I run my chickens with the ducks. The covered coop is sand (it is the most secure against predators so everyone gets locked up at night in this space) which seems best for keeping dry and removing poop. I scoop the sand run at least twice a day. The uncovered run (I'm in Utah) gets a little rain, some snow (used to be more!) and some sloppy snow melt days. The ground is bare dirt with a mulch cover. I have a koi pond liner...155 gallons that I pump every 3-4 days days and refill (I reuse for watering gardens). I thought about sand in this run but when sand gets wet and freezes it is quite slippery. Now that I work from home full-time, my ducks have the choice of their run with pond and foraging in the yard...the dog is on hawk patrol so they get lots of time in long grass and in flower beds. I thought I had a pretty good situation and was surprise that they have what the vet is calling pressure sores (not yet bumblefoot). They are definitely callouses at pressure points but are also somewhat raised, sort of like a blister?? Vet said it is because they are landlocked...he didn't know I had a pool deep enough so that their feet don't touch and recommended getting them on water. They choose to forage in the yard and return to the pond when they wish but I suppose I could limit their foraging time. I did read that persistent bruising could lead to pressure sores/bumblefoot. I haven't sunk the pool flush with the ground in order to possibly help keep mulch/mud out of the pond...but that's impossible because the ducks fill their mouths with dirt and rinse it into the pond even though it is raised about 10 inches. I have decks around the pond so that it is easy to get in and out but then there is a bit of a drop off from the deck to the ground. The smaller, lighter duck is the one with the worst sores and she struggles with the drop off a bit...as you know, they can be a little clumsy and jumping up or down ledges isn't as easy as with chickens. I am wondering if that repeated action has caused the pressure sores more than the percentage of time in the pond, on dirt or on grass. I made ramps out of sand last fall but they didn't last long so I'm either going to build earthen ramps, further sink the pond (not super easy...lots of buried rock) or build some sort of wooden ramp up to the deck/pond. It's certainly a learning curve...I didn't realize their feet were this sensitive. I see ducks on the banks of streams and lakes walking on rock and these issues weren't on my radar!
