Preplanning is very important when you are planning to raise a healthy and happy pet duck. If you want to handle your pet duck in the best possible way, then you will have to get them when they are young and spend a lot of time learning how to take care of ducklings. Before you buy a duck, make sure that you are ready to raise and maintain them. Before you get a duck as your pet, ask yourself the following questions:
- Do you have space to keep all the ducklings happy? Remember that ducks are social animals and they should never be raised alone. You will have to keep at least a 10 feet space for the adult duckling.
- Is your yard good for ducks? Ducks will always need a place for their shelter and swim.
- Can you keep your ducks safe? Ducks will have many predators, like hawks, owls and foxes. Give your duck a large source of shelter during the day for protecting them.
- Do you have the resource and time to take care of the duck? Ducklings will need some amount of care in the start. Therefore, make sure that you are ready for this challenge.
Here are some simple steps on how to take care of ducklings
- For the initial four to five weeks you will have to keep your ducklings inside. If the weather happens to be warm, then you can move them outside once they are at least two to three weeks old. Always remember that ducklings raised without a mother will always need artificial heat source.
- For this, you will have to place a heat lamp in one corner of the cage. Keep the lamp in such a way that the ducklings can escape the heat if it becomes too hot for them. If you notice that the ducklings are huddled beneath the lamp, then this means that they are too cold. If they are crowded away from the source, then they are too hot.
- The perfect house for the ducklings will be a playpen house. You will have to wrap the sides with some screening for preventing the ducklings from escaping. If you want then you can use a plastic pool of children and not the inflatable ones. You will have to line this pool with an absorbent material, like sawdust and keep a heat lamp in one corner. Use the cat-litter scoop for cleaning the duck droppings. Always make sure that the cage floor is never too wet or slippery and allows the ducklings’ foot to slip.
- Keep in mind that ducks will constantly need some kind of shelter, which will protect them from rain, snow and sun. Construct a lean shelter with plywood to protect your pets. Remember that adult ducks can easily survive in below zero degree temperatures as long as there is liquid water.
Feeding the pet ducks
- The ducklings will need at least 20-22 percent of protein for the initial three to five weeks. After that, they can easily survive on 16 percent of proteins. Adult ducks will need only 14 to 16 percent of proteins when they are not laying and more that 16 percent when they are laying.
- One good source of food is the game bird starter and you can find this easily in any pet store. Once five weeks are completed, you can feed game bird grower to the ducks. Remember that you must never feed chick starter, it never has the right amount of nutrients. If the ducks consume this, then it can cause deformities when the ducks are growing.
- The ducklings will need some amount of fresh chopped vegetable greens, especially when you are keeping them inside. You can give them weeds from the garden or buy some mixed greens from the local grocery store. Always remember that you should never feed your ducks unless you give them proper amount of water. Ducks will need water to wash down the food and for cleaning the vents from the beaks.
- During winters, give feed mixed with corn to your ducks, because cracked corn is very easy to digest as compared to whole corn. Remember that popcorn, bread and chips are not healthy for ducks, so you must avoid giving these food products to your ducks.
Water for the ducklings
- It is not surprising that ducks love water and this is the reason why you should provide ducks with water when they are growing up. However, sometimes water can be deadly for the ducks and so you must use the designed bird waterers for your pets.
- Make sure that your ducklings are able to escape the water source, which you have placed in the cage. Position the dish in one corner towards the end of the cage. Remember that the ducks will play in their water dish, especially when there is no other water source.
Swimming and ducks
- Ducks can easily survive without swimming, but they will not be happy. If you do not have a pond then you must consider buying one for keeping your ducks happy. Get an artificial pond with good filtration to keep the ducks happy.
Now you know how to take care of ducklings. Remember that you must always practice pet care or get some professional help.
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