Keeping my ducks for the winter

[Miss Lydia]

I'll just chime in to agree with the other responses. I was really worried about my ducks at first too, but they apparently don't mind the cold at all. Last winter it was down in the single digits, maybe below zero, before they would go into their house. I regularly found them swimming amid chunks of ice with temps in the low 20s. If it's below 20 degrees I turn on a heat lamp, even though they hardly go near it, it makes me feel better, lol. And they have a heated water dish so they are never without water - I want to make sure they can eat often to keep warm.
Often I would open their pen to feed them and they would run/fly off into the snow and play. This day it was a little deep, lol - only slowed them down some.

That's funny if it had been deeper they could have made tunnels. those feet that look like snow shoes come in handy.

 

[cymbaline]

Also, the first (and only) time my ducks found the creek:
They ran around FOREVER, and I couldn't get them out because the ice was only solid enough to hold ducks, not an adult human, lol. All those little ducky footprints crack me up!

 

[Miss Lydia]

Also, the first (and only) time my ducks found the creek:
They ran around FOREVER, and I couldn't get them out because the ice was only solid enough to hold ducks, not an adult human, lol. All those little ducky footprints crack me up!

they really were busy with all those foot prints going all over. Did you have to leave them over night in the creek?

 

[cymbaline]

they really were busy with all those foot prints going all over. Did you have to leave them over night in the creek?

Oh heavens no! I'm way too overprotective - I'd have jumped in that creek and frozen my ankles off before I'd leave them out overnight. It was quite a few hours though...they were seriously enjoying themselves. They dug into the long grass on the banks and skated around and just had a big ol' time. Too bad they don't find it in the summer, lol. Or maybe that's for the best so I don't have to wade in after them, haha.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Oh heavens no! I'm way too overprotective - I'd have jumped in that creek and frozen my ankles off before I'd leave them out overnight. It was quite a few hours though...they were seriously enjoying themselves. They dug into the long grass on the banks and skated around and just had a big ol' time. Too bad they don't find it in the summer, lol. Or maybe that's for the best so I don't have to wade in after them, haha.

That's good you didn't have to, I'd have been beside myself too if I couldn't have gotten them home. We had 3 of our ducks follow our drake who hadn't come to live with us yet, he was dumped at the river below our home, anyway he would come up to visit and eat and one day the girls followed him back down to the river, my dh and I actually got in the river trying to catch them and never did I ended up having to leave them down over night, next morning here comes Ernie for his breakfast with the 3 girls waddling right behind him, needless to say Ernie became part of the family and the gate stayed shut after that.

 

[Going Quackers]

My calls often swim in the very cold, now my scovies are not so winter happy, i have actually stopped allowing containers that they can get into to avoid them freezing themselves.. and yes i have had that happen, they are not as waterproof as mallard derived ducks.

 

[arkwelded]

our pekins are about 8 weeks and they are fine. they have a very thick coat and have been fine here in wisconsin. we have had nights at 0 and the days average 20's.
I built them a duck house, but like most children, they need to help get in bed when it is dark. i just shoo them in and shut the door. I put them in from 6-8pm and let them out at 5am before I go to work.
i knew they were fine when the other day it got up to low 30's and the snow melted and turned the paddock to mud. some of our younger chickens were in the run dust bathing and I looked along side the run our ducks were "mud bathing" where the downspout runs off. my wife tries to keep them clean like our chickens, but they are more akin to pigs.

 

[Miss Lydia]

our pekins are about 8 weeks and they are fine. they have a very thick coat and have been fine here in wisconsin. we have had nights at 0 and the days average 20's.
I built them a duck house, but like most children, they need to help get in bed when it is dark. i just shoo them in and shut the door. I put them in from 6-8pm and let them out at 5am before I go to work.
i knew they were fine when the other day it got up to low 30's and the snow melted and turned the paddock to mud. some of our younger chickens were in the run dust bathing and I looked along side the run our ducks were "mud bathing" where the downspout runs off. my wife tries to keep them clean like our chickens, but they are more akin to pigs.

Sounds like some hardy ducklings you have there. would have loved to have seen them after they had a good mud bath.

Welcome to BYC

 

[Going Quackers]

our pekins are about 8 weeks and they are fine. they have a very thick coat and have been fine here in wisconsin. we have had nights at 0 and the days average 20's.
I built them a duck house, but like most children, they need to help get in bed when it is dark. i just shoo them in and shut the door. I put them in from 6-8pm and let them out at 5am before I go to work.
i knew they were fine when the other day it got up to low 30's and the snow melted and turned the paddock to mud. some of our younger chickens were in the run dust bathing and I looked along side the run our ducks were "mud bathing" where the downspout runs off. my wife tries to keep them clean like our chickens, but they are more akin to pigs.

Pekin do well in the cold, though they miss their water horribly, i try to maintain some around for them but being they are part of a scovie flock i have to mind for them.. they love mud, mine wait for a spray from the hose, sadly they don't get why it doesn't run anymore lol.

 

[cymbaline]

That's good you didn't have to, I'd have been beside myself too if I couldn't have gotten them home. We had 3 of our ducks follow our drake who hadn't come to live with us yet, he was dumped at the river below our home, anyway he would come up to visit and eat and one day the girls followed him back down to the river, my dh and I actually got in the river trying to catch them and never did I ended up having to leave them down over night, next morning here comes Ernie for his breakfast with the 3 girls waddling right behind him, needless to say Ernie became part of the family and the gate stayed shut after that.

Oh goodness, how funny - at least your story has a happy ending!