School me on ducks please!

[sfgwife]

,for livestock purposes not pet. We have a lagoon that was used for hog uhm nutrient drainage but have had it tested and the water is clear and good to go now. It is quite large like small/med pond large and bout ten ft deep. It is about an acre of water and another mostly fenced in. If we got ducks.... do we need enforce it like a chicken run? Or just give them a shelter to be locked in at night? Or do they even need that. Yes we do have coyote here among the other usuals.. fox, coons, owls, hawks, the very occasional dog etc. will the ducks stay put or will they decide fly fly away from here? Or would we need clip wings? How much dry land do they need if we do need fence it in well? We do have wild geese and ducks that come through and use the lagoon for a stop over but not stay. We have duck weed on the lagoon during the growin season... is it safe for them to eat and be in? We have planned to add fish this spring to it as well. So. For something like this living condition and to eat what would be the breeds we should look at? A family member a few hours away has mallards she adores amd those are lovely to look at but how hearty are they? As far as feed goes.. a waterfowl feed is all we would need for that or something more for them? Anything that they like in the water or to do... other than play and bathe?

 

[Skipper81]

I recommend muscovy ducks. If I had a pond that big I would have 20 of them. They are quiet and fly very well from predators. They are also very beautiful and great swimmers.

 

[quackingdom]

for livestock purposes not pet. We have a lagoon that was used for hog uhm nutrient drainage but have had it tested and the water is clear and good to go now. It is quite large like small/med pond large and bout ten ft deep. It is about an acre of water and another mostly fenced in.

Sounds good, I think. So long as there aren't snapping turtles or anything dangerous in the pond.

If we got ducks.... do we need enforce it like a chicken run? Or just give them a shelter to be locked in at night? Or do they even need that. Yes we do have coyote here among the other usuals.. fox, coons, owls, hawks, the very occasional dog etc.

I would probably fence it in, yes. Ducks can wander a lot. Mine free range and stick around home, and I don't have predator problems, but not everyone will have it like that. Yes, they probably should be locked in at night. Besides the predators, they also need a place to lay their eggs, and if you don't lock them up for the night, who knows where they'll lay them. Maybe even in the pond. A shelter is a good place for feed, where wild ducks and other animals can't get to it.

The problem is, on a pond that big, how will you get them out every evening to put them to bed? They won't do it themselves, at least not until they've been taught. Ducks don't like being locked up.

We have a pond, about forty feet wide and fifty or sixty feet long. Our ducks know to come to their pen in the evening, but sometimes they prefer playing in the pond and refuse to come out. We use a fifty foot rope and have one person on each side of the pond. The rope skims the top of the pond as we walk and the ducks swim away from it, eventually exiting the pond as the rope "chases" them. It works great, but only if you have a rope long enough to span the entire width of the pond.

Bribing them with food might work, if they're really hungry. I tried it with my ducks, when I first started free ranging them. They quickly learned it was a bribe and refused to follow the "enticing" bowl of food. I just herd them now, but again, you can't herd ducks off a pond.

But they definitely need a shelter for the night.

will the ducks stay put or will they decide fly fly away from here? Or would we need clip wings?

It depends on the breed. Many domesticated ducks can't fly. If they can, you do need to clip their wings, because even if they normally stick around home, one of them someday WILL fly too far and get lost and not know how to come home.

How much dry land do they need if we do need fence it in well?

Preferably, enough that they will never be able to eat all the grass and turn it into a mudhole, unless you rotate pens, which wouldn't work if you have a pond. I can't give you any hard numbers since I don't really know. It depends on your climate and how many ducks you have. I have 33 ducks that use one or two acres of our property, and in most areas, except for their favorite spots, you can't even tell that ducks use the area.

The MINIMUM for ducks outside is ten square feet per duck. But they would destroy an area that small pretty quick if they weren't in a mobile pen.

We do have wild geese and ducks that come through and use the lagoon for a stop over but not stay. We have duck weed on the lagoon during the growin season... is it safe for them to eat and be in?

Duckweed is fantastic for ducks. They'll probably eat it all! I'm hoping to find some duckweed locally and start growing it to supplement my ducks' diet.

Wild birds can carry diseases and make it difficult for you to breed pure, but I suppose it might be okay.

We have planned to add fish this spring to it as well.

I don't know much about mixing ducks and fish, but I do know it's difficult in small ponds because the ducks stir up the water and make it near impossible for the fish to live. In a large pond, maybe. I don't know.

So. For something like this living condition and to eat what would be the breeds we should look at?

I would get one of the breeds that are active, hardy, and good at foraging (i.e. not, say, deep-keeled Aylesburies, which are so heavy they can barely walk). Muscovies are fantastic. They're hardy and excellent foragers. Mine find a good portion of their diet from foraging. But other breeds are great too. You may want to look at other traits, such as whether they go broody or not, how many eggs they lay per year, etc. What exactly do you want them for?

A family member a few hours away has mallards she adores amd those are lovely to look at but how hearty are they?

Mallards are not really "livestock." They're mostly just ornamental. They don't lay much, and they are too small to be very useful for meat. Also, they might try to migrate, since they're wild ducks, I think. If they suit your purposes, they're fine, but they're not economical for eggs or meat.

As far as feed goes.. a waterfowl feed is all we would need for that or something more for them?

Many areas don't have "waterfowl" feed. If you can find it where you live, great. If not, most people feed their ducks chicken feed. The main difference is that ducks have much greater niacin requirements, so many duck raisers add niacin to the chicken feed. If they are able to forage a lot, however, they will be able to balance their diet themselves.

They need some source of grit. If there isn't any naturally on your property, you need to buy it and offer it. They may also need calcium, in the form of crushed-up eggshells or something else that I can't remember.

And to lower the feed bill, there are a lot of veggie scraps and other bits you don't eat that you can feed them, such as cucumber peels or overripe tomatoes. You can also, if you're creative, try growing your own plants to feed your ducks, such as amaranth, pigeon peas, comfrey, sunflowers, vegetables, etc. Personally, my eventual goal is to grow everything my ducks need and be able to feed my ducks for free. It's quite possible, if you have motivation and enough space for gardening.

Anything that they like in the water or to do... other than play and bathe?

Our ducks find SOMETHING to eat in our pond. I'm not sure what, besides tadpoles. I don't know if they can catch the little fish that live in the pond. Maybe algae. Even the geese find something to eat in it.

I'm sure there's still a lot that could be added, but I hope that helps some at least. Good luck!

 

[Pigpie]

Muscovy ducks are wonderful and very personable, if you get Muscovy ducks, it would be very hard to not consider them pets as they are very hard to not fall in love with

 

[sfgwife]

Thanks so much!

 

[sfgwife]

Muscovy ducks are wonderful and very personable, if you get Muscovy ducks, it would be very hard to not consider them pets as they are very hard to not fall in love with

Haha nope... they would be for food not pets. Do.not.name.the.food.

 

[rachelsflock]

Do not name the food that looks you in the eye and talks to you? That's alright. They're happy to name themselves and continue talking to you

 

[rachelsflock]

Just a heads up: Muscovy tastes like beef. Duck tastes like store duck. I prefer muscovy. The husband also likes his beef duck.

 

[sfgwife]

Do not name the food that looks you in the eye and talks to you? That's alright. They're happy to name themselves and continue talking to you

Hahahha nope. We dont name the food here.

 

[Pigpie]

Haha nope... they would be for food not pets. Do.not.name.the.food.

Muscovy ducks are too cute to eat if you get Muscovy name them.. Then get not so cute ducks and don't name those ones