When to give ducklings and their "momma" more freedom?

[RevLIT]

My broody hen has been diligently (mostly) raising the four ducklings she hatched.

They are on the floor of my chicken coop with a board to keep them contained in their own area. They are two weeks old and doing very well. Even after raising many chicks and one gosling I can't believe how fast they are growing. My question is this: How long should I wait to give them freedom to go in and out of the coop?

I live in Oregon, so the weather is up and down every day, cold over night and very pleasant in the afternoon. We are also starting to get regular rain. They don't lack for space, but it would be easier to care for them if they could come and go as they please, like all my other birds.

(The picture is of their brooder shelf, since she wouldn't sit on them anywhere but that box. They now live on the floor.)

 

[Papaye]

Hi.

My question is this: How long should I wait to give them freedom to go in and out of the coop?

If you can keep your hen and your ducklings separated from your other birds, there is no reason they can't go outside now.

Actually, they could already have gone outside as soon as they were 2-days-old : the hen would have indeed kept them warm enough if needed.

So : you can give them their freedom when you want to.

Besides : free-ranging will allow your ducklings to eat grass and insects... AND to acclimate (to the outside)... and that will make them healthier yet than they are...!

 

[RevLIT]

Hi.



If you can keep your hen and your ducklings separated from your other birds, there is no reason they can't go outside now.

Actually, they could already have gone outside as soon as they were 2-days-old : the hen would have indeed kept them warm enough if needed.

So : you can give them their freedom when you want to.

Besides : free-ranging will allow your ducklings to eat grass and insects... AND to acclimate (to the outside)... and that will make them healthier yet than they are...!

I can't really keep them separated from the other hens. My other coop and run has a ramp that isn't duck friendly.
They have been in the hen house these two weeks with no conflict.

Thank you for taking the time to respond.

 

[RevLIT]

Bed time was a clucking mess and Moon seemed very confused that her babies don't want to learn how to scratch, but overall it seems like freedom is what the birds needed.

Since they have a chicken mom, I took away all the water bowls. I assume they shouldn't get wet. Should I be worried about rain?

 

[Papaye]

Hi.

Since they have a chicken mom, I took away all the water bowls. I assume they shouldn't get wet. Should I be worried about rain?

No need to worry about rain, no...

In fact : are the days warm, where you live? (Warm enough for your ducklings to dry alone if they get wet, I mean...?)

Because, if so : you could then already let your ducklings bath in a (small) water bowl.
...First, ideally for several minutes per day...

You would need to monitor them the first 3-5 days, of course... but after what, your ducklings will have started to produce oil to make their fluff - and then their feathers - waterproof.

(My ducklings now start to bath at 2-weeks-old, if the days are warm enough...
Before that, I only let them start to swim at 1-month-old, because I believed ducklings could not produce oil before they were 1-month-old...)

Of course, the bowl really needs to be small enough so the ducklings don't accidentaly drown themselves!!

 

[HollowOfWisps]

The ducklings will be just fine in rain as long as they have somewhere to go to get out of the rain and warm up . Even the water bowls would be fine as long as their feet can touch the bottom. The only concern with ducklings and water is when they can’t stand in it, get waterlogged and drown. I have raised ducklings for years and I keep a rubber feed pan filled with 2-3” of water for them to play in. They can get in-out just fine since it’s not deep and when they need to warm up they go under the brooder plate. In your case they would go under the broody hen to warm up.

 

[RevLIT]

It is going to be cold all week. 40 degrees this morning. They are out and active. I have their food and water spread around the bird orchard. They don't seem to be upset about the temps.

I will probably wait until next week to fill the tubs for them to play.

It is hard to adjust to what you read about brooder temperature.

 

[HollowOfWisps]

It is going to be cold all week. 40 degrees this morning. They are out and active. I have their food and water spread around the bird orchard. They don't seem to be upset about the temps.

I will probably wait until next week to fill the tubs for them to play.

It is hard to adjust to what you read about brooder temperature.

Ignore brooder temperature recommendations. With a broody hen she does the adjusting not to mention in general I find the brooder recommendations way too hot. Seriously just let her do her thing. I brood all of my poultry outside in the barn in a 10’x10’ brooder with a brooder plate as their heat source. By 2 weeks the only time they use the brooder plate is at night and by 3-4 weeks they completely wean themselves off of the brooder plate even when it’s 40F outside. They have access to the rubber pan with 2-3” water the entire time as long as it’s not below freezing.