A few years ago we began a new journey when we added ducks to our flock. Ducks are entertaining and lay tasty eggs, but boy are they messy. Since we have just gotten more ducklings this month, I thought I would put together a post with the good, the bad, and the ugly.
When we started, we didn’t have a local feed store that carried ducks, so we had to order them online. Of course, if you order online you need a minimum of 15 to ship them safely. We bought our ducks from McMurray hatchery and 15 tiny little ducklings got delivered that April. Actually, we went on a wild duck chase because they got caught up in the postal service and almost didn’t make it to us. We drove about an hour to pick them up after hours and brought our new cuties home. We very quickly learned that 15 ducks is too much for us. The plan was always to raise the males for meat and keep the females for eggs, but we were not prepared for the water mess that would ensue.
Ducks love water. This is normally not much of an issue, but when they are tiny little things you have to be really careful. Baby ducks need to be kept warm and dry but they tend to splash around in their water (even if they can only get a foot in there) and they can even drown. Their bedding gets soaked quickly and you will find yourself refilling their water often. If you have a handful of ducklings, these are manageable things, but anything over 5 and I would suggest a couple of brooders (or bathtubs) to contain the mess. Other than the water issues, brooding ducks is very similar to chickens. If you have the supplies for chickens, you will be all set. Once the ducks get older they love to swim. A children’s swimming pool is great for this because it is deep enough for them to completely submerge their beaks, a important part of cleaning themselves.
Ducks grow quickly and they are cute little things. We try to handle our ducks a lot, but they tend to be more afraid of people than our chickens. They stick together as a group and are the best of friends. They are really entertaining to watch and snooze throughout the day. Sometimes you will hear them in the middle of the night, because they really only sleep for short periods of time. Ducks aren’t very loud, but the females are definitely louder than the males. Sometimes the ducks don’t want to go into the coop at night and it takes a little bit of chasing and feeling silly before we can get them in safely. They are entertaining and goofy, but that’s hard to appreciate while you chase them around the yard at 10pm.
The giant eggs are the best part about having ducks. They are rich in flavor and great for baking. They are larger than chicken eggs (2 duck eggs = 3 chicken eggs). The ducks lay eggs right on the floor of the chicken coop. They tend to bury them, so sometimes we will find a big nest of them hidden under bedding. Ducks lay their eggs in the early morning hours, so we can check the coop in the morning and be done for the day. Our chickens tend to lay eggs all day long and when it is either hot or freezing it is important to check often. Many ducks will lay eggs all winter long, more reliably than chickens. However, our ducks take a winter break, likely because it gets so extremely cold in January and February here in northern Wisconsin.
It would be wrong not to mention the more obvious downsides to having these animals. Having a homestead takes work, a lot of work. We are definitely more limited in our time away from home because of our commitments here. The ducks make it especially important to get a caregiver if we plan to be away more than a day or 2. They quickly dirty their water and we go through more food with every animal we add. Not only does it take a lot of work, we have quickly realized that dealing with loss is a normal part of the homestead. We lost one of our 3 new ducklings at about 2 weeks old. We are not sure what happened, it was very quick. The other ducks are doing great, so we hope it isn’t a contagious issue. Butchering is also a hard, but sometimes necessary part of homesteading and we have learned how to process the emotional side of that. It is difficult every time, but we also realize that we give these animals a greater quality of life than they would receive in much of the agricultural industry.
In general, I love our ducks. I can’t picture our homestead without them and they are part of the family now. They are entertaining and provide great eggs. While they like to cause a little bit of trouble and make a watery mess, it is all worth it. We definitely learned quickly that, just like chickens, getting a few ducks every couple of years will keep your flock at a manageable level. As with any animal, they are a lot of work and we have had some loss over the past few years. However, we are excited to introduce our new little ones to their flock.
