We have acquired DUCKS!
Apr. 19th, 2025 04:03 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
luzula
Here they are in their enclosure (which is hopefully fox-proof), near their little house which they don't seem very interested in. They are keeping their distance. They do not trust us. This is understandable given that we bundled them squawking into cardboard boxes and abducted them from their previous home. However, they seem to be reasonably happy with their enclosure. They are runner ducks, which move quite fast and upright, but do not fly, and look kind of like deformed mallards.
They do seem to accept the house as a place for laying eggs in! We found these two in the morning. According to the previous owners the females (of which we have two) lay an egg a day. \o/ We scrambled the eggs and had them with lunch. They are bigger than hen eggs and were delicious. I am however a little worried about how we will know how much to feed them--it must be an effort for them to lay that much!
I have the impression that they think their enclosure is fine, but they love the big enclosure with the vegetable beds, where we herded them this morning! The previous owners said they were great slug eaters, which is good, because Sweden has an invasive slug problem (the slugs want to eat the vegetables you grow). A few days before the ducks came, housemate went out with a scissors in the morning and cut 450 slugs. /o\ /o\ Hopefully the ducks will help with this.
The ducks are just instant joy! You look at them and go "awwww, how are they so cute and ridiculous?" and "yay, eating slugs now!". Soon: DUCKLINGS. A friend of ours is incubating some eggs for us so we can eventually have more ducks!
Thoughts
Date: 2025-04-19 11:10 pm (UTC)Ducks are awesome. :D
>> We scrambled the eggs and had them with lunch. They are bigger than hen eggs and were delicious.<<
Duck eggs make a marvelous quiche, especially with duck bacon. We find it here occasionally.
>>According to the previous owners the females (of which we have two) lay an egg a day. <<
Ducks tend to lay in spring, and some breeds do produce a fair amount of eggs, but don't expect them to lay as much or as long as hens.
>> I am however a little worried about how we will know how much to feed them--it must be an effort for them to lay that much!<<
Generally offer free-choice food, and try to feed enough that they will clean it out before you add more.
>>The previous owners said they were great slug eaters<<
You can lay out a tarp, big piece of cardboard, plywood, etc. on the ground. Slugs, worms, crickets, and other invertebrates will collect under it. Aim your duck at this area and then lift the cover, allowing them to forage the exposed pests. You may need to wait until your ducks get used to you, but this form of baiting can be a very effective way to remove pests. Also works with chickens or other poultry.
>>Soon: DUCKLINGS. A friend of ours is incubating some eggs for us so we can eventually have more ducks!<<
If you spend time with your new ducklings, they will tend to imprint on you and follow you around. They will expect you as "Mama Duck" to show them where food is. So the tarp trap method should work very well with ducklings, once they get big enough to move around and eat larger food. Maybe 1-2 weeks old?
First week they won't want to leave a warm brooder anyhow, except for a brief swim in a bathtub or plastic tub.
Re: Thoughts
Date: 2025-04-20 06:36 am (UTC)We did lay out pieces of cardboard yesterday! So hopefully they will have trapped some slugs.
I look forward to being Mama Duck! : D
Re: Thoughts
Date: 2025-04-20 06:53 am (UTC)https://meyerhatchery.com/products/laying-ducks
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/top-10-duck-breeds-to-keep-for-eggs.78189/
>>We did lay out pieces of cardboard yesterday! So hopefully they will have trapped some slugs.<<
That'll be fun. Ducks are really cute when they snake their necks out to gobble up pests.