Runner ducks - daily feeding amounts

[Aunt Angus]

I use a tray that goes under a washing machine to sit my feed bowls on out side that way any feed spilled is easier to clean up.

Such a good idea!

 

[igorsMistress]

This is all very helpful to me. I am getting ducks for the first time next month. I have a big chicken yard they will be sharing with my chickens (hence the name "chicken yard" haha!). once they're old enough, I was planning on keeping food 24/7 in the covered run because of the chickens, but not in the duck house. I do not want to overfeed.

Are you getting Runners or have you not decided for sure yet?

 

[igorsMistress]

3 of my coops have ramps just as long as they aren’t to steep and you make the ramp wide enough they will do fine with a ramp. I use a tray that goes under a washing machine to sit my feed bowls on out side that way any feed spilled is easier to clean up. Inside when we get a lot of snow an frigid temps and I set up feed an water mainly for my little bantams that don’t like to go out, I put the bucket inside a larger container to catch any spilled water helps keep the water off the bedding and vinyl flooring.

Thank you so much, this is really good to know.

 

[NingwoodHill]

Update, now I've been out with the digital scales, so I know what I'm feeding our runners at the moment:

in the morning
~450g feed wheat
~350g growers pellets

top up mid-afternoon, which is gone by the time it's dark.
~450g feed wheat

Total:
1250g food per day

208g per head, per day 2/3 wheat 1/3 growers pellets.

And about 10 litres of water per day into the bowl and a handful of crushed oyster shells every 3-4 days, in the bottom of the water bowl, which seems to disappear quite quickly.

This mob are around 11 weeks old and look to be *big* runners to my eyes.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Why oyster shell? It’s not needed until they start laying.

 

[NingwoodHill]

It's the only bagged 'grit' I could get - although they don't need the calcium for egg production, they need the grit for grinding material for gizzards.

Because they're in a small enclosure and on woodchip at the moment, they need a source of grit, because there's none in their environment. Pain in the backside because of avian flu lockdown.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Oh I forgot about the lock down. How long has it been going on?

 

[NingwoodHill]

Only since 14th December. I would expect it to last until at least April, based on the last lockdown in 2017.