When can ducks go outside?

[lrbricke]

Hi all-
I have 5 week old ducklings that I’m wondering when they can go outside...
They have tail feathers, but everything I’ve read says they need to be fully feathered- how do I know when they are fully feathered?

They’re mixed breed- we have adult khakis, Rouens, and Pekins - we used their eggs to hatch from.

AoA when they go outside, can they start eating the layered mash that our adults get? I’m concerned as to how I’ll keep them away from it as they’ll all be in one area..

 

[Ducksandchickens]

How old are they?

 

[lrbricke]

Oh, also- we live in Pennsylvania - so our temps right now are 60s/70s during the day and 50s at night.

 

[CayugaJana]

Just so I’m reading correctly, do you have 5-1week old ducklings. Or several that are 5 weeks old? If they are 5 weeks old, you could put them outside.

 

[chickenluver10]

Layer mash is recommended for birds 16 weeks and older...it would be best to keep them on grower for now. My Pekins and Khaki Campbells are about 5 weeks as well, and are almost fully feathered. They have moved outside, but I'm in Illinois. 70's in day, 50's -60's in night.

Edit: My layer pellets say on the back for 16 weeks up, probably same for your mash.

 

[chickenluver10]

Good point CayugaJana

 

[lrbricke]

I have several 5week old ducklings...

I have read that they shouldn’t get the layer mash right away... I just don’t know how to keep the adults away from the grower food and the ducklings away from the mash, since they’ll all be together..

 

[happy duck]

I would just separated them when they eat.

 

[lrbricke]

Our layer mash is a 16% protein feed..

 

[Ducktown]

Our layer mash is a 16% protein feed..

The issue could be high calcium content which is needed by laying hens. It can start building up in their joints and cause serious issues.