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- #21
I would hope not to turn my topic into a "Indoor duck Vs Outdoor duck" argument. I guess the main thing to remember, as long as all of our ducks are healthy, happy, and we're not braking any laws against animal safety/cruelty then to each his own.... Neither of us is going to "Convert" the other to our way of thinking. As for people deciding the best way to keep a duck, they should read all of the info they can about ducks and decide for themselves. I never tell people to keep ducks indoors, but I willingly help those who have decided to keep them indoors (since there is not a ton of info about it). I also always tell people the truth about how much time/effort/and chores it takes to keep them happy. For some it's about keeping ducks as livestock, or for ornamentation, while for others it's about keeping a loving pet, and for some the loving bond between owner and animal is stronger because of how they were raised. I would never bring an outdoor duck inside and expect it to be happy. Not all ducks take to being inside either. I had the heart wrenching decision to give two of my past ducks I raised to someone with an outdoor farm, because they were unhappy inside. I adopted two ducks because they were raised inside and could not live outside any more, and they had no other place to go.
I do feel the slight need to defend my ducks, so no one thinks they are unhappy or not taken well care of. No one would throw a happy house dog in the woods thinking it'll be happier there, let alone survive. That is how I feel about my ducks. My ducks are bonded to us and are miserable without us. They expect to see us every single day, multiple times a day, and get very upset when they can't (like when we're on vacation and my sister or mother comes to take care of them), and are very happy to see us again when it's been more than a couple hours. When joe had to go out of the country m-Th every week for 3 months straight, as soon as he came home, he'd hear his voice and quack super loudly until he went to their pen to visit them.
They are happy and healthy (to correct a statement made- Only one of my ducks ever got bumblefoot, which she got from cutting her foot on shavings in her pen, like any outdoor duck could. It was just noticed and taken care of right away because I inspect her often and see her everyday. She got the best care, from the vet and at home, and is now perfectly healthy and happy and has not had another reoccurrence.) They are not diapered all the time (in fact they really only get diapered these days to go to the vet, pet store, etc.). They live in a nice spacious pen and coop with the required amount of space for six ducks much like any outdoor duck... the only difference is they have a regulated temperature and complete protection from predators. We open their large windows in their room and have fans so they get fresh air and sunshine. Their house is probably cleaner than most since it is inside and we are very diligent in cleaning it several times a day. We also have a small back yard with plenty of mud/dirt/plants/rocks/kiddie pool etc for them to play in and forage. I even make foraging toys for them so they have to look for food, both inside and outside. They are given feeder fish a few times a month either in the tub or kiddie pool for enrichment. The pretty much have everything a duck could ever want, with bonuses of extensive vet care and love from their humans. They are very happy the way they are. They do not currently have the option of swimming at will, but they will one day when we move. For now, our set up of swimming in the tub seems to make everyone happy (The know when it's bath time, and when it's time to drain, and when it's time to get out of the tub and go home). They also get very nice prepared treats every night, including some more expensive treats like watermelon, shrimp, seafood, organic greens, etc. Even their normal feed is well prepared with scratch, calf manna, catfood, parrot pellets, flax seed, grit, vitamins, oats, corn, etc. They do not go without.
To get back on topic, We have secured furnace filters over the holes created by the flood, in order to prevent any mold or dust from coming through the hole into our house. We also put in a new filter for our actual furnace (we try to replace it every 3 months or so), so anything in the air that gets pulled into the air register will get filtered before being blown into other rooms of the house. It's going to be a big job trying to pull out and replace all of the drywall that got wet, but it will be done. We have fans and dehumidifiers going 24/7 right now to help dry out the wet areas and keep condensation from forming on others, until we can get a plumber over here to figure out how to fix the leak, and them someone to come and rip out what got wet. We usually have two tubs to give ducks baths in, but the one is off limited until we fix the leak, so the ducks are being treated to extra backyard time with the pool. Only 3 of the six will go into the kiddie pool willingly, so I also put a bucket out there for the few that hate the pool.
I do feel the slight need to defend my ducks, so no one thinks they are unhappy or not taken well care of. No one would throw a happy house dog in the woods thinking it'll be happier there, let alone survive. That is how I feel about my ducks. My ducks are bonded to us and are miserable without us. They expect to see us every single day, multiple times a day, and get very upset when they can't (like when we're on vacation and my sister or mother comes to take care of them), and are very happy to see us again when it's been more than a couple hours. When joe had to go out of the country m-Th every week for 3 months straight, as soon as he came home, he'd hear his voice and quack super loudly until he went to their pen to visit them.
They are happy and healthy (to correct a statement made- Only one of my ducks ever got bumblefoot, which she got from cutting her foot on shavings in her pen, like any outdoor duck could. It was just noticed and taken care of right away because I inspect her often and see her everyday. She got the best care, from the vet and at home, and is now perfectly healthy and happy and has not had another reoccurrence.) They are not diapered all the time (in fact they really only get diapered these days to go to the vet, pet store, etc.). They live in a nice spacious pen and coop with the required amount of space for six ducks much like any outdoor duck... the only difference is they have a regulated temperature and complete protection from predators. We open their large windows in their room and have fans so they get fresh air and sunshine. Their house is probably cleaner than most since it is inside and we are very diligent in cleaning it several times a day. We also have a small back yard with plenty of mud/dirt/plants/rocks/kiddie pool etc for them to play in and forage. I even make foraging toys for them so they have to look for food, both inside and outside. They are given feeder fish a few times a month either in the tub or kiddie pool for enrichment. The pretty much have everything a duck could ever want, with bonuses of extensive vet care and love from their humans. They are very happy the way they are. They do not currently have the option of swimming at will, but they will one day when we move. For now, our set up of swimming in the tub seems to make everyone happy (The know when it's bath time, and when it's time to drain, and when it's time to get out of the tub and go home). They also get very nice prepared treats every night, including some more expensive treats like watermelon, shrimp, seafood, organic greens, etc. Even their normal feed is well prepared with scratch, calf manna, catfood, parrot pellets, flax seed, grit, vitamins, oats, corn, etc. They do not go without.
To get back on topic, We have secured furnace filters over the holes created by the flood, in order to prevent any mold or dust from coming through the hole into our house. We also put in a new filter for our actual furnace (we try to replace it every 3 months or so), so anything in the air that gets pulled into the air register will get filtered before being blown into other rooms of the house. It's going to be a big job trying to pull out and replace all of the drywall that got wet, but it will be done. We have fans and dehumidifiers going 24/7 right now to help dry out the wet areas and keep condensation from forming on others, until we can get a plumber over here to figure out how to fix the leak, and them someone to come and rip out what got wet. We usually have two tubs to give ducks baths in, but the one is off limited until we fix the leak, so the ducks are being treated to extra backyard time with the pool. Only 3 of the six will go into the kiddie pool willingly, so I also put a bucket out there for the few that hate the pool.
