Show off your house ducks!

[Vosh Sahaal]

Well for laying pets I would suggest harlequins. They lay very well and also are rather calm. Pekins lay decent but are more of a meat breed. Honestly a pair of female cayugas would give you plenty of eggs with just the two. Also consider your local aerial predators. Most hawks only go their own size plus 10% at most.

Housing wise I would suggest your shed. You already have it, conversion will be easy, and you can stund up in it.

 

[Tevyes Dad]

Hi all! I've been skulking around of this site for quite some time (years). I was originally going to chickens but have turned my mind to ducks. Here in Oregon, I thought a bird that loves rain would be a better choice. I've finally gotten the green light and so this spring I'll be getting some ducks! Here are a couple of starter questions.
1- housing. I have a great shed and was thinking to make this the duck house. I would then get some electrical fencing to create a secure area for them. My property is unfenced and we have it all. Roving dogs and cats, raccoons, skunk, and that's just what I've seen. My 2 big problems are this. The shed has a plastic floor. I've already decided against food/water in the shed at night and I am planning on keeping straw and/or shavings on the ground. Somewhere between traditional and deep litter. It's a large shed with (hopefully) 6 ducks. Problem 2 is that it's on the downhill north side of the house so the area gets very little direct sunlight. During the day I'd like to get a second electrical fencing to secure them in and around the garden area from time to time. Alternatively,I could buy and build a coop (I am no carpenter) and get the fencing to allow access to the garden. The problem here is I feel they will be less secure, and the coop eats up a lot money so I can only afford 1 piece of fencing. But they will have sun and easier access to the garden. It is close to some raspberries that always have crazy runners and I worry about their feet. Which set up do you think?
2- breeds. I can't easily order online for shipping problems. I was going to head to Holderread and pick up 2-3 breeds. I have my heart set on a couple cayugas but they are cutting them from the program. Any suggestions of where else I could get them? What other preferably flightless breeds should I consider. My goals are egg laying pets, not interested in meat.
Thanks in advance for all the advice. I've already learned so much from you all!

OK, I am going to throw in my pitch for breeds. If you are honestly looking for eggs and pets only and not interested in breeding, I would suggest 2 different color runners, a Pekin, a Welsh Harlequin and 2 other breed/color combinations you like. My logic is this:

1. Runners lay the smallest eggs but they are about the size of jumbo chicken eggs so they substitute in recipes fairly easily most other breeds are larger and may require more converstion.

Extra large is 63-69g Jumbo is technically above 70g, but I would consider anything over 80g to be bigger than jumbo. My runners lay eggs in the 72-76g range which I would consider a perfect jumbo most of my other breeds (Cayuga, Swedish, WH, Rouen) lay eggs in the 80g - 88g range. This is about 30% larger than an extra large egg so depending on what you are making, you may want to convert at a ratio of 3 duck eggs = 4 chicken eggs. Finally Pekins (I had one and am getting another) lay huge eggs. Mine consistently laid eggs over 100g (usually 102-110) and for special occasions 120-130g double yolkers. These are pretty much 2 large - extra large eggs in one shell. They are great eggs to fry up and freak out your guests or for super 2 egg omelets. I have a goofy non-dominant drake that I blame for the two 20g yolkless eggs that I have found.

2. If you have a runner, you want a second one because runners interact on their own level (they interact fine with other ducks, but they have a special thing going with each other.)

3. Pekins are loud and opinionated, but I think they are one of the smartest ducks and at least mine was a gentle giant.

4. Welsh Harlequins are calm and very mellow and sooooo pretty.

5. If all your ducks are different colors / breeds, they will make better pets because you will get to know them better. You can tell them apart with leg bands for medications, but if you want to know who just did this goofy thing across the lawn, it is much easier to know when they look completely different.

6. With 6 ducks, you will have enough eggs probably no matter what you get. Broody ducks will stop laying and from your second winter on, they will probably stop laying a couple months in the winter unless you use artificial light. During the summer you will probably get about 6 eggs / duck / week regardless of breed (it takes a bit longer than a day to make an egg so they have a skipped day about once per week - 2 weeks.) I think the biggest difference between the "good" and "bad" layers, is when they start/stop and how often they go broody - I could be wrong, but all my ducks lay almost every day in the spring/summer/fall and all of them miss a day here and there.

