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Farming Friends Forum » Ducks

1. Christinao
   Member

   Hi,

   My 3 little Khaki Campbells are now three weeks old and thriving. They are getting too big for the rabbit cage they are in at the moment so I have been letting them out in a run during the day and just putting them in the cage in the evening, with food and water, in a garage. As the weather is so mild, are they old enough to go into their outside duck house at night now? Also, are they OK to go without food and water through the night at this age? They make so much mess with the water that the rabbit cage is like a swimming pool in the morning.

   Any advice gratefully received.

   Best wishes
   Christina

   Posted 3 years ago #

2. campbell ridge
   Administrator

   Hi Christina. they will need both food and water for another couple of weeks and then water for a few weeks still after that. I would think they are old enough to be outside in their house as long as they have plenty of straw to keep them warm. Or you could put the house in the garage for a couple of nights so they get used to it first.
   Do you use a drinker for their water? they shouldn't make too much mess with that, and they can have their splash time and swims, outside in the pen.
   Sarah

   Sarah L

   Posted 3 years ago #

3. Christinao
   Member

   Hi Sarah,

   Thanks for that. Yep, might try the house in the garage to get them used to it. I do use a drinker but they seem to spurt water out of the sides of their mouths and honestly, there is loads everywhere! I've put a tea towel under it to soak up the worst of it and put the cage on a slope so it drains to one end but it's all a soggy mess within a couple of hours. I haven't let them swim yet as they haven't got their feathers yet and I remember reading somewhere that if they were incubator hatched, you shouldn't let them get wet for the first six weeks.

   Just cleaned the cage out again and tucked them up for bed in some nice dry straw.....for now!

   Best wishes
   Christina

   Posted 3 years ago #

4. admin
   Sara @ farmingfriends

   Hi Christina,
   Glad to hear that your ducklings are thriving and growing well.
   I usually raise up the drinker on a slab or bricks so that the bedding /straw doesn't get so wet as quickly but I appreciate in a rabbit hut this might not be possible.
   I love to see the ducks all snuggled up in clean bedding.
   I have read that they can go in water once their preen glands are working but the book doesn't say when that is!!!
   Kind regards
   Sara @ farmingfriends

   http://www.farmingfriends.com
   http://farmingfriends.com/shop/

   Posted 3 years ago #

5. campbell ridge
   Administrator

   I thought it was One week if they are inucubated?
   http://www.carolinecrockeroriginals.co.uk/sheldon_pages/handy_hints_for_raising_duckling.htm

   Sarah L

   Posted 3 years ago #

6. admin
   Sara @ farmingfriends

   Hi Christina and Sarah,

   I hatched my ducklings from an incubator and they went for a swim in a bucket at a week old.
   Kind regards
   sara @ farmingfriends

   http://www.farmingfriends.com
   http://farmingfriends.com/shop/

   Posted 3 years ago #

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