The Migratory/Ornamental Waterfowl INFO Thread

[exoticduckluvr]

you can also give them catfish food for extra protein. I think it is a little big & hard to eat alone so I put it in a bowl of water. They love it

 

[HottentotTeal]

I do the same thing. I used to get the medium-sized, which they love, but started getting the tiny floating fish food. The smaller one gets soggy within a minute.

 

[kangababy]

We have Southern States Waterfowl floater we give them and boy do they love it!!!

Thanks Everyone!!

 

[Boggy Bottom Bantams]

yes they fish food is perfect. I just would throw a bowl full in the water for them and they gobble it up like vacuum cleaners. It doenst matter how hard it is, after all they eat whole corn. Just get the small size (about corn kernal size) and everything you have, even hottetots can easily eat it.

Their wings are pinioned, yes permanent flight control.

For the eye, she's either blind in it, or has a cataract in it. As long as they other is o kay, she'll get along just fine. Probabley just an older hen.

 

[waterdog]

Quote:
Kanga,
I wouldn't attempt artifical lights, being in Michigan with extreme cold the first year we had waterfowl we put heat lamps in the coop the ducks could go into they were not locked in but could go in at there own will. When it started to warm up in the spring we unpluged them and all the birds went into a moult never laying a egg. You have a NICE set up I would just supply plenty of nest site sit back and let nature do its thing.

 

[KansasKid]

Ok at the moment i have a small hut with a lamp in it that my less dominant drake uses a lot (i don't think he would have made it without it) my question is since the rest of the birds don't use it (occasionally the bahama pintails will go and lay beneath it) do you think that leaving it in till breeding season will throw them out of wack like you said? What if i left it in there through breeding season (with a regular bulb in it) ?

 

[waterdog]

Quote:
We had a 10' x 10' shed that the birds we had then used almost every night, I guess I would use the lamp as long as needed and as you said maybe use a regular light bulb until they done breeding. We used a clear heat bulb I don't know if you have a clear or a red or even if it would make a difference.

 

[KansasKid]

Its clear, and its been in there since I moved them into the pen in the fall (only truly needed it this past week with sub-zero tmeps +rain/sleet/2ft snow) if my wallet allows I guess Im jus going to keep it in there and switch to a regular bulb when it gets warmer. I really just hate to remove it though, even know only the drake uses it, I'm sure its helped kept him alive, for some reason he wont preen for nothin and when the weather gets like it is he looks bad. I know ducks are built for this stuff but this little guy jus ain't right, I haven't seen him call since the dominant drake feathered out, really hopin that I can get 'em separated and get him to were he's "fiesty" again.

 

[Boggy Bottom Bantams]

Quote:
Kanga,
I wouldn't attempt artifical lights, being in Michigan with extreme cold the first year we had waterfowl we put heat lamps in the coop the ducks could go into they were not locked in but could go in at there own will. When it started to warm up in the spring we unpluged them and all the birds went into a moult never laying a egg. You have a NICE set up I would just supply plenty of nest site sit back and let nature do its thing.

yep, that would be my big fear of it, it messes with their biological clock too much and can really mess up a season. Nature does it the way it's supposed to be, so I'd stick with the sun

 

[kangababy]

Quote:
Kanga,
I wouldn't attempt artifical lights, being in Michigan with extreme cold the first year we had waterfowl we put heat lamps in the coop the ducks could go into they were not locked in but could go in at there own will. When it started to warm up in the spring we unpluged them and all the birds went into a moult never laying a egg. You have a NICE set up I would just supply plenty of nest site sit back and let nature do its thing.

yep, that would be my big fear of it, it messes with their biological clock too much and can really mess up a season. Nature does it the way it's supposed to be, so I'd stick with the sun

thanks everyone!! No lights for us!