 

[room onthebroom]

We have a Swedish Blue that we love & singlehandedly gives us more eggs than we can use. Shes the only duck I've ever had, so I cant compare her to other breeds. My advice is about the food & water... My duck sleeps less than her chicken house mates do. Shes up noodling around in the dark shed long after the chickens have tucked in & seems to be the first one up too. It doesn't seem right not having food & water in there with them, but I know first hand what a mess it can be. We've solved this problem by hanging a covered bucket with nipple waters inside the coop. She still has her kiddie pools for drinking & swimming & making a total mess outside, but the nipple waters keep the inside nice & dry. She actually uses them whenever shes in there & she taught the chickens how to use it too... Such a smart, beautiful girl! As for food, the mess is not really an issue as she eventually cleans up anything she spills.

 

[FaerieGlynne]

Thanks Tev that is exactly the break down I was looking for! Wow!

Thanks, Room, I'll get the nipple waterers for sure and try some things out for food when we get there. Would you suggest getting them from the time they are ducklings to get them familiar with them?

I was already there on wanting some different looking ducks. I really like you suggestion and think I'll go for something similar. I didn't think about getting just 1 of a breed, lol. I'm still hung up on a feed place to get sexed Cayuga ducklings locally in Oregon. Suggestions?

I was thinking that since I've read that ducks only really lay for about 2-3 years but live for up to 20, that perhaps I should start with only 4. I will most likely fall victim to what I believe is called duck math, but I know I'll want to add fresh layers every few years. So now I'm thinking 2 runners, 1 WH and 1 Cayuga.

What has your experience been on how long the ducks lay and live?

 

[Tevyes Dad]

We have a Swedish Blue that we love & singlehandedly gives us more eggs than we can use. Shes the only duck I've ever had, so I cant compare her to other breeds. My advice is about the food & water... My duck sleeps less than her chicken house mates do. Shes up noodling around in the dark shed long after the chickens have tucked in & seems to be the first one up too. It doesn't seem right not having food & water in there with them, but I know first hand what a mess it can be. We've solved this problem by hanging a covered bucket with nipple waters inside the coop. She still has her kiddie pools for drinking & swimming & making a total mess outside, but the nipple waters keep the inside nice & dry. She actually uses them whenever shes in there & she taught the chickens how to use it too... Such a smart, beautiful girl! As for food, the mess is not really an issue as she eventually cleans up anything she spills.

I love my Blue Swedish too!

I am only mentioning this because water in the duck house is a hot topic that I have seen go back and forth a couple times and I think we have to keep in mind that there is membership here from all around the world (and those speaking The Queen's English undoubtedly think I should have said "there are membership"

). And If I limit this to two places I have actually been, advice from Marquette, MI may not apply to Phoenix, AZ and vice-versa.

