Stacking Muscovy nesting boxes

[BirdBrain]

I have some stackable bins (separated and laying side by side on the floor) with straw in them for nests, but I am wondering if that is too open for them. I am considering making some enclosed, perhaps insulated, nest boxes. Can I stack them two high if they are placed against a back wall? The muscovies roost on a shelf about 4 feet off the ground and the nest boxes would go underneath. What do you think?

 

[BirdBrain]

Any help?

 

[BirdBrain]

I am surprised that no one seems to know the answer to this question.

Please help me out here. Does no one have any experience with this topic?

 

[katharinad]

I'm not sure, if they will nest one floor up. I would put a piece of wood on top. That will keep the poop out it from the ducks roosting over it. I have Saxony ducks and their nesting beds do not have a roof or high walls in between. They are actually happier that way because they can see each other and stay close to each other. They are a very tight knit duck family. Not sure if that would work for Muscovy ducks.

My ducks also sleep in these beds. Each one has its own and it is fun to see them laying in it lined up for the night. This is one of my nesting row beds.

 

[BirdBrain]

Don't they get the boxes really messy?

My muscovies have a shelf about 14 inches deep and 5 feet long with a 2 inch lip to contain shavings. I have to add shaving a couple of times per week and change them completely about every two weeks. So no poop falls below them.

 

[katharinad]

Ducks are messy, and they are quite good about it too. I've noticed that they sometimes poo into their beds, but mostly they get up and poo all over the floor. In the beginning they used to poo into their beds every night, and now it has gone way down. Not sure why. I use the kiddie litter scoop to take out the poo, if their is any. I pull the old shavings towards the front and add new behind. That way I never have to completely empty out, because it works itself towards the front. I clean out the coop daily and they seem to love to come in at night with fresh bedding, clean food and water etc. What can I say they a spoiled rotten.

 

[Bleenie]

I stack my Muscovies nest boxes 2 high. I have had girls go broody in the elevated chicken boxes though, they were probably 2-3ft off the floor & screwed into the wall. Mine keep their boxes nice & clean when they're brooding in them. sometimes someone will poo in one of the boxes though

 

[Omniskies]

Muscovies will brood in nestboxes up off the ground. The hens can fly and if they decide they have found a better spot off the ground then they will go for it.

Or they will ignore the nestboxes and lay in their grit bowl. Sometimes it's hard to tell with them.

 

[NotAFarm]

The friend I got my Muscovies from lets hers free range their farm. The ducks like to nest in the hay bales and the nests are always higher up. They burrow between bales and "dig" out a nest. I would think that a two-story nest box would work for them, keeping in mind that if you let them sit on a clutch you would need to make sure the ducklings would have a clear path to the floor to prevent injury when they leave the nest. My friend has a separate "hut" set-up for when the moms brings their babies out. They spend nights inside and are out during the day until they are older and then they are free to roam. I got a mom with two of her daughters in June and am enjoying them alot. I will be getting a drake within the next two weeks when my friend does the last "freezer camp round-up" for this year. Hopefully, I'll be raising some little ones next year.

 

[BirdBrain]

Thanks for the replies. Now I feel more confident about my ideas.

The girls are testing out the nest boxes and burying the golf balls. I checked their pelvic bones and it looks like one is two fingers wide and the others varying degrees between one and two. Does that check work on ducks like it does on chickens to predict when they will be laying?