New ducks and Old ducks sharing a house?..

[agoobertuesday]

Well, we've done some improvements to the duck pen. I did get some netting on top, although I'm not super happy with the quality. Money constrants kept me from buying the heavy duty netting that I wanted, but so far this seems to be effective. My older ducks, a buff and two mallards, have done little exploring outside the pen but seem content in it. They are about 3 months old now. My new runners arrived 4 weeks ago and I've been attempting to get them accustomed to each other. The older ducks seem to want to bully the babies around. I've got the babies in a small circular wire enclosure inside the main pen and have exposed them a couple times to the older ducks and the bullies just try to corner them and chase them through the fence. (I should have run my chicken wire further up the main fence). In watching them, I'm concerned that when I eventually integrate them, we are going to have trouble with sharing the duck house. For right now I cut down a barrel for temporary housing for the babies but they will be outgrowing it soon. In your experience, is housing something that they will eventually share? I'm on the lookout for a something else I can use temporarily, but was hoping the one house would work for all in the long run.

The runners are hilarious. I keep thinking that the way they group up and move as a unit, they shouldn't have too much trouble with the other ducks in time. Like a little funny street gang. LOL

 

[sourland]

When the ducklings are much older try integrating by adding the least aggressive of your present flock to the duckling flock. Allow them a couple of days to adjust to one another and then add the next least aggressive. It will take time, but should work.

 

[HalfWayUpAMountain]

Well, we've done some improvements to the duck pen. I did get some netting on top, although I'm not super happy with the quality. Money constrants kept me from buying the heavy duty netting that I wanted, but so far this seems to be effective. My older ducks, a buff and two mallards, have done little exploring outside the pen but seem content in it. They are about 3 months old now. My new runners arrived 4 weeks ago and I've been attempting to get them accustomed to each other. The older ducks seem to want to bully the babies around. I've got the babies in a small circular wire enclosure inside the main pen and have exposed them a couple times to the older ducks and the bullies just try to corner them and chase them through the fence. (I should have run my chicken wire further up the main fence). In watching them, I'm concerned that when I eventually integrate them, we are going to have trouble with sharing the duck house. For right now I cut down a barrel for temporary housing for the babies but they will be outgrowing it soon. In your experience, is housing something that they will eventually share? I'm on the lookout for a something else I can use temporarily, but was hoping the one house would work for all in the long run.

The runners are hilarious. I keep thinking that the way they group up and move as a unit, they shouldn't have too much trouble with the other ducks in time. Like a little funny street gang. LOL

That made me laugh - our campbell nero ducklings are like some marauding cloud of mischief as they try to take over the world .....