Ratios if drakes to ducks

[J99]

I would separate the ducks from the chickens. Have two separate pens.
Drakes don't mix with female chickens. Drakes can really damage a hen if he tries to breed it. They aren't made the same.

I have 2 drakes and 7 hens. Plenty of fertile eggs. I would get at least 2 hens if you get a drake.

Yessss Icannot stress this enough DO NOT put drakes in with hens
My two drakes killed three of my hens before I even knew what was happening
I had to make them their own area
But I lost one of my favorite girls a beautiful silver laced wyondotte

 

[PirateGirl]

I think we are just disputing semantics. You don't need a chicken coop, you do need a duck house. The basic requirements are totally different. I wouldn't call a duck house a coop.

That makes more sense. I thought the not needing a coop comment was saying that ducks don't need housing/shelter and are just fine outside all the time.

 

[johntfs]

Oh also you don't need a coop for ducks. They'll do fine sleeping on the floor of the coop if you are going to get one for chickens anyway, but for just ducks, the standard chicken coops are inconvenient and unnecessary.

Nothing firsthand, but most of what I've read/heard indicates that keeping ducks and chickens together is... risky. Drakes will sometimes mate (and injure/kill) chicken hens. Meanwhile, if ducks get a bloody wound, chickens will peck at the wound, sometimes pecking the ducks to death.

Maybe ducks don't need an actual "coop" as such, but it does seem like it's better if they have their own space.

I agree! I actually feel like ducks are even more abused than chickens. It seems like people think they can just dump them at a park/pond and they'll be fine.

They are only cute for like two weeks and even then they are very messy and stinky, which I don't think many people realize. They are a lot more work than chickens. I LOVED owning ducks but won't do it again until I have water on my property. The baby pool I used worked okay but was too much work to clean.

Oh, now that I understand.

Ducks are great. It's people that are morons/@$$holes.

For my part I think ducks are cute even as adults with the waddling and the quacking. Of course baby ducklings are just especially adorable.

 

[Isaac 0]

I've never once had a drake mate a chicken, You're bound to get problems if you pen anything together in a small space also having plenty of duck(hens) for the males helps significantly.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Same here.