Hi all! Like the title says ive never kept ducks before. Im considering getting two ducklings for my son for christmas because he loves birds and i cant think of anything else that has the same cuteness factor.
Ive been reading up on what ducks need as much a I can if any of you could give me pointers or fill in any blanks id appreciate it.
My plans so far are to build a 10' x 10' pen using two walls of the house that block much of the wind in the winter (it might be more like 10'x13' i havent measured it out but its definitely atleast 10x10) the fence around it will be only meant to keep the ducks in as i dont believe i have a reason to worry about predation during the day, but if i start seeing animals taking interest in them i am designing the fence to be easily added on to. There are parts of their penned area tht never get direct sunlight so they can escape the heat. Im planning on building them a roughly 2'x3' hutch.. should that be big enough? I dont want to go too big and take away from their outside area.
I do not have a fenced yard so they can only free range when im out with them, should i expect them to try to run away?
I plan on burying a kiddie pool and plumbing it to have a pump move the water so it doesnt go stagnant as fast (will it even make a difference?) And so that i can open a valve and pump all the water out to make cleaning easier.
For the sake of appearances I was thinking of putting either mulch or a combination of sand/gravel down. And i figure in addition to looks theyd be able to eat the plants without killing the roots so they maybe grow back.
Thats the extent of my plans so far. Anything im overlooking or going about wrong? Also as far as species go ive read that peking is the best choice with children but also that they are very loud. Are my neighbors going to be calling animal control on me every week?
Ive been reading up on what ducks need as much a I can if any of you could give me pointers or fill in any blanks id appreciate it.
My plans so far are to build a 10' x 10' pen using two walls of the house that block much of the wind in the winter (it might be more like 10'x13' i havent measured it out but its definitely atleast 10x10) the fence around it will be only meant to keep the ducks in as i dont believe i have a reason to worry about predation during the day, but if i start seeing animals taking interest in them i am designing the fence to be easily added on to. There are parts of their penned area tht never get direct sunlight so they can escape the heat. Im planning on building them a roughly 2'x3' hutch.. should that be big enough? I dont want to go too big and take away from their outside area.
I do not have a fenced yard so they can only free range when im out with them, should i expect them to try to run away?
I plan on burying a kiddie pool and plumbing it to have a pump move the water so it doesnt go stagnant as fast (will it even make a difference?) And so that i can open a valve and pump all the water out to make cleaning easier.
For the sake of appearances I was thinking of putting either mulch or a combination of sand/gravel down. And i figure in addition to looks theyd be able to eat the plants without killing the roots so they maybe grow back.
Thats the extent of my plans so far. Anything im overlooking or going about wrong? Also as far as species go ive read that peking is the best choice with children but also that they are very loud. Are my neighbors going to be calling animal control on me every week?
