I will have to try and think differently after reading your interview here. Though, it was pretty awesome to learn about the real 'aart'. I actually grew up in Lawrence as a kid. My parents had all kinds of animals and we lived back then, just off red arrow on that dead end of 52 nd st right near the township dump. Haven't been that way in sometime though. My hubby has heard my stories and apparently fantasizes my early life...thus now, I now have chicks and ducks! Lol.
Edit add: My hubby didn't realize that my parents taught me young that you have to cull as well to protect the rest of flocks, children, or your own sanity. My family are all asking me if I am just going to put all of our newbies into my freezer! Egad! I want eggs more than meat, but goodness, even I don't like being the responsible one. Right now, it depends on the animals. I actually think I have one rooster with 3 hens. The ducklings will need time to determine a drake yet!
Hello! First post on this site...though I have been lurking and reading since the end of March...when my husband came home with our grandsons from Tractor Supply with 6 pullets and 4 ducklings. Sigh. It was a mad rush of trying to refresh my knowledge since my hubby doesn't understand that just because I grew up with farm animals as a kid...my parents handled it mostly. They did rescue 2 ducks and a chick two years ago. Needless, to say, a predator took the adoreable chicken the first night. The ducks were annoying, messy, and destructive to my pond vegetations and I found some videos on how to find them a nicer home in my freezer!
Here I am now. Hubby showed up with a coop too. I explained that the ducks will not be living in there too. He did end up making a duck coop. Unfortunately, first night, I could not find our old big ferret cage. the ducklings trampled and soaked one chick. The next morning, I found cage and separated ducks from soaking saturated chicks, plus retrieved my heat lamp from my greenhouse. Second day, another chick dead from dehydration! I did everything I could to get that stupid heat lamp up and away from them....ended up just shutting it off. They all were more active and happy with me just turning our furnace up to 71 degrees! I still kept them indoors one week until temps were near 60 in the day and only 40 at night. I kept dropping our furnace until it was 62.
I did borrow a heated pet pad my daughter wasn't using folded under a cardboard box in a nesting box...but alas the chicks were not interested and the ducks were just happy to have a bigger pen and straw in the coop. All 8 birds are happy now and growing big and healthy outside even with these erratic Michigan temps! I have not let the chicks out of their pen area yet. My dog thinks they look like snacky treats still. Waiting until they are bigger. The ducklings are growing exponentially and are wearing me down...the silly birds think I am their mother. They love to play in our pond but will follow me everywhere now! They are like little annoying puppies! ugh! I am obviously getting sucked in to this world of birds!
Anyways, just wanted to say hello and a thank you to many who had directed this lurker to other forum threads for necessary info. I realize I may seem like I am extreme in how I have cared for my chicks and ducklings at this point...but actually am really amazed at resilient they all are! Also, realizing that the babies raised and not older rescues....are much more friendlier and loveable!
Oh Yeah.....I am right here in SW Michigan too! 2 miles from the Great Lake Michigan!
edit add: I thought this thread would be best for my first post and introduction. I have read in other forums and honestly, was fearful other forums would criticize my new chick/duck lifestyle.
Well, with that in mind, we had ~30 ducklings hatch this week, and a few goslings. Maybe someone would be interested in some of them? We are north of Grand Rapids (Pierson) They are mixed breeds... pekins, harlequins, khaki campbell, and ancona/magpie/something already crossed-bred in the pen.
hey! we live pretty close! and welcome of course
Good idea!
I tried to search through all the pages here for an answer but didn't see it.. So here it is- I plan on putting my chicks outside today.. Only problem is, it's still supposed to drop down into the mid-30s a few nights again this week! Will they be okay out there without a heat lamp? I'm afraid to put a heat lamp inside of our small coop made of wood! My gut feeling says they will be just fine, but I guess I just need a little reassurance I'm doing the right thing!
