Are you thinking about raising ducks in your backyard? Keeping ducks can be a rewarding experience – they’re not only cute, but they also provide natural pest control, fertilization for your garden, and, of course, fresh eggs. However, it’s essential to approach this hobby with the right information and a clear understanding of what it involves. This beginner’s guide to backyard duck keeping will provide you with the fundamentals you need to start your duck-raising journey.
Why Raise Ducks?
Ducks are an excellent choice for backyard poultry for several reasons:
- Egg Production: Ducks are reliable layers. Many breeds lay throughout the year, and their eggs are larger and richer in flavor than chicken eggs.
- Pest Control: Ducks are natural foragers and will happily eat slugs, snails, and other pests, helping to keep your garden clean.
- Friendly and Social: Ducks are social animals and can be very friendly and entertaining. They’re a great addition to a family with kids.
Choosing the Right Breed for Backyard Ducks for Beginners
Choosing the right duck breed is essential. Here are a few popular choices for beginners:
- Pekin: Known for their white feathers and orange bills, Pekins are great egg layers and are generally calm and friendly.
- Khaki Campbell: If egg-laying is your primary goal, Khaki Campbells are an excellent choice. They can lay more than 300 eggs per year.
- Indian Runner: Indian Runners are known for their upright posture and active foraging. They’re excellent at pest control.
Our ducks are runners. Runners are great backyard ducks for beginners. With 14 ducks, we get 8-12 eggs a day during the warmer months. They start laying in April and lay consistently through October in zone 7.
Our flock May 2023
Backyard Ducks for Beginners: Housing and Space
Ducks need a secure and comfortable place to live. Here are a few considerations:
- Space: Ducks need space to roam and forage. A general rule of thumb is to allow a minimum of 10 square feet per duck.
- Housing: Duck housing should be secure to keep predators out. It doesn’t need to be elaborate – a simple shed or coop with a door will suffice.
- Bedding: Straw or wood shavings make good bedding material. Ducks are messy, so expect to clean the bedding regularly.
- Pond or Pool: Ducks need water to splash and clean their feathers. A small kiddie pool is sufficient for a small flock.
Our ducks have a pool in their pen, which is a fenced in area with lots of room to roam and sunbathe. We also have a pond, but it’s a drainage pond, so doesn’t always have water. When it does, we let them go down to swim and lay along the bank.
Feeding Your Ducks
Ducks eat a variety of foods:
- Pellets or Crumbles: You can buy commercial duck feed, which provides a balanced diet. Make sure it’s formulated for ducks, as chicken feed often lacks the necessary niacin ducks require. You can also feed chicken crumbles and supplement with niacin powder or niacin-rich foods like peas, feeder fish, or tuna, salmon, or sardines that were packed in water, not oil.
- Foraging: Ducks will happily forage for bugs, slugs, and greens. They can eat many garden weeds, but be sure to avoid toxic plants.
- Treats: Ducks enjoy treats like corn, peas, and mealworms. Treats should make up no more than 10% of their diet.
Health Care for Backyard Ducks for Beginners
Like any pet, ducks need regular health checks:
- Regular Check-ups: Check your ducks regularly for signs of illness or injury. Common signs of illness include lethargy, loss of appetite, or changes in their droppings.
- Vet Care: Find a vet who is familiar with ducks. They can provide vaccinations and care as needed.
- Parasite Control: Ducks can get external parasites like mites and lice. Regular cleaning of their housing and dusting with a suitable pesticide will help prevent infestations.
Ducks love to make a mess. Keeping their home away from water will help keep the pen cleaner for longer, but they will still make a mess. The dampness that happens in duck pens is a breeding ground for bugs. The ducks will eat most of them, but duck pens do need to be cleaned and all bedding replaced with dry bedding more often than with chickens.
Ducklings or Adult Ducks?
One important decision to make before you start is whether to begin with ducklings or adult ducks.
- Ducklings: Raising ducks from ducklings can be a rewarding experience and allows the ducks to become more accustomed to their human caretakers. It can be delightful to watch them grow, but it also requires significant time and energy. Ducklings need a heat lamp to stay warm, proper duckling feed, and constant monitoring to ensure their wellbeing.
- Adult Ducks: Starting with adult ducks can be easier since they’re hardier and more independent. They may take a little more time to adjust to their new environment and humans, but with patience and gentle handling, they can become just as friendly as ducks raised from ducklings.
Our ducks live in a group, so despite us having raised them from babies, they are not pets. They don’t come up and sit with us. I have seen many people who have one or two ducks that are more pet-like, but ours just want to be friends when we have the feed bucket!
Handling Your Ducks
Ducks are generally amiable creatures, but they may not naturally take to handling. It’s crucial to approach them gently and calmly to avoid causing stress.
- Building Trust: Start by spending time near your ducks without trying to touch them. Over time, they will begin to trust you and may even approach you out of curiosity.
- Gentle Handling: When you start handling your ducks, be gentle. Support their entire body when you pick them up, being especially careful not to squeeze their chest (ducks don’t have a diaphragm, so putting too much pressure on their chest can cause them to suffocate).
- Treats: Treats can be a useful tool for taming your ducks. Offering treats from your hand can help your ducks associate you with positive experiences.
We generally don’t handle our ducks unless they are injured or we are checking them for injuries or mites. The only exception is Dizzy, our blind duck. He is much more tolerant to handling in moving situations. He often gets left behind when the ducks go down to the pond simply because he is following by sound alone and not sight. We will pick him up and take him to the group and he is pretty tolerant. Ducks do have sharp claws, so be careful when handling them!
Breeding Ducks
If you’re considering breeding your ducks, it’s important to know that it requires a commitment to care for the mother and her offspring. You’ll need to make sure the mother duck has a safe and comfortable place to nest, and be prepared to care for the ducklings once they hatch or need to have an appropriate breeder.
Conclusion
Keeping backyard ducks can be a rewarding hobby that offers numerous benefits, from pest control to a steady supply of fresh eggs. As with any form of animal husbandry, it requires commitment, time, and a willingness to learn. But with the right knowledge and care, you can create a thriving backyard duck habitat that brings you joy for years to come. Remember to always treat your ducks with kindness and respect, and you will have a flock of feathered friends who are happy, healthy, and productive.
Happy duck keeping!
