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Raising Ducks as Pets

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Raising Ducks as Pets Empty Raising Ducks as Pets

Post by Barnyard Cat Wed Feb 25, 2009 5:50 pm

Raising Ducks as Pets

This article will concentrate on raising ducks as pets and not for commercial purposes.
Ducks are social and it is not good to have just one duck, so planning is essential since you should allow and least 10 square feet per adult duck.

Unlike chickens ducks require water to swim in. Like chickens, ducks require shelter from predators. Duck predators include owls, hawks, foxes, snapping turtles, dogs, etc…Ducks should have a large body of water to swim in during the day and should probably be locked in a protective shelter at night, depending on where you live.

Housing your pet ducks:
Keep ducklings inside for the first four to five weeks. If the weather is warm, they can move outside when they are two to three weeks old.
Ducklings raised without a mother will need an artificial heat source. A heat lamp positioned in one corner of the cage works best. Position it so the ducklings can escape the heat if things get too hot. If you find the ducklings huddled underneath the lamp, they are too cold. If they are crowded away from the source, they are too hot.
An old playpen is perfect for housing young ducklings. You might need to wrap the sides with screening to prevent them from escaping. You can use a plastic children's pool (not the inflatable kind). Line it with an absorbent material (such as sawdust) and suspend a heat lamp over one corner. You can use a cat-litter scoop to clean up duck droppings daily. The pool can then be used for the ducklings later on. Make sure the flooring isn't slippery when wet and allows the ducklings good footing to move.
Ducks should always have some type of shelter that will protect them from sun, rain, snow, a hail. An inexpensive lean-to can be constructed by propping a piece of plywood up on two logs.
Adult ducks can survive in temperatures below zero as long as they have liquid water.

Feeding

Ducklings require 20-22% protein the first 3 to 5 weeks. Then drop to 16% protein feed. Adult ducks need 14-16% and laying ducks 16-18%. A good feed for ducks would be a game bird starter feed and can be found at most farm supply stores. After five weeks, game bird grower should be fed to the ducks.

Note: Do not use a chick starter feed for ducks. This can cause deformities as it does not have the right nutrients for your ducklings.

Ducklings also need a source of fresh chopped vegetable greens, especially when they are kept inside. You can feed them weeds from your garden or purchase mixed greens from your grocery store.
Always supply a fresh source of water for them. This washes down the feed and is also used to clean out their beak vents. Baby ducklings can drown easily, so a specially water feeder should be purchased specifically for ducklings or use a shallow pan.

Cracked corn makes excellent food for adult ducks, especially in the winter. Cracked corn is easier for ducks to digest than whole corn. Bread, popcorn, and chips are not healthy for ducks. Consider them "junk food" for ducks. Ducks can also be fed chopped hard-boiled eggs, tomatoes, bugs, garden snails, worms, night crawlers, mealworms, bloodworms, and floating coy food.

Ducks love water. However, water can be deadly to ducklings. Use specially designed bird waterers (which can be found at any farm supply store) or a very shallow dish in the beginning for your pet ducks.
Always make sure the ducklings are capable of escaping any water source you place in their cage. Overturned terracotta pots placed in their pool or water dish provides the perfect "escape" for your ducks should they be tire and be unable to climb out.
Expect your ducklings to play in their water dish, especially if no other water source is available. Positioning the dish at the other end of the cage from their heat source will keep the area under the heat source dry. Ducklings usually sleep under the heat source.
Ducks tend to tip their water dishes and get them very muddy. Be prepared to wash their dish quite often (at least twice a day).

Swimming and pet ducks:
Ducks can survive without water to swim in, but not happily.
Ducklings are unable to produce the oil that waterproofs their down until they are 3 or 4 weeks old. In the wild, the mother duck will oil their feathers for them. Careful consideration should be given to motherless ducklings who are allowed to swim before then to insure they do not become chilled or drown.
If you do not have a pond in your yard, consider purchasing a plastic wading pool. You will need to construct some means for the ducks to get in and out safely, especially when they are young.
Any artificial pond will need a good filtration system. You'll want to change the water if it gets too cloudy or dirty.




References:
howtodothings.com/pets-and-animals
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Post by Bock_Bock Wed Feb 25, 2009 6:32 pm

uh o i have my ducks in with my chicks and he is eating the same feed what do i do i only have 1 brooder when is it they dont need heat lamps anymore
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Post by Barnyard Cat Wed Feb 25, 2009 6:36 pm

Bock_Bock wrote:uh o i have my ducks in with my chicks and he is eating the same feed what do i do i only have 1 brooder when is it they dont need heat lamps anymore

I raised my ducks and chickens together also...because I did not know any better....now we do..What are you going to do about it?????
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Post by Bock_Bock Wed Feb 25, 2009 6:38 pm

i dint know but im sure if something was going to happen its already going to happen as this duck has been eating this food for 2 1/2 weeks
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Post by Barnyard Cat Wed Feb 25, 2009 6:48 pm

Bock_Bock wrote:i dint know but im sure if something was going to happen its already going to happen as this duck has been eating this food for 2 1/2 weeks

oK!!! But if your duckling grows and extra leg....don't blame me!!!!! Rolling Eyes
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Post by Bock_Bock Wed Feb 25, 2009 6:58 pm

lol that would be cool i would make so much money off of him and his offspring, dont get me wrong im not into mistreating animals but iv never heard of problems from feed deforming ducks, do youthink they could be talking about the medication feed i could understand how that would effect the ducks
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Post by Barnyard Cat Wed Feb 25, 2009 7:01 pm

Bock_Bock wrote:lol that would be cool i would make so much money off of him and his offspring, dont get me wrong im not into mistreating animals but iv never heard of problems from feed deforming ducks, do youthink they could be talking about the medication feed i could understand how that would effect the ducks

I think they may be talking about the fact that ducklingss need a greater protein and nutrient level than chicks do.
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Post by Bock_Bock Wed Feb 25, 2009 7:03 pm

so feeding layer pellets isnt a bad thing for feeding ducklings? as it has more protein in it
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Post by Tiramisu Sun Jul 04, 2010 10:25 pm

Bock_Bock wrote:so feeding layer pellets isnt a bad thing for feeding ducklings? as it has more protein in it
Wouldn't layer feed have less in it? Idk haven't really looked at it compared to chick starter, although I have both bags right next to each other.
What about flock raiser for ducks?

I know that medicated chick feed is a big No No, because the Amprol I think or whatever else might be in it can kill them.
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