New to ducks. Why can't they be wet?

[chickens really]

Yes..Water triggers the oil gland to work...

 

[Miss Lydia]

I love that video @cheezenkwackers

 

[Texag87]

Yes, ducklings are so lucky that they are sooo cuuuute! - Nobody would tolerate the mess they're making would they be ugly beings.

You were under the influence of your STD when you got your 15

 

[FoodFreedomNow]

I agree with everyone here except for one thing. Ducklings will produce their own oil within a few days if they get wet. On my ducklings second day of life I introduce them to water by letting them walk through a pie pan filled with warm water and bits of floating grass or greens. They then go right back under the heart lamp. I increase depth of the water and how long they get to stay in the water over the next several days. By the fourth-fifth day I open the side of my brooder and playtime begins (see video). You can see in the video that the water is beading up on them.
Note: I am a teacher and the ducklings are in my classroom with me and a class full of students watching them all day. I do not leave them alone. I have successfully raised several batches of babies this way.

That mesh/screen as a "ramp" out of the water is a great idea!

 

[Miss Lydia]

Trampoline

 

[cheezenkwackers]

That mesh/screen as a "ramp" out of the water is a great idea!

Thanks! I read an article on BYC about how much tamer chickens were if they grew up in a brooder with side view (predators snatch from above). So, we cut the side out of a tub using a sodering iron and made the ramp out of screening made to cover gutters. The edges are all wrapped in duct tape. Only issue is they like to poop on the screen. The trampoline effect is a bonus!

 

[Lelilamom]

Wow! Thanks everyone! These are great ideas. These ducks are HUGE. They are Pekins and each weigh a good pound already. They run fast, can climb over the two inch lip of the pan I have in the brooder right now and don't stay in the water more than 5 - 10 seconds. They have a heat lamp and spent a lot of time preening and snuggling.

 

[FoodFreedomNow]

I love that video @cheezenkwacker

Trampoline

Totally!!