Raising ducks: the good, the bad, and the ugly! Contemplating whether or not to add a couple ducks..

[MisfitMarie]

I live in the suburbs, a few miles outside of city limits.

I have a flock of eight chickens: seven hens and one rooster.

I have eight quail: again, one male and seven females.

I have been on the fence, for quite some time, about adding a couple ducks.

It wouldn't be more than two.

I would be interested in a bantam-sized breed and/or the quietest breed available.

Please share your thoughts and experiences on raising ducks.

I've been stuck 50/50 on whether to take the plunge or not, so any resources that might help me make up my mind would be fabulous.

How do ducks compare to quail and chickens when it comes to maintenance?

Do they require more attention/time?

Do they do OK in an urban environment?

I mentioned possibly wanting a couple ducks to a friend who claims ducks are extremely messy and destructive. Is this true?

Random questions, I know... But please... Share away!

 

[SFDucks]

No idea how they compare to chickens but it is a very small amount of work at our house. We open the duck house, rinse the waterer, and drop the food in the morning, then do the reverse every night. Even including the evenings when they decided to "go rouge" the daily average time spent is probably around ten minutes. They can and will ruin your lawn if it is very wet. I would not put them around nice landscaping since they just like to get into everything and often eat young plants. Girls can be noisy so if you have them near other people I would be mindful of that. Muscovies are quiet but pretty large. Not sure if there are any small breeds that meet those same criteria.

 

[Amiga]

My ducks are not, in my experience, extremely messy or destructive.

What I have found is that they are waterfowl.

As waterfowl, they have a special relationship with water. Once I figured that out, I set up their environment to work with that instead of against it.

If you already have an environment for dry land fowl, you may not want to adjust it to accommodate the nature of ducks. Or you may be so charmed by their personalities you dive in anyway!

Please take a look through either or both books - Storey's Guide to Raising Ducks and The Ultimate Pet Duck Guidebook.

We also have this https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/750869/raising-and-caring-for-ducklings#post_10611711

Then there are some water management threads

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/641902/created-a-water-saver-for-my-duck-brooder

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/679433/water-water-everywhere/10

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/858161/feed-water-solution-for-brooder#post_12901321

http://frankiemakes.blogspot.ca/2012/06/watering-solution-for-ducks.html

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/259876/do-your-ducks-have-water-at-night/10#post_13568197

post number 8 from this
https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/959603/ducklings-getting-stuck-on-their-backs#post_14939819

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/969751/help-baby-ducklings#post_15125952

If you are only getting two I recommend two females.

The smallest breed, the Calls, are also the loudest. The largest, the Muscovies, are the quietest. This is based on what I have read here on the Duck Forum.

There are some smaller breeds that are not that loud depending on the individual personality and how they are raised and managed. My Runner ducks are pretty quiet most of the time. They talk loudly when they first go out in the morning and if the food bowl is empty. Or if they have been in the day pen for a while, know I am home, and want me to come out and play.

My Buffs are a little quieter, but they are rescues and less sociable. They also can kick up a fuss if the food bowl is empty or in Carmella's case, if she wants to go foraging but is stuck in the day pen.

I love my ducks. They are wonderful.

If one leaves ducks, chickens (from what I read) or just about any domestic animal in the garden for too long (and for some animals almost any time is too long), they will walk on or eat the plants. I can walk my ducks through some of the gardens for slug control. And they are fine around larger perennials.