Magpie Ducklings Dying Unexpectedly!

[Jillio]

Hello, this is my first time raising ducks (Magpies!!!). We have just adored them and have begun to really bond with them. We started out with 12 and they are about 3 1/2 weeks old right now. In the last two nights we have lost four birds and it is heartbreaking. The problem is we don’t know why they have died. We assumed the first time that some thing had gotten into the coop somehow but it would have had to be small as our largest duckling was killed. Also there wasn’t really a scratch on him, there were just some broken feathers. When we found our duckling he seemed to have died just recently and was already covered in maggots. So we changed up the system and had our guardian dogs paroling more in the night last night and placed our ducklings in a different location and in a crate, closer to the house where I would be more likely to hear a commotion. I too went out a couple times to check on them in the night with a flashlight. Yet we woke up to three more ducklings dead, and not a scratch on them. Can anybody help us understand what’s going on here? They didn’t have much water when we found them in the morning but they did still have some. (Probably not enough to dip their nostrils fully in though, if they are not able to go overnight without doing that as I’ve heard mixed info on this.) We are very new here and still researching and figuring everything out. Open to thoughts. We just want happy, healthy ducklings and need to know what we’re doing wrong.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Have you been keeping them under heat? They look like they would still need some heat. We're still in low 50's at night and there is no way ducklings could survive that without heat source.
Very sorry for your loss.

 

[_-Captain BRM-_]

I recently lost a duckling to unknown causes. They really need a heat lamp with them at all times and as much water as possible. I'm so sorry for your losses, it must be such a disappointment! At such a you g age, though, it really isn't that rare to loose some. Often you will loose 2-3/10. I have had much better luck with this, but this year we lost 2 chicks and our duckling- AND THEY LIVED IN THE HOUSE! It is just so hard to prevent, but I would suggest staying with them as much as possible, maybe then you can catch what's doing it and their symptoms if it keeps happening. Recently lost my first hatched quail chick and was left with just one from the hatch. So I have kept it in the house in a dog kennel where I can watch it and be sure it's doing well. Update us on how everything goes for you, hopefully it was just apart of life and not anything serious! So sorry again

 

[Jillio]

Have you been keeping them under heat? They look like they would still need some heat. We're still in low 50's at night and there is no way ducklings could survive that without heat source.
Very sorry for your loss.

Thanks for your reply. It’s been 100 degrees in the daytime and 75 degrees at night, so we did move them out. Do you think they need a heat lamp and to be brought in again? One thing I wanted to add as I just thought of it. One strange thing is that it’s only my larger in size (faster growers) that have died. All of my smaller in size ones are just fine.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Temps sound fine. It just doesn't make sense if there aren't any wounds on them that a predator did it. Are they outside with only the crate for protection could a predator be scaring the life out of them? I usually start my ducklings out at 85* then lower the temp 5* each week thereafter, So unless it was raining or very windy they should be okay without heat. They shouldn't be swimming in 75* at night. They should have food and water still at 3.5 weeks until they are at least 5-6 weeks of age.
I just don't know but you can get a necropsy done which would probably tell you.

 

[Jillio]

Temps sound fine. It just doesn't make sense if there aren't any wounds on them that a predator did it. Are they outside with only the crate for protection could a predator be scaring the life out of them? I usually start my ducklings out at 85* then lower the temp 5* each week thereafter, So unless it was raining or very windy they should be okay without heat. They shouldn't be swimming in 75* at night. They should have food and water still at 3.5 weeks until they are at least 5-6 weeks of age.
I just don't know but you can get a necropsy done which would probably tell you.

Their kitty pool is outside the crate, so they weren’t swimming in the night. However there was a shallow waterer that they could have been standing in or something. I don’t believe there was a predator scaring them, as they were close to the house and my guardians were going out several times in the night to check on them, as was I. It seems like we’re doing something wrong with their food and water or something. I have not been leaving food out overnight because I don’t want to attract rats who I know can hurt them. It has not been raining. They are on scratch and peck grower feed, as I took Lisa Steel’s advice to move them to grower feed at two weeks of age so they don’t develop angel wing from too much protein. However, they are also free ranging in the daytime where they have not had access to actual feed (so many grasshoppers here and lots of green grass, etc.) Is this not enough? Do they need access to their feed all day long at this age? (I assumed in the wild they would be eating mainly grass and bugs so that’s what we’ve been doing in the daytime. They eat lots of feed morning and night before bed). I know we’re doing something wrong I just I’m trying to put my finger on exactly what it is, and possibly multiple things.

 

[Jillio]

And with plenty of nutritional yeast or brewed yeast added in- because earlier on we had a niacin deficiency present. Also making sure they have chick grit always just in case they aren’t finding enough stones that size.

 

[ruthhope]

Their kitty pool is outside the crate, so they weren’t swimming in the night. However there was a shallow waterer that they could have been standing in or something. I don’t believe there was a predator scaring them, as they were close to the house and my guardians were going out several times in the night to check on them, as was I. It seems like we’re doing something wrong with their food and water or something. I have not been leaving food out overnight because I don’t want to attract rats who I know can hurt them. It has not been raining. They are on scratch and peck grower feed, as I took Lisa Steel’s advice to move them to grower feed at two weeks of age so they don’t develop angel wing from too much protein. However, they are also free ranging in the daytime where they have not had access to actual feed (so many grasshoppers here and lots of green grass, etc.) Is this not enough? Do they need access to their feed all day long at this age? (I assumed in the wild they would be eating mainly grass and bugs so that’s what we’ve been doing in the daytime. They eat lots of feed morning and night before bed). I know we’re doing something wrong I just I’m trying to put my finger on exactly what it is, and possibly multiple things.

Scatch isn't nutritionally adequate for ducklings. Ducklings need duck food although they might be started on starter crumbles forumlated for chicks, with added niacin. I strongly recommend htat you get duck pellets for them now, an continue with added brewer's yeast to increase their niacin intake. I sprinkle 1 tblespn brewer's yeast over each cup of food in their bowl. At this young age, they still need food and water 24/7

 

[Jillio]

Scatch isn't nutritionally adequate for ducklings. Ducklings need duck food although they might be started on starter crumbles forumlated for chicks, with added niacin. I strongly recommend htat you get duck pellets for them now, an continue with added brewer's yeast to increase their niacin intake. I sprinkle 1 tblespn brewer's yeast over each cup of food in their bowl. At this young age, they still need food and water 24/7

Sorry for the confusion, I’m not feeding them chicken scratch- I’m feeding them on Scratch and Peck Grower Feed (just switched them over last week according to advice on Lisa Steele’s page on raising ducklings) and adding in Niacin (Brewer’s Yeast or Nutritional Yeast). Thank you for answering my question about their needs for food and water 24/7. It seems to me that there is a possibility they died from not having enough water in which to dip the entirety of their bills in, now that they are getting older the water may be too shallow. Does this sound possible? Any more thoughts are appreciated.

 

[Miss Lydia]

They really need to have access to their feed 24/7 when growing so fast which is their first 6 weeks of life. And being ducklings their foraging skills are a learned art so they may not being getting as much to eat by as you would think . Can you give them a deeper container for their water so they can dunk their bills when my duckling graduated to outside these are the waterers.

I used they can dunk their bills but can’t climb in so they don’t waste the water.