Any other time of year mine are too.
Whom to room with for the winter
- Thread starter Wyleekiot
- Start date
OK, back to the OP... if you are considering housing your ducks with one/some of your other animals, perhaps you can do a trial run now. Introduce them to the others. Try letting them shack up together for a night or a week. See what works out best.
Thats what happened here my chickens roosted in one part of the coop with door in between them and the Muscovy then on evening. A couple years ago my Muscovy were roosting up with the chickens one evening so I let them stay the last year my Runners went in and stayed and all got along then I guess the geese felt left out so they joined the party only in winter can this happen with all of them.
Definitely it can happen when everyone is not in breeding mode..Casanova and my other Drakes winter together too...
..What's the surprise???
Surprise is my Muscovy ducks including my drake sleep with my chickens year round 
Surprise is my Muscovy ducks including my drake sleep with my chickens year round
...
- Thread starter
- #17
I guess I didn't express my question correctly. I'm not concerned about warmth. I was questioning their needs to bathe and how much drinking water they needed. If they needed drinking water available 24/7 they HAVE to room with someone. If rooming with chickens can they eat layer crumbles/scratch grains? I'm a bit concerned the peafowl who eat game bird food also might bully them.
They need drinking water available during the day. They do not need it over night. I have successfully used a 3 gallon bucket for 4 ducks and not run out of water. A five gallon bucket would take even longer to freeze and your ducks would not run out of water. The nice thing with a bucket instead of a bowl is that it's difficult for them to climb into to attempt to swim and also due to the weight of the water it is difficult for them to flip it over and spill all their water.
They do not need bathing water every day. Pool access on a warm day once a week or so is sufficient. By warm I mean above freezing, maybe 35-45 degrees F. Hoses tend to freeze quick in winter so that makes filling pools a challenge as well.
There are many feeds suitable to feed multiple species of birds. I feed all my chickens and ducks the same thing all year. It's easier. I tend to go with an 18%-20% "all flock" type feed and offer oyster shell on the side. Not all my birds are laying so they don't all need the calcium of layer feed. Right now I have a broody chicken who won't lay, 2 ducks that are too young to lay, and a drake, (in addition to a handful of actively laying birds) so an all flock is good for all chickens and ducks of all ages and sexes. Ducks can eat scratch grains as well. Laying ducks can eat a 16% chicken layer crumble as well.
I have no experience with pea fowl so I'm not sure about their dietary needs or personalities.
I hope this helps answer your question some.
I say do what works best for you. If they get along and it's easier for them to have roommates of another species, go that route, if it's easier to keep them separate, keep them separate. I think you can make it work either way. Good luck!
- Thread starter
- #19
We have cameras in the henhouse so last night we put the ducks in for a trial run. The rooster flapped and strutted about for a long while but never attacked. One of the ducks even bit his butt when he had his back turned and still no bloodshed! The ducks ended up sleeping in a corner to themselves but everyone got along quite well for the hour or so we watched them.
Did you leave them in overnight? I would have been a nervous wreck i’d Be putting them together just a little at a time.
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