I think the water thing depends a lot on where you live too. Ducks use water the same way we do with the notable difference that they don't salivate. So they need water for washing down food and they need water to rehydrate especially when they are losing water to heat due to panting. So no question about it, ducks NEED water if they have food! But if you live in a place with warmer nights especially if you live farther south where you have longer warmer nights, your ducks are more likely to need water during the night to offset dehydration. I know when I lived in NY, even though that is a fairly cold northern state, the summer nights were often warm enough that it was uncomfortable without AC. In Montana, even on days that reach 100F in the day, at night we can turn off the AC and air out the house comfortably during the hours that the ducks would be in their house. Plus living farther north, they are only in their house in mid-summer about 6-7 hours. I watch my ducks when they come out of their house in the morning. They don't bolt for the water. Some go get water first. Some eat some food then get water. Some just lay down outside for a while then get food and water a little later. That is kind of like my mornings. Most of the time when I get up, I have a little something to eat and drink within the first half-hour, but not always and sometimes I might not get anything until mid-day. Part of this is learned behavior too. When I first was putting my ducks in their house, I experimented with putting water in and they would always end up emptying their waterer into the bedding and not having water anyway. (BTW - your method seems very good for someone who wants to use water in their duck house - much better than anything I tried.) The first night I put them in with no water, they came out the next morning bolting for the water and I was afraid no water might not work. The second night, shortly before it was time to go in, they filled their crops with food and drank water for about 10 minutes (in shifts) before they went in. The next morning they came out happy and non-rushed. So I think that some ducks the first night went into the house a little thirsty thinking they could drink whenever they wanted and by morning they were parched. But after one night they learned make sure your get some food and water before you go in. (Smart duckies). Since then, I make sure they get out every morning but at least once / week (either live or off the cameras), I watch them as they come out of their house. If they ever act like they really NEED water, I will probably set up something like you have. We all have to try to keep our ducks as safe and healthy as possible and there are some things that depend on multiple circumstances such as mold/fungi in the area and humidity / ventilation. I do really like the idea of waterers in the house though as long as they have another source through the day to wash their eyes and nares, that sounds like the cleanest plan that would include water.

Thanks Tev that is exactly the break down I was looking for! Wow!
I was already there on wanting some different looking ducks. I really like you suggestion and think I'll go for something similar. I didn't think about getting just 1 of a breed, lol.

I was thinking that since I've read that ducks only really lay for about 2-3 years but live for up to 20, that perhaps I should start with only 4. I will most likely fall victim to what I believe is called duck math, but I know I'll want to add fresh layers every few years. So now I'm thinking 2 runners, 1 WH and 1 Cayuga.

What has your experience been on how long the ducks lay and live?

My oldest ducks (Tella & Ettie) will be 3 years old in August. All my ducks except my WH are on winter break so I am only getting the one egg at the moment. Hopefully Tella and Ettie will not decide to retire this year

but that means I can't tell you much on either account, I haven't had a duck go from old age and this is my second winter with laying ducks - last winter, my ducks dropped production down to about 50% overall. This winter they stopped for 2-1/2 months and all but 1 are still stopped (my WH has laid the last 2 days.) @Amiga has 11 runners that are around 6-8 years old I think... How are the eggs Amiga???

 

[Ravynscroft]

I love my Blue Swedish too!

I am only mentioning this because water in the duck house is a hot topic that I have seen go back and forth a couple times and I think we have to keep in mind that there is membership here from all around the world (and those speaking The Queen's English undoubtedly think I should have said "there are membership" ).  And If I limit this to two places I have actually been, advice from Marquette, MI may not apply to Phoenix, AZ and vice-versa.

I think the water thing depends a lot on where you live too.  Ducks use water the same way we do with the notable difference that they don't salivate.  So they need water for washing down food and they need water to rehydrate especially when they are losing water to heat due to panting.  So no question about it, ducks NEED water if they have food!  But if you live in a place with warmer nights especially if you live farther south where you have longer warmer nights, your ducks are more likely to need water during the night to offset dehydration.  I know when I lived in NY, even though that is a fairly cold northern state, the summer nights were often warm enough that it was uncomfortable without AC.  In Montana, even on days that reach 100F in the day, at night we can turn off the AC and air out the house comfortably during the hours that the ducks would be in their house.  Plus living farther north, they are only in their house in mid-summer about 6-7 hours.  I watch my ducks when they come out of their house in the morning.  They don't bolt for the water.  Some go get water first.  Some eat some food then get water.  Some just lay down outside for a while then get food and water a little later.  That is kind of like my mornings.  Most of the time when I get up, I have a little something to eat and drink within the first half-hour, but not always and sometimes I might not get anything until mid-day.  Part of this is learned behavior too.  When I first was putting my ducks in their house, I experimented with putting water in and they would always end up emptying their waterer into the bedding and not having water anyway.  (BTW - your method seems very good for someone who wants to use water in their duck house - much better than anything I tried.) The first night I put them in with no water, they came out the next morning bolting for the water and I was afraid no water might not work.  The second night, shortly before it was time to go in, they filled their crops with food and drank water for about 10 minutes (in shifts) before they went in.  The next morning they came out happy and non-rushed.  So I think that some ducks the first night went into the house a little thirsty  thinking they could drink whenever they wanted and by morning they were parched.  But after one night they learned make sure your get some food and water before you go in. (Smart duckies).  Since then, I make sure they get out every morning but at least once / week (either live or off the cameras), I watch them as they come out of their house.  If they ever act like they really NEED water, I will probably set up something like you have.  We all have to try to keep our ducks as safe and healthy as possible and there are some things that depend on multiple circumstances such as mold/fungi in the area and humidity / ventilation.  I do really like the idea of waterers in the house though as long as they have another source through the day to wash their eyes and nares, that sounds like the cleanest plan that would include water.
My oldest ducks (Tella & Ettie) will be 3 years old in August.  All my ducks except my WH are on winter break so I am only getting the one egg at the moment.  Hopefully Tella and Ettie will not decide to retire this year but that means I can't tell you much on either account, I haven't had a duck go from old age and this is my second winter with laying ducks - last winter, my ducks dropped production down to about 50% overall.  This winter they stopped for 2-1/2 months and all but 1 are still stopped (my WH has laid the last 2 days.)  @Amiga
has 11 runners that are around 6-8 years old I think... How are the eggs Amiga???

