The Duck Thread

[Lynn Manes]

I'm in need if some assistance please. I have a swim pool for my ducks now but still have a small tub of fresh clean water for them to drink from but oooh nooo will they drink from it. nup they just dirty it in literally seconds. When I empty it out there is either mud or poo at the bottom. (why one earth are they pooing in it?). How can I battle this? Also when I clean it out then refill it there is almost like an oily film left on top of the water, it not from my water as the hens water is fine it only happens with the ducks. Is this O.K? Hope Anyone Can Help Me, Thanks.

Jiminy Crickets. About those marbles in the brooder waterer. I was thinking little beaks, not bills.Duh! You need to make sure you use something the ducklings can't swallow. Regular marbles might not be a good idea for them. Ok for the chicks & quail, but now I don't suggest them for your baby ducks. You could go to your local dollar store and get ping pong balls, or if you are a golfer put in golf balls-just something big enough they can't accidentally drown in the waterer and large enough the ducklings won't swallow and choke.

 

[Lynn Manes]

and on a related note I got my 1st duck egg of the year! One of the Pekins

You can't mistake a bullfrog sound. Very loud, deep bass sound. Like other smaller frogs it's not just a ribbit ribbit sound. You can go online and google bullfrog sounds. We actually bookmarked the sound to use to try to locate them when we are out. Seems if they hear one, any around will start calling back. It's our new GPS for frog locating

 

[suzy4027]

How about this fun duck fact... They don't even have the muscular structure needed to regulate their bowels! SERIOUSLY?! How did this slip past me when I was researching our newest pets?! DOH! You will never be able to get their water as clean as you want it. Good news is;
-OUR idea of cleanliness and A DUCKS idea of cleanliness are vastly different
-wild ducks hang out and raise their young in a fish's toilet. If you're showing a concern, it won't get worse than a fish's toilet.
-when we clean and clean and clean our ducks water, we provide them with hours of entertainment. Both watching us sweat and dirtying it all over again. We're just givers that way.

-the vast quantities of water you dump and the extra money you spend on your utilities are going to help fund some stupid road construction or whatever else your town manages to waste it on. Win/win.

But seriously, there are PLENTY of people who don't do huge ponds or even kiddie pools for their ducks. Ducks don't NEED swimming water to live (again, news to me!) but they sure love it! All they need is something to dunk their head into so they can blow their nose clear. Lots of people have gotten concrete mixing pans from hardware stores and have very happy ducks. When I let ours out to forage while I clean their pen, I fill a tote that's for under the bed. They have a 40gallon TSC rubber tank in their pen that has a pump and recirculates the water. They're just as happy with the tote.

Think, "easy to handle/move/dump & smallest amount of water required for me to feel like I've provided for them." If you do a kiddie pool, someone here did a study and her 13(?) ducks had no preference between a 3ft or a 6ft pool. She did pro's and con's of each and reccomended the 3 footer.

There are so many ways you can make things easier for yourself. Search the treads like a maniac and ask all the questions you want. There's always someone who has been there, done that, and could talk about their ducks all day. You'll never lack for options!

 

[HeritageGoose13]

How about this fun duck fact... They don't even have the muscular structure needed to regulate their bowels!

I think this is a myth, actually I'm sure it is. Broody hens do not defecate all day long as they sit on their nest, then when they leave for a break they go all at once.

Ducks poop all the time because its in their nature and they don't see a point in "holding it".

 

[suzy4027]

Sorry @cluckcluckluke, I've been out in the sun too long today. I forgot what thread I was on. Didn't mean to sound like you don't know what your doing.

As far as them using their water to swim, I have the opposite problem. The ducks walk RIGHT PAST their waterer and dip their food covered bills into their pool. ARRRRRG! Their pool gets nasty! I use a skimmer in it daily and I'll get crumbles out of it. And they'll swim in a tablespoon of water if they can manage it.

The poo...? Yeah, no control over themselves. Nice. The oily film... Maybe put a few drops of dish soap in the pan when you dump it? Not enough to make rinsing it an even bigger pain, but enough to lose the oil? Since they are coated in oil, I'm assuming it will always be a variable, no matter how small or large.

From what I've read, you'll drive yourself crazy trying to figure out why your ducks so one thing one way and your chicken are the opposite.

 

[suzy4027]

Ok! See, I've wondered about broody ducks and pooping all over their nest too!! I've read about their inability to hold their bowels, on several diff threads, I just couldn't set it right in my head. I assume (which may be my problem... Cough, cough) the the muscular structure that allows for bowel control is also the structure that allows for egg laying control. Then, just as sure as I've changed my mind, someone talks about a duck that laid an egg in the pond, jumping over a fence or while walking along, never noticing. I just decided to go with them not being able to control their pooping proclivities. Made me less grossed out by them pooping in their swimming water. Then drinking it. Or trying to eat the poop. Multiple times.

 

[HeritageGoose13]

Yeah, I think they just poop everywhere because they don't care.

There's another weird myth about ducks: that their quack can't echo. I don't know how that one started but its not true either.

 

[City farm]

I'm sorry to tell everyone. Cocktail died.

Condolences from us..
Your a good Moma

 

[kristin07035]

The past 2 nights I went to lock up my chickens & ducks & the ducks were... asleep/awake not sure cause it was pitch black out...in their kiddie pool.
The chickens & ducks share a coop & I had to put the ducks to bed all wet...the dampness in the coop isn't good for my chickens...question is can I leave them to sleep in the pool? Is there anything wrong / bad with leaving them in the water over night? (The run is 98% predator proof...i say 98 because the top is just bird netting but knock on wood in the past 2 years since I constructed it I never had a predator get in)

 

[duckies1230]

Those are some crazy duck facts! But honestly, my two ducks hate dirty water. I have 5 baby pools in my back yard, 2 for my daughter, 3 for charlie and JoJo, it started out the other way around but they took over and ry is more interested in the hose so she don't mind, but they will go thru ever pool, one gets dirty, on to the next, when they are all dirty, they pick the cleanest. Its strange! Maybe I'm crazy...