some baby ducks followed my little girls home...

[maplesky7]

From the feed implement store.

and all i was after was some ball bearings and i wound up with baby ducks.

1 white pekin
1 ruen (sp?)

I have them in a box with water and feed from the grainery that the guy suggested...and a heat lamp on.

They are 5 days old.

What else should I know or do?

when can they swim say in the bathtub and what temp is good?

me,
g

 

[maplesky7]

great...so basically I just got 2 noisey messy critters i just read.

 

[crazy cat lady]

I think you are doing fine so far. I'm not letting my little duckies who will be 2 weeks old Wednesday sim in som water until then. Make sure you dry them off well and back under the brooder light to dry off the rest of the way. They can still get chilled otherwise. My brooder temp is llike at 84* and they stilol don't get under the light, instead they sleep in a shaded corner. But so far they are doing just great. I have 3 rouens. Hoping to get my pekins soon alongwith my toulouse geese. Believe me I'm not an expert here, but I have raised baby ducklings before.

 

[maplesky7]

Just found this on someone here's site:

"You shouldn’t put ducks into deep water until they have feathers, they could sink!

The water is immediately dirty, so we try to change it 3 times a day."


And they had a shallow pan they could float but still touch the bottom in. Good idea.


Trying to figure out how to sex them:

and I read somewhere that girls quack first....
and boys get a curly tail feather.


so are ducks really noisey? Noisier than chickens and roosters?

 

[redhen]

hey G, you can sex them 2 ways...by the drake feather..when they are old enough..its a curly feather on their tails that only males have...or by their quack...females have a higher louder quack..and the males are more raspy sounding..and lower pitched...a shallow pan is fine for them...just make sure they dont get chilled...just like a chick...gotta keep them warm! you will love,love them! wait and see!