Mixed flock needs new to ducks

[PeanutnMono]

I just rescued 4 ducks.. 2 adult females and 2 that are 2 months old.

I need to know what to feed them. I have chickens and quail. But I know ducks have different needs.

I have chickens and chicks as well. I was told to feed all of them this food and offer oyster shell for the females that may need it.

 

[cavemanrich]

I use an AlFlock feed for my Chickens. I do not have ducks. .
But my Alflock feed is suitable for all different birds in a flock. Chickens, ducks, turkeys, Guiney, and so forth.
My calcium is at 2%. So it is fine for most birds, except, laying hens, need additional. I offer cracked oyster shells free-choice. I have layers, and non-layers. (that is why is use AlFlock feed.)

I looked at your label, and it is similar contents.
The IMPORTANT part is Lysiene , for Ducks.
Both your label, and my Alflock contain Lysiene.

Here is a quick copy and paste from online.

Lysine is an essential amino acid in duck feed, crucial for protein synthesis, growth, and overall health. The specific lysine requirement varies by age and growth stage, with starter ducks generally needing a higher percentage (around 1.1%) than grower ducks (around 0.9%). Diets should be balanced with the correct lysine levels, as both deficiencies and excesses can negatively impact duck growth, feed efficiency, and health.

So I conclude, your feed is fine for Ducks.
Lets see what other duck owners think.
WISHING YOU BEST,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

 

[PeanutnMono]

I use an AlFlock feed for my Chickens. I do not have ducks. .
But my Alflock feed is suitable for all different birds in a flock. Chickens, ducks, turkeys, Guiney, and so forth.
My calcium is at 2%. So it is fine for most birds, except, laying hens, need additional. I offer cracked oyster shells free-choice. I have layers, and non-layers. (that is why is use AlFlock feed.)

I looked at your label, and it is similar contents.
The IMPORTANT part is Lysiene , for Ducks.
Both your label, and my Alflock contain Lysiene.

Here is a quick copy and paste from online.

Lysine is an essential amino acid in duck feed, crucial for protein synthesis, growth, and overall health. The specific lysine requirement varies by age and growth stage, with starter ducks generally needing a higher percentage (around 1.1%) than grower ducks (around 0.9%). Diets should be balanced with the correct lysine levels, as both deficiencies and excesses can negatively impact duck growth, feed efficiency, and health.

So I conclude, your feed is fine for Ducks.
Lets see what other duck owners think.
WISHING YOU BEST,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Thank you for your response! We just got the ducks today so weve been trying to research as much as possible as quickly as we can and your post was very helpful

 

[cavemanrich]

I just rescued 4 ducks..

In my first post I didn't want to get too long, and off subject,
BUT for rescuing these little living creatures.
Rescue is a big thing in my family. Many of the dogs, cats, and a few chickens are/were rescue.

On the subject of feed.
I'm not sure the price of your feed. Some of the more fancy feeds do climb high in price.
I use the Alflock feed from my local feed store. It is their house brand, so it is priced very fair. They also carry other feeds, that are higher priced. Business Marketing.
All my chickens are my pets, and they all live long natural lives. That is why some no longer lay in their Geriatric years. My oldest chicken lived 13 years. But some of my chickens (sexlinks, Production breeds) only lived 4 to 5 years. It is their natural shorter life span.

 

[ruthhope]

Thank you for your response! We just got the ducks today so weve been trying to research as much as possible as quickly as we can and your post was very helpful

Ducks need more niacin (vit B 3( than chickens. My son uses organic layer feed for his laying ducks as he cannot find organic duck layer feed. But he gives added brewer's yeast (tablespoon per cup of pellets)

I had 2 rescued 2-2.5 week old jumbo pekin ducklings this spring. They already had niacin deficiency and gait issues i add nutritional yeast to starter crumbles for pekin ducklings as their niacin needs are far more than chicks. I use nutritional yeast for ducklings as it contains more niacin than brewer's yeast. But it's far more expensive I use 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast per cup of crumbles for ducklings until they ate fully grown and feathered (8 weeks.)

Its better to prevent niacin deficiency than treat symptoms

I would add nutritional yeast to the ducks' feed until the little ones are full grown. If the two females are laying, I would swap to brewer's yeast once the ducklings nolonger need extra niacin

 

[cavemanrich]

I just checked, My All Flock feed contains Niacin.
Tag states it is suitable (sole) feed for Layers, broilers, ducks, geese, and pheasants over 7 weeks of age.
So baby ducks may need some of the additional yeast mentioned above..
I just wonder how the wild ducks do in the wild, without the additional niacin that is recommended,,

 

[PeanutnMono]

In my first post I didn't want to get too long, and off subject,
BUT for rescuing these little living creatures.
Rescue is a big thing in my family. Many of the dogs, cats, and a few chickens are/were rescue.

On the subject of feed.
I'm not sure the price of your feed. Some of the more fancy feeds do climb high in price.
I use the Alflock feed from my local feed store. It is their house brand, so it is priced very fair. They also carry other feeds, that are higher priced. Business Marketing.
All my chickens are my pets, and they all live long natural lives. That is why some no longer lay in their Geriatric years. My oldest chicken lived 13 years. But some of my chickens (sexlinks, Production breeds) only lived 4 to 5 years. It is their natural shorter life span.

Thank you! We definitely love the ducks already. The person who had them before was just feeding chicken feed so i was really worried about getting them on the right feed.

I ended up going with Dumor Duck Pellet 20% protein and Niacin

Its literally the only thing i could find for ducks so im hoping it works out.

 

[PeanutnMono]

Tha

Ducks need more niacin (vit B 3( than chickens. My son uses organic layer feed for his laying ducks as he cannot find organic duck layer feed. But he gives added brewer's yeast (tablespoon per cup of pellets)

I had 2 rescued 2-2.5 week old jumbo pekin ducklings this spring. They already had niacin deficiency and gait issues i add nutritional yeast to starter crumbles for pekin ducklings as their niacin needs are far more than chicks. I use nutritional yeast for ducklings as it contains more niacin than brewer's yeast. But it's far more expensive I use 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast per cup of crumbles for ducklings until they ate fully grown and feathered (8 weeks.)

Its better to prevent niacin deficiency than treat symptoms

I would add nutritional yeast to the ducks' feed until the little ones are full grown. If the two females are laying, I would swap to brewer's yeast once the ducklings nolonger need extra niacin

Thank you, i found a feed called Dumor Duck pellets its 20% protein and Niacin. Its the only one I could find and it was $25 bucks for a 50 pound bag so im hoping it works out. We'll see how they like it.

 

[PeanutnMono]

I just checked, My All Flock feed contains Niacin.
Tag states it is suitable (sole) feed for Layers, broilers, ducks, geese, and pheasants over 7 weeks of age.
So baby ducks may need some of the additional yeast mentioned above..
I just wonder how the wild ducks do in the wild, without the additional niacin that is recommended,,

View attachment 4207831

I never thought about that, although i imagine wild ducks dont live quite as long plus whatever food they eat naturally probably contains the niacin needed.

 

[ruthhope]

Tha

Thank you, i found a feed called Dumor Duck pellets its 20% protein and Niacin. Its the only one I could find and it was $25 bucks for a 50 pound bag so i'm hoping it works out. We'll see how they like it.

I use 20% protein Dumor duck pellets for my flock of adult drakes. Any laying females would need oyster shell on the side. It's OK for ducklings from 8 weeks old [I have introduced it a little earlier when their starter crumbles have run out]. But if the ducklings are pekin, and particularly if they are jumbo pekin, I would give extra nutritional yeast to the ducklings until they are fully grown -- 8-12 weeks