Excellent points and very well said, Tony!

 

[Amiga]

I love my Blue Swedish too!

I am only mentioning this because water in the duck house is a hot topic that I have seen go back and forth a couple times and I think we have to keep in mind that there is membership here from all around the world (and those speaking The Queen's English undoubtedly think I should have said "there are membership"

). And If I limit this to two places I have actually been, advice from Marquette, MI may not apply to Phoenix, AZ and vice-versa.

I think the water thing depends a lot on where you live too. Ducks use water the same way we do with the notable difference that they don't salivate. So they need water for washing down food and they need water to rehydrate especially when they are losing water to heat due to panting. So no question about it, ducks NEED water if they have food! But if you live in a place with warmer nights especially if you live farther south where you have longer warmer nights, your ducks are more likely to need water during the night to offset dehydration. I know when I lived in NY, even though that is a fairly cold northern state, the summer nights were often warm enough that it was uncomfortable without AC. In Montana, even on days that reach 100F in the day, at night we can turn off the AC and air out the house comfortably during the hours that the ducks would be in their house. Plus living farther north, they are only in their house in mid-summer about 6-7 hours. I watch my ducks when they come out of their house in the morning. They don't bolt for the water. Some go get water first. Some eat some food then get water. Some just lay down outside for a while then get food and water a little later. That is kind of like my mornings. Most of the time when I get up, I have a little something to eat and drink within the first half-hour, but not always and sometimes I might not get anything until mid-day. Part of this is learned behavior too. When I first was putting my ducks in their house, I experimented with putting water in and they would always end up emptying their waterer into the bedding and not having water anyway. (BTW - your method seems very good for someone who wants to use water in their duck house - much better than anything I tried.) The first night I put them in with no water, they came out the next morning bolting for the water and I was afraid no water might not work. The second night, shortly before it was time to go in, they filled their crops with food and drank water for about 10 minutes (in shifts) before they went in. The next morning they came out happy and non-rushed. So I think that some ducks the first night went into the house a little thirsty thinking they could drink whenever they wanted and by morning they were parched. But after one night they learned make sure your get some food and water before you go in. (Smart duckies). Since then, I make sure they get out every morning but at least once / week (either live or off the cameras), I watch them as they come out of their house. If they ever act like they really NEED water, I will probably set up something like you have. We all have to try to keep our ducks as safe and healthy as possible and there are some things that depend on multiple circumstances such as mold/fungi in the area and humidity / ventilation. I do really like the idea of waterers in the house though as long as they have another source through the day to wash their eyes and nares, that sounds like the cleanest plan that would include water.
My oldest ducks (Tella & Ettie) will be 3 years old in August. All my ducks except my WH are on winter break so I am only getting the one egg at the moment. Hopefully Tella and Ettie will not decide to retire this year

but that means I can't tell you much on either account, I haven't had a duck go from old age and this is my second winter with laying ducks - last winter, my ducks dropped production down to about 50% overall. This winter they stopped for 2-1/2 months and all but 1 are still stopped (my WH has laid the last 2 days.) @Amiga has 11 runners that are around 6-8 years old I think... How are the eggs Amiga???

