Supplementing my ducks feed for winter - namely with Honey.

[6Quackers]

Hey hey duck peeps

It's winter here in Western Australia, and I'm wondering if I can dissolve honey into my ducks soaked grains?

The reason I wonder about honey is that I hear a lot of people use molasses, we do for our sheep, but as we are also beekeepers I'm wondering if I could use honey instead?

 

[416bigbore]

Hello 6Quackers, interesting question.

Honey is amazing stuff that has a multitude of valuable uses over just being used as a natural sweetener.

I was unable to find any credited documentation specifically related to feeding ducks honey mixed in their feed as you described. In general sweets are a NO, NO for ducks and I would not recommend mixing honey in their grains as part of their daily diet.

Molasses and Honey mixed in feed for larger animals in the winter months is ok for the benefits of the added carbohydrates. Larger animals are able to burn off the extra carbohydrates as heat in the cooler temperatures. IMO, this amount of added sugar in a ducks daily diet would be more toxic for them over beneficial.

I would not be opposed to using a small amount of honey mixed in the ducks water for the benefit of a natural electrolyte.

 

[6Quackers]

Hello 6Quackers, interesting question.

Honey is amazing stuff that has a multitude of valuable uses over just being used as a natural sweetener.

I was unable to find any credited documentation specifically related to feeding ducks honey mixed in their feed as you described. In general sweets are a NO, NO for ducks and I would not recommend mixing honey in their grains as part of their daily diet.

Molasses and Honey mixed in feed for larger animals in the winter months is ok for the benefits of the added carbohydrates. Larger animals are able to burn off the extra carbohydrates as heat in the cooler temperatures. IMO, this amount of added sugar in a ducks daily diet would be more toxic for them over beneficial.

I would not be opposed to using a small amount of honey mixed in the ducks water for the benefit of a natural electrolyte.

Valuable perspectives, thank you 416bigbore.
Interestingly molasses is a regular daily additive for some poultry breeders over here. I might have to quiz them in more detail, meantime giving only the occasional small dose to my ducks. Thanks for replying

 

[Ratchnick]

I use molasses as a binder for home mixed ration but its feed grade molasses which is not very sweet at all. Local honey Is pretty expensive where i live ($20 a pound), i cant dream of feeding it to my ducks.

 

[HalfWayUpAMountain]

I do add honey to water occasionally especially if I have a poorly duckling - its helped refresh more than one of ours.

I think I would be concerned about a mould a bit with it mixed in with grain ?

 

[416bigbore]

I do add honey to water occasionally especially if I have a poorly duckling - its helped refresh more than one of ours.

I think I would be concerned about a mould a bit with it mixed in with grain ?

Mold like in a fungus?......... Honey is a preservative and will not start mold by itself. The cause of mold would be from the moisture in the organic grain starting to break down and decay.

 

[HalfWayUpAMountain]

Mold like in a fungus?......... Honey is a preservative and will not start mold by itself. The cause of mold would be from the moisture in the organic grain starting to break down and decay.

Thats why I said when it was added to grain

I would think it would also need to sit around for a bit for this to be an issue.

 

[416bigbore]

I do add honey to water occasionally especially if I have a poorly duckling - its helped refresh more than one of ours.

I think I would be concerned about a mould a bit with it mixed in with grain ?

Grains can be dried to 13-14% moister and stored in a large bin or silo without a worry of it molding. Honey is a preservative and will not start a mold issues mixed with dry grain. It's the higher moister level that will start your fungus issue, not the honey. I hope I am understanding your post correctly. It's been a long day ! LOL

 

[6Quackers]

Thats why I said when it was added to grain

I would think it would also need to sit around for a bit for this to be an issue.

Yes that's what I thought, it would need to sit for a while for mold to start. And I don't let food sit for more than 24hrs. It's checked twice per day and refreshed accordingly