Worried About My Ducks!

[glloyd203]

Hi all! So this is my first time raising ducks and chickens, and so far, things have gone quite well. They're all about 2 months old now and I've had them since they were just a couple days old. No issues at all with the chickens yet, but over the last few days, I've noticed that my 4 ducks don't seem to be eating their feed very much. They are acting totally normal otherwise and they're eating absolutely anything else they can find, just not their feed. I give them corn and watermelon sometimes as treats and they gobble it up, and they've been foraging but the odd thing about that is that I don't think there's much to forage for in their run. (I made the floor out of hardware cloth, after a raccoon dug in and tragically attacked our first ducks, and then topped it with mulch and dirt. I'm really hoping they aren't eating the mulch, it doesn't seem like they are...). I was trying to use hay as their bedding for a while, on the run floor and in their house, but then I noticed they were eating it! I think that's bad right!? I have since taken it away. I just don't know why they have such little interest in their feed- I don't think they could possibly be getting the proper nourishment from the occasional treats I give them and from the small amount that they are able to forage inside the run...

 

[Bills vs Beaks]

Do their crops look kinda fat and hanging sometimes? That means they've just eaten. Also, are you feeding them free choice (whenever they want, the food is just out there) or are you doing a set time of day?

 

[glloyd203]

Sometimes their crops look big, but not as often as they used to. Definitely after I've given them treats and what not. There is always food out in the run, and I also give them food every night when I put them to bed. In the past they used to eat a lot of that when they first woke up in the morning before I opened up their house. It seems that they nibble on it a tiny bit now, because there will be some on the floor when I let them out, but almost none has been eaten

 

[Bills vs Beaks]

Hmm.....I dont think will starve themselves if they have edible food.

 

[Bills vs Beaks]

It could just be they eat when you are not around. Though why they dont stuff themselves first thing in the morning is unusual.....

 

[chickens really]

Ducklings eat lots as they grow...Once mature Ducks slow down on feed..They preference is grasses and free ranging...