Making homemade duck food and poop Q

[lovingduck1]

I have been looking for something that would thicken my pekin duck's poop. I feed her crumbles, grit, and oyster shell. She also gets veggies about once a day sometimes its every other. I would love to keep her upstairs but her diaper gets soiled in an hour and I have to change it. Her poop also smells awful! I think the idea of fixing her food like this is a great idea. I might give it a try.

 

[peepsandquacks]

I would totally try it! I went from 4-5 (and sleeping in a kennel) diapers a day and leaks and mess with crumbles, to 3 diapers a day (and out all night) and not a single leak with homemade food. His poop is thicker too so we don't have the 'squirt' messes (where he goes, and it runs out his diaper cause it's so runny).

 

[sallysinnamon]

Quote:
tell me more about the flock blocks you make..like whats the recipe?

 

[featherfinder]

What you are making him still gives him a completly rounded diet with everything he should be getting out of the food just like the crumbles? I have an in door scovy and would love to try something like this with her.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Me Too!!

 

[dianaross77]

It's really just dumping the amounts of stuff in that you want it to have in it and then putting in a binder. If you want to bake you could use soy flour, wheat flour, eggs. I have seen people on here bake it in the microwave instead of the oven. The first one I did was for the chickens, I wasn't sure how the duckling would like it. It was equal parts: pellets, flock raiser, purina scratch, and boss. I made the binder by soaking slices of whole wheat bread in milk and then added eggs. Next time I'm going to use unflavored gelatin to set it and I'll use this recipe:

2 parts duck pellets 16% protein
2 parts wheat berries (if I can get them) 15%
1 part catfish pellets 16%
1 part oats 9%
1 part alfalfa pellets 16%
1 part split peas 25%

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups water
4 1/4 ounce pkgs. Knox unflavored gelatin
8 cups birdseed

Boil 1 1/2 cup water.
Empty the 4 packages of gelatin into 8 tablespoons of cold water in a large bowl.
Let the gelatin sit for 1 minute.
Add the boiling water and stir for 2 to 3 minutes or until the gelatin has dissolved.
Stir 8 cups of birdseed into the gelatin, mixing thoroughly.
Let the mixture set for a few minutes, then stir again. Repeat this process a few times allowing the seed to absorb the liquid.
Spoon the mixture into a greased bundt pan and put in the refrigerator for at least 3 hours.

Remove the wreath from the mold by inverting the pan and tapping along the bottom. The pan may need to warm to room temperature before the wreath will come out.
Allow the wreath to dry on a cooling rack overnight or longer if necessary.

I'll use muffin tins or something similar to get the right amount for single servings. This will allow me to freeze them to keep them fresh.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Quote:
Thanks Diana, now are you giving this as a treat or food their feed? and where in the world do you get cat fish pellets?

 

[dianaross77]

I'll still allow them free choice of pellets. On the days when I gave the flock muffins they didn't eat much of the pellets. They do free range too so they eat a lot of dandelion greens and clovers. I got my catfish pellets at TSC in a 50lbs bag. I would imagine pond supply stores would have them and any fish pellet would work.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Quote:
I never thought TSC would carry them. I'll have to look. I don't understand what you mean by soaking them, didn't you say aways back that you soak them in water? Mine free range also, well except for my duckling, his idea of free ranging is coming into the house for peas. lol I printed out your recipe now I can't wait to get all the ingredients and try it, and when dh sees me and I tell him I am making food for the ducks, well he thought I was crazy cooking for the dogs, he just might have me commited after this,

 

[dianaross77]

Quote:
I never thought TSC would carry them. I'll have to look. I don't understand what you mean by soaking them, didn't you say aways back that you soak them in water? Mine free range also, well except for my duckling, his idea of free ranging is coming into the house for peas. lol I printed out your recipe now I can't wait to get all the ingredients and try it, and when dh sees me and I tell him I am making food for the ducks, well he thought I was crazy cooking for the dogs, he just might have me commited after this,

I don't soak them so much as drop them in a shallow container of water so they fall apart a little. I'm going to try giving the next ones dry and see what happens.