Poor/Incorrect Diet and Lack of Nutrition in Ducks

Unfortunately, most ducklings are purchased prior to the new owners having any knowledge of how to properly care for it. Most feed stores exclusively carry feed for chicks and hens. Despite featuring a cute duckling on the front of the bag, these feeds are misleading. The protein and general nutrition content of these feeds (such as Dumor from Tractor Supply) focus on the diet needed for chicks to grow and thrive. Without the information on hand at these stores, people buy what they think is best without ever giving it a second thought. Hey, a duckling is on the bag and the store manager said it's for ducks, so it has to be, right? Wrong!

Most of these feeds are either medicated (should be stated on the bag, and under NO circumstances should this ever be fed to a duckling as the antibiotics are meant for chicks and can be fatal) or contain either too little or too much protein needed for the development of ducks. Another crucial ingredient these feeds are lacking is Niacin. To read more about Niacin, read my post here. Since chicks and ducklings grow at different rates and require a bit different nutrition, it is best to feed your ducklings a food that was intended for them.

Ducks require different levels of protein per stage of growth. When feeding your ducklings chick feed, it is hard to make sure they are getting a proper diet. If duckling feed is not available, don't feel bad! You can always supplement the chick feed to make it more fitting for a ducklings dietary needs.

Nutrient Requirements for Ducks Per Life Stage:

0-3 weeks-

•  Protein- 20% 

3 weeks-first egg-

• Protein 16-19%

Laying hens-

• Protein 16-17%

Non-Laying Drakes and ducks-

• Protein 14%

Common Mistakes When Bringing Home Ducklings

With the cheap cost and obvious cuteness of ducklings, purchasing them on an impulse is on the rise. As many of you know, ducks are amazing creatures and make wonderful pets. But unfortunately for many new duck owners (and their adorable ducklings) there is so little info out there to help them start their babies off correctly. Most duck purchases are made on a whim at a feed store (who can resist those little peeps?!) that mostly caters to chickens. The proud new duck parents are often loaded up with equipment and feed before being hustled through a line and out the store, not leaving them much time to ask questions or really decide if they should get a duckling or not.

I am assuming you are here because you are either:
A) adding some ducks to your family
-OR-
B) you already have and am at the "oh crap what do I do now" stage.

Don't fret! Most mistakes are easily fixable, and I am always here to help. Below you will find a lot of common mistakes made after bringing ducklings home and simple solutions on how to fix or avoid the issue entirely.

• Poor/Incorrect Diet and Lack of Nutrients
• Incorrect/Improper Lighting
• Poor Bedding Material Choices
• Incorrect Waterers 
• Under and Improper Handling
• Improper Swimming Conditions
• Overcrowding/Loneliness 
• Mixed Flock Brooders
• Threat from Pets and Children
• Lack of Supervision
• Abandonment

How to Spoil Your Flock

Every now and then I like to spoil my flock with some yummy treats. Having both ducks and chickens is bit different, and they both seem to prefer different treats aside from one thing: meal worms! They all love them. In fact, they actually seem to go crazy for them. When any of my birds, ducks and chickens alike, see or hear the bag of Happy Hen Treats Meal Worm Frenzy, they come running! The hens are so funny to watch. They grab a meal worm and run like crazy around the yard, often getting so immersed in their catch another hen steals the worm away. The ducks are even funnier, as they enjoy their meal worms being thrown into a bowl of water.

Why hello there!

Hello and welcome to my blog, Homestead Houston. I run a small hobby farm and animal rescue/sanctuary. We are currently caring for over 100 animals from ducks to dogs, and almost everything in between. (The ducks are my personal favorites, but don't tell the others that as they all get butt-hurt!)

I initially began this blog as a way to document our lives and happenings on the homestead, but have become so busy lately with rescuing and fostering kittens. We currently have 14 cats/kittens in our care, 5 of our own, the rest are fosters. I rescued them all on my own, and we are caring for them out of our own pocket. I am hoping to get funding from a local animal rescue as long as I continue to foster, so fingers crossed!

My mission to rescue animals began with one neglected duck. I quickly realized how many ducks, not to mention other creatures, that were out there who needed my help. With the help of friends and a lot of nice people from Facebook groups, we built an awesome set up for the ducks and chickens (almost all for free!). We are always expanding, hoping to eventually add goats and sheep to the mix.

We don't eat our animals, instead we offer them a sanctuary to live out their lives freely and happily. We do sell the extra eggs as well as adopt out kittens to proper homes once we fully vet them and have them spayed/neutered. In the spring I plan on selling the chicks and ducklings, which are inevitably going to be born with all the males I have around here!

I look forward to seeing you back here as I start blogging daily, as well as reviewing some cool products! I have a lot of things in store, including some awesome giveaways, so be on the look out! :)

For daily photos of our lives follow us on Insagram at HomesteadHouston! :)