New duck parents

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Ericzahel said:
Hi me n my husband are new to this group,we have 2, 21 week old kakhi campbell female pet ducks that we hatched ourselves . I always come here looking for ideas n just wondering what other people's experience with their ducks are .my 7 year old son n husband built a homemade incubator and then orderd 2 duck eggs and 26 later we now have quakaleaha and pencil ,we absolutely adore the. And never imagined in our life we'd be duck parents ,they are such a joy and are so friendly and cuddly and outgoing, they each have their own unique personalities 💖 so since we are new to this we are just looking for advice and knowledge on being duck parents !!! I've done alot of research n reading on ducks. I have a few questions I'd like to ask ,1st question is my duck are they are not being raised for meat or eggs (however they just started laying last week )and I was reading that if yiu feed them layer pellets they will lay alot and can cause them health issues down the road, ibwant them to hav we a healthy n long life and I was reading if you drop the protein level to 13%-14% and provide pulverized oyster shells on the side in a bowl that should be enough to keep them healthy as lay but not cause them to over lay which can cause health issues .I'm not sure how True this is but I read this on Pintrest in an article from tryant farms . My ducks are in the house at night to be safe but im lookinfor ideas on how to make a low cost daytime area / coop for them that's safe from preditors, they were born in June so my son and I would spend the days outside with them ,we haven't left them alone in the yard yet ,there's lots of stray cats in my area ,but I want to give them more time outside so I'm looking for ideas , I already have something I can build of off ,it was a chicken coop .also I'm just switched them to Purina duck pellets n the oyster shells on the side n was giving them manna pro flock crumbles, so with pellets should I lightly grind them up in the blender or leave them as pellets ??? Thank u in advance and I'm looking forward to being in this group
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Welcome to BYC!!
 
Welcome to Byc
Congrats on being duck parents
I started with 2 and now have 16
When I only had 2 I had mine inside at night and through the winter
The first year my girl laid an egg everyday even through the winter months. She is finally on her break now after 15 months
I use oyster shells on the side and grower / finisher feed as I also have drakes in my flock.
You can build a run with netting on the top to keep them safe then let them free range when you are out in the yard with them.
I myself have 2 cats who are 7&8 and big hunters. They bring back smell rabbits , birds , mice and bats but they don’t bother my ducks at all in fact they protect them. My cat stood up to a deer who got a little to close to the ducks this summer
She jumped up on the cement wall and hissed and growled till the deer backed away from the wall then she jumped down and let the deer roam the rest of the yard eating grass and apples off the tree
I also have many cats in the area who have never come near them
It’s the hawks I worry about
So I have an area that’s fully enclosed they can be put in to keep them safe when needed
 
SilverBirds said:
Welcome to BYC @Ericzahel! Thanks for joining us.

1. Layer feed is perfectly safe to feed to ducks. It only poses a threat to males and hens that are too old to lay an more. Layer feed has extra calcium, which is needed for the females to lay eggs and make the shells stronger. It does not necessarily make them lay more. If you for sure have two females, you can give them layer feed safely. You can also feed All Flock Raiser with added oysters on the side (strongly advised for flocks with males or multiple species). I've always fed the pellets whole, but there are brands that make crumbles.

2. Pictures of your setup will give us a better idea on what you already have and what you can do to predator proof. A covered run, hard wire cloth, and latches on all doors, are a good start. When adding the run, make sure you are getting enough squared footage for both ducks (and a little extra too).

I'm very surprised you've lasted 21 weeks with indoor ducks! I usually put my ducklings outside at -4 weeks old. I would try and get them outside permanently soon.

If you have any more questions, you can ask in the Ducks section.
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Hello thanks for your response, I don't prefer to have havevmy ducks sleep outside ,we already have an indoor setup for them ,they have their own room in our house ,It doesn't get to messy as I'm very particular about keeping it clean , they are outside for most of the day but they are very happy n get alot of love and attention from the 3 of us ,we live in the city and we just feel better having them safe in our house at night ! I'm just curious what u ment when u said u r surprised they lasted 21 weeks inside? Is that like a bad thing that I want them to sleep inside at night so they can be safe n stay warm,I plan on keeping them n love them so I don't want to put them in harms way ! Trust me they are very content ,I mean they seem happy n they love being around us they follow me and my son every were .I'm new to this which is why I'm asking questions lol
 

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