They are soo cute! I was wondering, do you have chickens paired with your ducks? Because we were thinking of getting ducks and putting them with our chickens? Do you have any suggestions on that? I know that is off topic of this, but just wondering.
This is a duck newbie story!
Just so y’all know I am a very literal person. So, when I got ducklings everything I’d read said they had to have water with their feed. And I witnessed the little boogers take a bite of feed and immediately run to get a drink of water (and wash out 50% of the food in their mouths!)
Once I began letting them free range I really was worried about them not having water all over the yard. Of course there were all kinds of water tubs all over the chicken yard and down at the barn and on my deck, but that isn’t the direction the ducks took as they entered the big, green yard. They went the other way. So, I scrounged up two more water tubs and put them out that way. Life was good!
Problem was they started venturing farther and farther away!I honestly didn’t know what I was gonna do. I couldn’t provide water every 20 or so feet, so I didn’t. And I worried.
But what I observed was the ducks could eat and eat and eat without water after every bite. They would eat bugs and grass and more bugs again, and after a bit they would waddle/run to a water tub. It’s amazing that they are aware of the location of every single source of water on the property.
I don’t know the reason I thought I needed to share this, but I guess the moral of this story is 1) you can’t believe everything you read 2) ducks don’t always have to have water with their food and 3) my ducks know the layout of my yard better than my DH does.
True story!!!
First off, I can’t believe you have your brooder set up on tables in your office. But after seeing this picture I better understand the story of the sweet potato poop stain!Just look at my brooder-setup of this year: Food, Water, blank heat-pad and a freaking egg-carton as the duckling cave! - I can't believe how much time (and duck-tape) i invested into to »Building a Momma Heat Cave for Ducklings« last year. The ducklings are perfectly happy sitting on that heat-pad with a cardboard box over their little heads. If the heat-pad is full of poop, i rinse it down with the garden hose, if the cardboard-box is too poopy, i get another one out of the endless Amazing supply…
Compare that to the elaborate setup of last Spring:
I must have been crazy! - And of course the 'lings trashed their place within days!
It's the same symptom as with fthe first kid and every other kid after that:
View attachment 2330021
As with the water: Ducks can overstuff themselves, remember the episode when my ducks ate too many grasshoppers, but that usually only happens to young and greedy ducks. Every morning Blanca Duck alone gulps down at least two scoops of cat-food without anything to drink. Then she kicks over the water bucket and guzzles it all up from the ground. Seriously: My ducks prefer to drink the dirtiest, ickiest water from wherever they can get it over a bowl with nice clean water. Clean water is only good for »corkscrewing«.
Oh dear, I’m thankful I can hold mine, well some of them. Quinny and Peaches aren’t much for being picked up at all.What a sweet drake! - I would never dare to try holding one of my grown ups like this: Blanca would immediately start ripping what little hair is left on my skull and eat it. Katharina Duck would just shred my ear and Limpy would likely have an "accident" on the other side…
Maybe i can train some of the new ducklings to be more cuddly
My Ralphie Dux did not have a band...because he was an accidental drake that was placed in the wrong bin. And I’m under the impression your 13th duckling wasn’t banded because they wanted to “sneak one over on you.” It would have been banded if you had ordered one. Who is Meyer/Metzer trying to fool?
Congratulations and welcome to “the dark side!” Nah, I’m just kidding!Everybody needs to congratulate @Texag87 he just got married.
That security light is fairly new and it is a bright bright LED. I’m not so sure it’s a security light, but one for a mall parking lot that shines directly into my bathroom window.
