Wanting Indian Runners

[turtlebutt]

I live in central FL and have been wanting to start a small poultry flock. I currently have a rescued Dutch Bantam chicken hen who lays well and 2 Muscovy ducklings that we rescued from a dog. I think one is a drake and the other is a female. If either of the 2 turn out to be drakes, we'll either raise them and let them go in one of the lakes around here or eat them, as I want fowl for egg production. My question is, can Runners stay in the same coop/run as my hen with daily free ranging, or do they need separate housing? Right now, the hen is in a small hutch type pen and the ducklings are in the yard with shelter and the pool. Thanks for any advice!

 

[Amiga]

Please don't just turn them loose. They most likely will suffer, and very likely won't last long.

It is mostly up to the fowl if they get along. Some keep their ducks and chickens together, some don't.

 

[turtlebutt]

Hadn't planned on turning them loose, although I do want then to free range on my privacy fenced property during the day. Hence the question about housing them.

 

[turtlebutt]

There are many lakes here with many ducks, including urban lakes with domestic duck populations. The city itself cares for them. And the muscovies were rescued from a dog where their mother was foraging in a roadside ditch. There are many wild muscovies here in Florida. Once they are grown and with the urban flocks they will be fine. I just don't want to keep any drakes in my flock.

 

[Tevyes Dad]

I do agree with @Amiga but you may also want to check with the city beforehand if you were considering the pond route. I was just recently on a thread where a Floridian was concerned about a vet putting down her Muscovy if she took it in for treatment, and I came across this site: http://www.myfwc.com/wildlifehabitats/managed/waterfowl/nuisance/nuisance-muscovies/

The key concern here is:
Quote: I have no idea what penalties would be imposed, but you should be aware that there might be legal ramifications. Now I am not a lawyer or even familiar with Florida law myself, but I figure you might like a heads up. If you find you have a drake, I would suggest rehoming or eating it.

Ducks are more messy than chickens. They will mix poop and mud and water together given half a chance and since they are more resistant to disease and parasites than chickens are, they could bring about poor conditions for your chickens while suffering no ill themselves. This can be prevented, but it is something to be aware of in addition to how they get along.

And in case you haven't gotten one yet:

 

[turtlebutt]

Well doesn't really matter now. My boyfriend just called me and both ducklings are gone.

 

[turtlebutt]

I can say that they lasted longer than they would have had we not rescued them and gave them a happy life with good food for a couple of weeks.

 

[turtlebutt]

And thanks for the info and welcome!

 

[Tevyes Dad]

Well doesn't really matter now. My boyfriend just called me and both ducklings are gone.

So sorry. We tried to rescue a little wood duckling someone brought us last year and we only had him for 1-1/2 hrs we had just set him up with food and water, a brooder and a stuffy, and even then that was really rough.

 

[PowellAnimals]

I keep a runner, a pekin, and a swedish with my chickens with no problems other than they are messier so prepare to clean the coop more often.