Where, oh where should I put it??

[Hennyhandler]

I am starting a duck pen and run. I was thinking of a dog house for the pen. Already have one picked out.

I know that a lot of ducks won't use a nest box but If i decided to make on and give one to them anyway could I leave it outside, like not even apart of the dog house. It would just be a box. Do you think they would use it and even if they didn't use it for laying an egg do you still think they would sit in there?

 

[1lpoock]

I wouldnt bother...i would just let the ducks lay it in the dog house. I'd be worried of the nest box getting wet if it was outside.

 

[Amiga]

I know runners tend to lay early morning, and mine will be locked in their shelter to avoid predators overnight, so that setup wouldn't likely work for us. When do yours lay, and is the outside area where you are planning to put to nest box in a predator-resistant area?

 

[Hennyhandler]

I don't have ducks yet so I don't know when they would lay. I didn't think of them laying in the morning. If I did put it outside it would have a roof (lid) on it. I think i'll just make a little straw nest in the corner of the dog house and let them go for it. Where they lay, they lay.

 

[Brickman House]

My ducks free range during the day, and are locked up tight in a small duck house to protect them from predators every night without fail. Just because of the way my life works, my schedule with them is very consistent-- I let them out in the morning at 8 am, and lock them up when the sun goes down (whenever that is, according to season).

During laying season, when I go to let them out in the morning, I invariably find that the girls have already laid their eggs. I don't know exactly when, but anyone who is going to lay is definitely done by 8 am and ready to go on about their day when I let them out-- they let me hear about it if I'm even a minute late! Once out, they don't come anywhere near the house until sundown.

You could certainly try to set up a nest box near their shelter for your duck hen to lay in during the day, but at least in my experience, you're more likely to find that she lays her eggs before you even let her out in the morning.

Good luck with your ducks, and have fun with them!