Winter weather

[jennybvcr]

I have been doing deep litter with straw in their run all winter, wood shavings in their house, and letting them out in the yard every morning. Seems like most nights they're standing in the door of their run staring at me when I let the dog out at 10 pm, wondering why they're not out in the yard. They SCREAM at me to let them out in the morning and jump up and flat their wings. Then when I let them out they run all around the yard, jump into their big dish of warm water and splash around. When they come out there is frost on their feathers. They sure do make me laugh!

 

[DucksOhio]

It seems your question has been answered by many more knowledgeable than me, but I thought I'd add our protocol for what it's worth. We have six silver Appleyard ducks on the coast of Maine. Their run is predator-proofed and covered, and they have 24/7 access to it unless it's approaching -5 to -10F. When it gets that cold, we lock them in the duckhouse after dinner with no food or water until morning. Our duckhouse is elevated (~4x8') and has a deep bed of shavings and straw. We are quite generous with the straw, especially when we're approaching single digits. As you can see in the picture, we wrap three sides of our run in plastic to protect from wind.

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Our guys like to be out and swimming if it's in the 20sF and up, but otherwise they come out, have their soup, slide around a bit and head back into their run. When I check the camera during the day, they are often snuggled in to the duckhouse dozing when it's cold.

Great duck house! Where are they swimming in water that’s not frozen?

 

[3bird]

Great duck house! Where are they swimming in water that’s not frozen?

Thanks! We have two areas that stay open for most of the year--one because it has flow from underground and another that is spring fed.

 

[DucksOhio]

Thanks! We have two areas that stay open for most of the year--one because it has flow from underground and another that is spring fed.

How cold does it get in Maine this time of year? We’re looking at a few days of sub zero in Ohio coming up and that’s been the coldest I can remember for the 3 years I’ve had my ducks.

 

[3bird]

How cold does it get in Maine this time of year? We’re looking at a few days of sub zero in Ohio coming up and that’s been the coldest I can remember for the 3 years I’ve had my ducks.

We're on the coast, so we generally don't have long spells of severe cold, but we do get the wind. Wind chills have been well below zero since last Sunday, so today's near-50 weather was something for the ducks to celebrate!

 

[DucksOhio]

I agree...near 50 degrees would be something to celebrate this time of year!

 

[3bird]

I agree...near 50 degrees would be something to celebrate this time of year!

We actually adore the snow, so we're kind of bummed, but we're happy for the ducklings!

 

[MIDuckLady]

Gosh, my ducks are just so happy to have a few days of temps in the 40’s here in Florida. They really do appreciate when it’s cooler. Our summers can be brutal for the flock.
Your posts make me almost miss the New England winters and memories of that one spot that didn’t freeze and our ducks so enjoyed