My Runners will be six years old in about six weeks. The first three years, they laid nearly nonstop. They laid for 14 months, then took a couple months off, then 16 months, something like that. Each year they go on a rest break a little earlier, start laying in spring a little later, and take a few more days off during laying season. Still, last year, we had about 6 eggs a day from nine Runners (two of our originals died from internal problems) and three Buff Orpingtons. The Buffs are, we think, very close in age to the Runners. The Buffs are adopted.

Rowena, who is either a really small Cayuga or a Black East Indies (I lean toward the latter) started laying again a couple of weeks ago. Best estimate is she's about 18 months old.

And you've probably seen my night pen water setup, with a 2 gallon stew pot on sawdust pellets in the bottom of a large plastic dog crate.

 

[Tevyes Dad]

My Runners will be six years old in about six weeks. The first three years, they laid nearly nonstop. They laid for 14 months, then took a couple months off, then 16 months, something like that. Each year they go on a rest break a little earlier, start laying in spring a little later, and take a few more days off during laying season. Still, last year, we had about 6 eggs a day from nine Runners (two of our originals died from internal problems) and three Buff Orpingtons. The Buffs are, we think, very close in age to the Runners. The Buffs are adopted.

Rowena, who is either a really small Cayuga or a Black East Indies (I lean toward the latter) started laying again a couple of weeks ago. Best estimate is she's about 18 months old.

And you've probably seen my night pen water setup, with a 2 gallon stew pot on sawdust pellets in the bottom of a large plastic dog crate.

Thanks Amiga! I knew your "other-than-runners" were all rescues so I wasn't sure how old they were or if you even knew. I am glad to hear they don't just stop after 3 years! After this spring's shipment, I will be full-up! We only use about 1 young laying like crazy duck worth of eggs, so a decrease in performance is fine (our friends might not think so, but they aren't feeding the ducks

) If every duck laid an egg once every 2 weeks, we would be fine.

 

[Amiga]

Thanks Amiga! I knew your "other-than-runners" were all rescues so I wasn't sure how old they were or if you even knew. I am glad to hear they don't just stop after 3 years! After this spring's shipment, I will be full-up! We only use about 1 young laying like crazy duck worth of eggs, so a decrease in performance is fine (our friends might not think so, but they aren't feeding the ducks

) If every duck laid an egg once every 2 weeks, we would be fine.

That's about how we are. Having the youngster now has helped fill in the cold weather gap. Longer term, I do want a few youngers to add to the flock, and we have room for a few more. I had considered raising a few ducklings, but decided since there is a need, to adopt as they become available. While I have my self-centered reasons to want females, we also have a drake and I have had to do enough flock management adjustment to accommodate one, I don't think we have the room or brainspace to try to add any more drakes to the flock(s).

 

[Tevyes Dad]

That's about how we are. Having the youngster now has helped fill in the cold weather gap. Longer term, I do want a few youngers to add to the flock, and we have room for a few more. I had considered raising a few ducklings, but decided since there is a need, to adopt as they become available. While I have my self-centered reasons to want females, we also have a drake and I have had to do enough flock management adjustment to accommodate one, I don't think we have the room or brainspace to try to add any more drakes to the flock(s).

So you are at 9 Runners, 4 Buffs and 1 BEI (I am pretty sure too) = 14? I am currently at 12 will be at 15 after this spring and I have 2 drakes. So we are pretty close in flock size and I can tell you it takes a lot of love to keep Kaine around. And he was brooded with Tevye and they were best friends before the hormones kicked in and for the last couple months when the hormones were low. (The last few days Kaine has started acting more alpha drake again

) So no, I wouldn't add another drake unless you had a really good reason worth having him tug on your last nerve.