

Q: If/When we get some, will All Flock Pellet feed be okay for all the birds (hens, roosters, ducks)
A: Yes you can, but I would add nutritional yeast to provide extra niacin. It won't hurt the chickens and it will make sure the ducks get the amount of niacin they need.

Thank you for your response.
I have asked my family member to ask the duck owner some questions so we can better understand if this is the right thing for us to do…
Will be finding out what breeds she has available soon.

 

[Miss Lydia]

I can't imagine having ducks or waterfowl period and not letting them bathe that is how they keep their feathers pristine and keep parasites off. Mine only have kiddy pools but they love them.

 

[Silkiesaz]

I keep a Muscovy and a Cayuga duck with a silkie and an EE as well as a rabbit. They all get along just fine. The ducks have a pond to swim in and the chickens drink out of it. My Cayuga is much louder than the chickens but she just wants to be heard! They all free range and sometimes come back to the coop but all have their hiding spots.

 

[Fuchsia]

-Which breed(s) would do best with chickens?

I don't know if there is a breed that would be best. My WH's and Saxony's do fine with them. My drake gets in fights with the roosters, but you shouldn't have that problem if you're just getting hens. The roosters may try to attack the ducks though, one of my roosters is VERY aggressive towards my ducks but my other roosters are fine with them.

-Do they absolutely NEED water? (A friend who lives in SC told me that they have dozens of ducks living with dozens of chickens, and they do not have a pond or water source for the ducks, and they are doing fine. Good idea or not?)

Ducks NEED water deep enough to dunk their whole head in. They have to be able to rinse out their eyes and nares. They don't have to have swimming water but if you could at least give them a kiddie pool they would be fine. Ducks are made to swim so they'll be a lot happier if they can swim in something.

-Can they free range fine with the chickens and come back to the coop at night without issues?

Mine always go in at night. They are really good about going in, I have even changed their home a few times and after one night they know to go to their new home.
My friends have ducks as well and theirs won't go in. They have to put them in at night every night. Their ducks are still quite young, so I don't know if they'll get better or not.

-Are they any louder than chickens?

They can be, when mine don't have food or aren't let out before 7am they are very loud. They definitely let me know when I'm slacking

-If/When we get some, will All Flock Pellet feed be okay for all the birds (hens, roosters, ducks)

All flock should be okay. You might want to give them some additional niacin sometimes.

 

[All4Eggz]

Q: If/When we get some, will All Flock Pellet feed be okay for all the birds (hens, roosters, ducks)
A: Yes you can, but I would add nutritional yeast to provide extra niacin. It won't hurt the chickens and it will make sure the ducks get the amount of niacin they need.

What kind of niacin in the form of nutritional yeast would be okay for them?
Just any kind of nutritional yeast from the grocery store?