Thinking of getting ducklings

[JennH07]

I am thinking ahead to spring and my daughter Menolly who keeps bugging me about getting ducks, I am thinking of Indian Runner Ducks. Can they be housed in the coop with the chickens? And do they roost at night or nest?

 

[JustAChickenLittle&More]

Some people house ducks with chickens. I have tried on more than one ocassion and it was not good. The ducks play in the drinking water and get the whole coop wet. Besides that ducks are a lot messier than the chickens and need a lot more cleaning. As in twice a day! People may not agree, but with the exp., I had, thats my opinion. Now if you wanted to get a large dog house, and put a separate fence around it, that would be better. Don't forget the kiddy pool unless you have a pond.

I love ducks, but they are noiser than chickens and like I said can be messier.

 

[mommyofthreewithchicks]

It depends on your set up. Like the previous poster mentioned ducks + water = MESS. But right now for winter I have it figured out for my set up and they are doing fine together. I have a big barn and the spot they sleep in houses the food and in a different spot I have water set up... Course it being winter it is also an ice rink and I have had to adjust as we go. I do not heat the barn but because of the ducks have to lay down straw every two days. I am sure if I had them in a smaller space it would be every day.

Read up on duckling health before you get them as there are a few things you want to avoid- angle wing and leg issues. Also no medicated feed for the ducks. I have mine on an 18% protein diet but when they were smaller I believe the protein was 20% or 22%. When they were ducklings I spent the money on duck feed and then when they were about 8 weeks old I switched them to the chicken feed (non-medicated), I also kept them apart during this brooding time. I had to add Niacin to their water as I was having a duckling or two with leg problems.

Again as long as you can figure out the water before hand they do just fine together but the water can be a BIG issue.

 

[sheila3935]

If you are going to order day olds wait til warmer weather. I hatched 2 ducklings out 3 weeks ago. They are still in the house and THEY STINK!. I clean the brooder twice a day and still they smell. I will never ever hatch ducklings in the winter again.

 

[JennH07]

Thanks guys!! I have a small coop that holds about 12 chickens, in the summer the food and water is outside, but right now the water is in the coop, it is a no freeze waterer, yeah right!! I do have a smaller coop that I could modify for the ducks use. I don't plan on getting them until April or May, I thought that the chickens were stinky, if duckies are worse I don't want them in the house for long. Just thinking ahead and doing some research before I go ahead and get them.

 

[sheila3935]

chicken brooder smells like sunshine on a warm day next to ducklings. YUCK!

I did put my ducks for a short stint in with the chickens this winter cause I needed better housing for my 2 ducks but it didnt work very well. I really didnt get a whole lot of water mess, but the RIR's wouldnt leave my drake alone. They kept picking on him. They left the girl alone even let her use their nesting boxes, but the boy they picked on something terrible. They only stayed in there 3 days and I got them an insulated dog house to use for now.

 

[duckking]

I have ducks and chickens together and they get along fine....the occasional scuffle, but nothing bad...just a good poke now and then by either side. I DO keep them in separate houses at night. Sometimes the ducks try and settle into the chicken coop and they are shooed out and into their own house. They know the routine. But I would say definitely wait until you can brood them outside once they are a little older. I had mine in the house for 2 months becuz of the weather and well, it was almost duck soup time! NEVER again!

 

[Baymule]

Scroll down the index to Other Poultry and click on the Ducks heading. Lots of helpful Ducky peeps there!!

 

[CMV]

Housing chickens and ducks together?

My chickens would divorce me!

Seriously- I have chickens, ducks and a goose. I house the waterfowl separately from the ground birds. Their needs are so different that it would be interesting (?) to keep them together. Ducks are a blooming disaster- they turn the run to mud, they muck up the waterers, they spill food everywhere, the boys are too amorous/aggressive, they sleep on the floor under the chicken roosts, so they get pooped all over... I could go on. My chickens watch my ducks and goose from afar, and basically refuse to have anything to do with them. The waterfowl want to join their flock, but the chickens won't have it. I have found that if you want to keep waterfowl and chickens- GREAT!! They are all wonderful creatures. Ducks are an absolute hoot! But, keep them separately housed and penned. Your birds will thank you for it.

Ducks are really low maintenance. I have a small, secure, low-slung house that they completely ignore until dark. No roosts, no feed or water inside, and no nesting boxes because they have never used one in their lives. (I have tried to get them to use some sort of nesting box for years and it still hasn't happened.) They have a fenced in run that they fly out of every day, including the goose. They spend the whole day foraging through the yard until dark and then they fly back over the fence and put themselves to bed in the house. They do what they want and I have resigned myself to letting them. They are great for slug and bug control. Geese are great for weed control. I feed them very little because they don't eat feed for the most part. And they are the funniest creatures known to mankind. I honestly keep them strictly for their comedic relief.

If you want ducks then you should get them because they are great. Don't put them in with your chickens, though. They require so little that it is easy to accomodate them.

Good luck.

 

[waryyear950]

We hatched out eggs last year 4 were turkeys the rest ducks. Tried to put the two together. And it didnt work. The ducks played in there water so much everything was wet.