The ducks are killing my pocketbook!

[PeckinChicken]

I think this should be in the right place. I have 31 chickens, ranging from 11 weeks to a year old. I also have 8 ducks that are about 13 weeks old. My chickens all sleep together in a coop and the ducks have a tractor. Everyone free ranges together during the day. I want to say first that I feed my ducks well, they are not starving. When I let them out the ducks sneak into my chicken coop and consume about 25 lbs of food a day, food that would have lasted several days with only the chickens eating on it. Does anyone have any ideas how i can continue to let them all free range, but keep supplemental food for my growing chicks without the ducks eating it all. My ducks are all domestic breeds. Im hoping to find a way to keep them, at their current rate they're on their way out.

 

[CityFarmer202]

You could put the ducks away early then feed the chickens......Most of my ducks were gluttons too

 

[jetdog]

You could try making this feeder, a 5 gallon bucket with two 90 degree elbows, they have to stick their heads inside and can't fling the food out, I don't think a duck would be able to and save the chickens food. You could make a couple of them since you have so many birds.

 

[PeckinChicken]

Thanks for the bucket idea. I`ll have one built today. It looks like it might work, I`ll let you know!

 

[soydo]

Problem is, ducks EAT a LOT! They're always hungry and have huge, huge crops. If the ducks can get at the feed in the bucket, it's going bye bye!

The only solution would be to prevent access. Put the feed on a raised platform several feet off ground if the ducks are not muscovies.