The Duck Thread

[Lynn Manes]

@lynnhill I believe there's a few owners here that use fly predators for fly control. Had to look them up myself but essentially its just another bug but it only eats fly larvae or something like that. I just started buying extra fly bags when my flock started growing and it seems to help. As far as space goes if you ever get overwhelmed I have plenty of space here, not sure how far you are from Yosemite, just wanted to throw the option out there for some ease of mind.
Attimus

Thanks for that generous offer We're in Bakersfield, so it's about a 2 1/2-3 hour drive up to Yosemite. If we decide to ever head up your way I'll give you a shout out here, ok? What do you raise up there, and did you guys get snow the past week? Someone here in town said they heard it snowed there already.

 

[Miss Lydia]

They are beautiful! Keep'em safe!

Signed,

Amiga, the worrier

Lovely boys and I am with Amiga Keep'em safe.

 

[season1223]

This morning I found a listing on Facebook for 2 free ducks. 6 months old both males one a pekin and the other indian runner. So...now I have 2 ducks

lol I couldnt resist. These are our first. Our other ones are still in the incubator haha.

[/IMG]

Their names are aflac and bowling pin lmao. Thats what they called them.

Haha! Thats cool! Love the names too! My son tried to name our duck Aflac and my husband named her Howard until she grew up and we realized she is a female...i had been calling her quackers because she quacked all the time so quackers stuck...her full name is quacker oats...quackers for short! Lol! Those r some beautiful ducks! U will fall in love with them...they have such cool personalities!

 

[kdunn716]

Thanks everyone. The guy who gave them to us told us to leave them in there for a few days. Then to let them out in a fenced in area for a few weeks then try to free range them. It just seems so mean to leave them in their house for 3 days

im going to get a fence up tomorroe for them. It wont be predator safe but im home all day and their little house is safe. That way they can at least get out of there and arent cooped up.

here is a better picture of them

im in love lol

 

[duckies1230]

A cpl questions I keep forgetting to ask...

First, I use straw for their beds right now. I've noticed lately at TSC timothy hay/alfalfa either together or separate. Can I use either of those instead of straw for bedding. They prefer straw over pine bedding but of course Lily makes her nest out of straw but the alfalfa or timothy grass are in bales just like it.

Second, I use bleach to clean their room downstairs, I'm a bleach fanatic, I use it to clean everything. Should I use something else? /

 

[Amiga]

Look into using vinegar. I read a scientific paper that stated using salt and vinegar is an excellent germ killer. And it doesn't have the fumes that could be a problem for you and the ducks. I use vinegar for heavy duty cleaning.

To prevent mold, I use either borax (mix with hot water, and spray or wipe) or ten drops of tea tree oil to a cup of vinegar in a spray bottle. I started adding mint oil to that, just because the aroma's a little more pleasant to me. I use it somewhat lightly - I don't like to have too much of any kind of fumes in the pen. I don't even like using the shavings that come in plastic, because it seems too aromatic for the ducks to have their little nares just inches from the bedding….

Here's the article. National Institutes of Health. Very reputable. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9713753

Oh, and I have read NOT to use vinegar with hydrogen peroxide!!!!! It forms something nasty called peracetic acid. Big NO NO.

 

[Frindizzle]

Quote: Thank you!

Quote: I suppose.

 

[OldMissionChick]

Day 28 for my second attempt at incubating and nothing I saw movement last Friday night then nothing when I checked earlier this week. I was hoping it was just because they were so big. Ugh this sucks!

 

[caesargirl]

Day 28 for my second attempt at incubating and nothing I saw movement last Friday night then nothing when I checked earlier this week. I was hoping it was just because they were so big. Ugh this sucks!

Have you tried float test....? It can sometimes detect movement you can't see...

 

[gander007]

Day 28 for my second attempt at incubating and nothing

I saw movement last Friday night then nothing when I checked earlier this week. I was hoping it was just because they were so big. Ugh this sucks!

Not to sound funny but are you misting the eggs during the incubation process ?? and if so how often ?? this will make a big difference ....