Will a chicken and a duck keep one another company?

[Kimberlass]

I currently have three chickens - the county allows 4. They also, however, allow ONE duck. Seems pretty silly to me because I imagine ducks are social creatures like chickens? Anyway, I’ve been thinking about the next couple of years when my chickens slow down on egg production. I’m not going to cull any of them, they are definitely pets, but I want to fill in the 4th chicken slot. I was wondering....can you raise a chicken and a duck together? Will they keep one another from being lonely? Is feeding a mixed flock difficult? Will the chickens be okay with a small pond in their (large) run? I know introducing the two age groups would be tough, but there are lots of good articles on that. Just wondering if it’s possible to get a duck to be happy in a chicken family and if the babies will keep one another company.

 

[Birdsaremybffs]

Ducks are a little more vocal than chickens and quite a bit messier. That may be why you can only have one duck. And as for keeping ducks with chickens, if you introduce them properly they should be just fine. I know many people who keep chickens and ducks together. The only thing is you need to make sure the duck is a female because a Drake will kill chickens trying to breed with them because of the different anatomy.