New to Ducks....Advice Please....

[JekkaLynn]

Hi, I use to have chickens for years then I moved and got married and couldn't have birds for several years. After another move we finally got some chickens again. A fee weeks ago while feeding my chickens a duck wandered out of the ditch and started begging for food. I checked online and found out he was a Cayuga Drake and he wouldn't be hurt from eating chicken grower pellets so I gave him a bowl of pellets and a bowl of water. He ate it all then settled down and slept. I quickly fell in love with him over the next couple of days and was very upset when we finally discovered which neighbor he belonged to. They came and picked him up but since then he has come at least once or twice week and demanded a bowl of food before heading home.

Today I found someone with muscovy ducks that they are giving away for free. When I asked about them they said they had 10ISH...and that it was first person to get there tomorrow morning got to have them. We are planning to pick them up and set them up with a temporary pen and pool until we decide which to keep. The extra birds will be sold on Monday at an auction we are going to.

- How much room will they need to be comfortable until we can sell the extras on Monday?
- Will they be fine being fed chicken grower feed and some BOSS?
- Are there any tricks to guesstimate age?
- Is there anything else anyone can think of that I should know before I get started keeping ducks?

 

[Gatsbysmum]

Hi, I use to have chickens for years then I moved and got married and couldn't have birds for several years. After another move we finally got some chickens again. A fee weeks ago while feeding my chickens a duck wandered out of the ditch and started begging for food. I checked online and found out he was a Cayuga Drake and he wouldn't be hurt from eating chicken grower pellets so I gave him a bowl of pellets and a bowl of water. He ate it all then settled down and slept. I quickly fell in love with him over the next couple of days and was very upset when we finally discovered which neighbor he belonged to. They came and picked him up but since then he has come at least once or twice week and demanded a bowl of food before heading home.

Today I found someone with muscovy ducks that they are giving away for free. When I asked about them they said they had 10ISH...and that it was first person to get there tomorrow morning got to have them. We are planning to pick them up and set them up with a temporary pen and pool until we decide which to keep. The extra birds will be sold on Monday at an auction we are going to.

- How much room will they need to be comfortable until we can sell the extras on Monday?
- Will they be fine being fed chicken grower feed and some BOSS?
- Are there any tricks to guesstimate age?
- Is there anything else anyone can think of that I should know before I get started keeping ducks?

Ducks, especially young birds need niacin supplements, so mixing brewer's yeast into food is common. However, foods such as Purina Flock Raiser already has supplements in it, I believe, and works for ducks, turkeys, chickens, and geese. Space depends on how many you have. A house made from an industrial spool, such as this: http://www.instructables.com/id/Cable-Spool-Duck-House/ will easily house 10 ducks, as long as they can free range during the day. Also, they will need at the very least a kiddie pool of fresh water to swim and bathe in.

 

[JekkaLynn]

Sadly the person gave all the birds to someone else without telling us so we went all the way there and no birds. Maybe next time.

 

[Gatsbysmum]

Sadly the person gave all the birds to someone else without telling us so we went all the way there and no birds. Maybe next time.

I'm sorry.

I hate it when people do that...

 

[JekkaLynn]

We hadn't told our daughter get thankfully. She is only three and has been asking for a pet duck since our neighbour's duck wandered onto our property a few weeks ago.

 

[Gatsbysmum]

Well I'm thankful you didn't have to let her down. That's always the hardest part. :/ Hopefully you can find either someone selling ducks in your area or order from a hatchery. Best of luck to you! Ducks are great.

 

[JekkaLynn]

I know it isn't ducks but someone is bringing me two cochin chicks something in the next few days for free. He can't keep roosters so he is bringing me a young Cockeral and a Pullet to keep it company. They will be perfect to and to my frizzled bantam breeding pen. I need some smooth feathered birds to breed to the frizzles I have.

 

[Miss Lydia]

I know it isn't ducks but someone is bringing me two cochin chicks something in the next few days for free. He can't keep roosters so he is bringing me a young Cockeral and a Pullet to keep it company. They will be perfect to and to my frizzled bantam breeding pen. I need some smooth feathered birds to breed to the frizzles I have.

I love frizzles I have one bantam Cochin frizzle she is 6yrs old. Congrats on getting them.

 

[Gatsbysmum]

I know it isn't ducks but someone is bringing me two cochin chicks something in the next few days for free. He can't keep roosters so he is bringing me a young Cockeral and a Pullet to keep it company. They will be perfect to and to my frizzled bantam breeding pen. I need some smooth feathered birds to breed to the frizzles I have.

Well that's something! And I looooove cochins. They're so sweet and adorable looking. Used to have a black bantam cochin hen who would perch on my shoulder as I handed out treats. RIP Juliette.

 

[JekkaLynn]

What a disappointing weekend. The cochin people came out to our place but on the way decided they will they to keep the rooster as a house pet first before giving him away. Both me and my poor DD were so disappointed.
Early this morning our whole long weekend was saved! 10 minutes from our house we found muscovey ducklings for three dollars each. We scrounged up enough change for just two ducklings. Then my three year old emptied her piggy bank and asked if we had enough for more duckies. So we headed out to buy a few ducklings. We got to the farm and started talking and looking at their birds. They had chickens also and were having some problems with them. I gave them some advice and pointed them to this website. We went to pick out our ducklings and after picking three were in the middle of trying to explain to our daughter that we only could afford three when the owners started grabbing up more duckling and handling them to her...we ended up with three eight week old bucklings and their mother and with two tony two week old ducklings...the adult ducks had been listed for 15$ each and the ducklings for 3$...we payed 9$ for everything and got a container of duck grower for the little babies.