New chicky momma

[Dawn McD]

My husband & I just start our backyard flock this may 2017. We started with 6 chickens & 2 ducks, unfortunately 2 chicks died right after we purchased them. The hens & ducks are housed separately. I found this site just by goggling questions I have. I have found this site by far more informative than the others.
My hens have just started laying eggs,we found the 1st one 7/6/17 & since then we have a total of 5 eggs. We're slowly getting there. But anyways I want to thank everyone for their knowledgeable Q/A's it has been very helpful!

 

[Silkie2]

Hello!
i have 40 hens and 3 ducks. let me just say i find the ducks a lot more "fun" to have then chickens (don't worry i love chickens too, just maybe not as much lol)
if your chicks were shipped, then there is a good chance one or two will die :/ too much stress could be a factor. that's what happens too us. having chickens and ducks are great! not just the eggs, but watching them explore, run around when a chicken runs its the funniest thing, in my opinion. i've found that some of my chickens love head scratches like a dog!! hope you enjoy the crazy adventure of owning water fowl and poultry!!
(BYC is awesome and very informative)

 

[getaclue]

Glad you have found the site to be useful. There are a lot of members that are very knowledgeable on both ducks, and chickens. Welcome!

 

[Kiki]

Hi there!
Welcome to BYC.
We are glad you joined!
This video should help you learn your way around this site:

 

[Cynthia12]

Hey! Welcome! You are a chicken mama, they me the crazy chicken lady. I am sure I am not the only one!

 

[KaylorFarms]

Hello! Welcome to Byc!! Great to have you!

 

[drumstick diva]

You may want to post on the "Duck thread," and find out what ducks should be eating. I don't know if chicken layer feed is appropriate.

 

[Silkie2]

Hi silkie2
I agree, I do love my chickens but the ducks are so comical & they love being held & pet. I do have a question that maybe u can answer. My chickens are great eaters & with this site I have found fun ways to feed them, my ducks seem much harder to please. They are picker, they do love meal worms in their pool, that seems to be their favorite, they also like leafy greens. They always have a full bowl of chicken layer food, which they do eat but we seldom see them eating it. Any other suggestions of good food or treats for the ducks? They eat some bread, fruits & veggies. We don't know their sex, they were bought as straight runs, I believe they may be kahki Campbell's but we're not sure of that either,

Bread is a No-No, bread has no nutritional value and will just make your ducks fat and sick if given to much. my ducks like corn (only given as a treat) peas are also a great treat. i give my ducks collards (since we always grow a lot of it)
i also give my ducks chicken feed as their 'main' food. they also used to hate the weeds/grass that grew in their pen. but now they seem more then happy to eat it! maybe young ducks just don't like to eat leafy greens?? but what my ducks love the most is worms and bugs! especially big live worms! they come running when they see me lift up their water bucket cause they know that's where the bugs like to hide under.

 

[SpaghettiJo]

My husband & I just start our backyard flock this may 2017. We started with 6 chickens & 2 ducks, unfortunately 2 chicks died right after we purchased them. The hens & ducks are housed separately. I found this site just by goggling questions I have. I have found this site by far more informative than the others.
My hens have just started laying eggs,we found the 1st one 7/6/17 & since then we have a total of 5 eggs. We're slowly getting there. But anyways I want to thank everyone for their knowledgeable Q/A's it has been very helpful!

What kind of chickens do you have?

 

[SpaghettiJo]

I'm really not sure what kind of chickens we have. I tried looking them up & I think 2 might be white Plymouth's they are laying all white eggs & the other 2 are larger they are more of a reddish brown, they are laying brown eggs. I no it prob sounds horrible to not know, I was just so excited when we bought them I forgot to write it down. I would take a pic of them but it's pouring in Pittsburgh right now.

Do you have pictures of the reddish brown chickens? I have one Red sex link that also lays brown eggs. Not sure if yours could be the same, a production red, or even a Rhode Island Red