Topic of the Week - Feeding Ducks

[casportpony]

I know you aren’t supposed to give wild birds dry rice because it can expand once they eat it and kill them. That’s why lots of people are now tossing bird seed at weddings. I don’t know for sure if the same concept applies to ducks but I would assume it does. You may want to look into it. Cooked rice is a good treat.

Did you know this is a myth? All birds can eat uncooked rice:
https://www.snopes.com/critters/crusader/birdrice.asp

 

[lomine]

Did you know this is a myth? All birds can eat uncooked rice:
https://www.snopes.com/critters/crusader/birdrice.asp

Hmm I always kind of wondered about that since birds don't have stomachs but honestly never looked into it. Guess that's a good lesson for me to do a little research myself first.

 

[chickens really]

Hmm I always kind of wondered about that since birds don't have stomachs but honestly never looked into it. Guess that's a good lesson for me to do a little research myself first.

Of course they have stomachs ...

 

[casportpony]

Hmm I always kind of wondered about that since birds don't have stomachs but honestly never looked into it. Guess that's a good lesson for me to do a little research myself first.

I believed it too, so don't feel bad!

 

[casportpony]

Chicken Digestive tract:

Ducks are the same except their crops look like the left most crop in this picture:

 

[Miss Lydia]

I don't see a stomach in this chicken? is it called something else gizzard?

 

[casportpony]

I don't see a stomach in this chicken? is it called something else gizzard?

I think some people call the proventriculus the stomach.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Okay so feed goes there then into gizzard for grinding up sounds backwards? oh wait they don't grind in the gizzard? it's the crop right? When we have processed roos before their gizzard would have food in it.

 

[casportpony]

Okay so feed goes there then into gizzard for grinding up sounds backwards? oh wait they don't grind in the gizzard? it's the crop right? When we have processed roos before their gizzard would have food in it.

As I understand it, some digestive juices are added in the mouth, but not much happens in the crop. From the crop food moves into the proventriculus where more digestive juices are added, then that moves into the gizzard where it gets all ground up.

Lots of details here:
http://articles.extension.org/pages/65376/avian-digestive-system

 

[Miss Lydia]

Okay good I thought the gizzard was where the food was ground up but looking at the pic it still looks backwards to me. lol