Hi there
Having never raised ducks for eggs before, I was wondering if there were any commercial housing available out there, I have not seen any yet, except for poutry housing sold as duck housing. My biggest concern is to get my eggs as clean as possible without washing them. Finding some way that I could get the duck to lay in a desirable part of the house.
I thought about a slatted floor system with nest boxes on the floor with straw, just wondering if this would tempt the birds to lay in them.
Any ideas would be well recived.
Farming Friends Forum » Ducks
Duck Housing
(9 posts)-
Posted 3 years ago #
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Hi vernon,
My ducks go into a large barn/hut on a night and there is straw on the floor. Sometimes they lay in the nest boxes. They like to lay were the straw is fresh and not were they sit at night. They make nests with the straw. If the straw is clean then the eggs are generally clean.
I will see what Ican find out about commercial duck housing and get back to you.
Hope this helps.
Kind regards
sara @ farmingfriendsPosted 3 years ago # -
I was thinking about lighting the area where they will sit at night maybe the would then use nest boxes in the day if I keep it a bit darker. Do not know if I am thinking on the correct lines
Posted 3 years ago # -
Hi Vernon,
I only have 6 female ducks and they generally lay in the early hours and before I let them out of the hut.
Re the lighting - would they go to the darker areas at night as well? This would mean that the straw would need changing more regularly inorder to keep the eggs clean.
Kind regards
sara @ farmingfriendsPosted 3 years ago # -
Ducks don't generally lay their eggs in boxes unless they are restricted like battery ducks/hens, which is cruel and unhealthy.
They will lay their eggs anywhere but generally lay later than hens, so if you go out early enough - 7-7.30am atm you should be able to collect them and wipe off any fresh residue quickly. As Sara says, keep the straw clean and keep them outside for as long as possible, thus reducing contamination on the fresh eggs.Sarah LPosted 3 years ago # -
I will do that, since straw is in abundance here on the farm I can change it regular
My ducks are free range, but restricted to a pen of 48x48 feet, which I have constructed out for mesh fence panels I bought of ebay for £10 each. These can be moved with ease in about 30 min to give fresh pasture. Thus cutting down the food bill and making the eggs yokes as rich as can be
I will post some pictures soonPosted 3 years ago # -
Hi Vernon, my 5 all sleep in a hut 3' x 4'. I clear out the poo every day and make sure there is a layer of fresh straw on top, and then completely clean out the hut every week or so, mine generally lay their eggs early morning (always by 8am), sometimes 3 are together and 1 separate and sometimes all 4 are anywhere in the hut and I have to search for them a bit. They are sometimes quite dirty, but I gently clean them in warm water. I bought this hut on ebay £65 new, flat pack, but easy to construct. It was actually for hens, but we just left the perches out and the ducks seem fine in it.
RachelRachelPosted 3 years ago # -
Hi All
I would like to get 4 khaki campbell ducks. I have been looking at all the posts and am now very excited about the prospect of keeping ducks. Re the housing issue, is there a minimum size house that my 4 ducks need, they will be mostly in an enclosure of approx 10ft x 25ft. Any advise will be greatly received. DebPosted 3 years ago # -
Hi Debbie,
Large breeds such as aylesbury ducks need a good two-foot square area per bird and the same in height.
The medium breeds to large breeds such as Runners need the same height but about one and half foot square area.
Smaller ducks such as call ducks require the same size of housing as large breed chickens – about one-foot square per bird.
I have read that the RSPCA advises 6 birds per 1 square metre for birds that are 3-3.3kg and 5 birds per square metre for birds weighing 3.4-4kg.
Hope this helps.
Kind regards
Sara @ farmingfriendsPosted 3 years ago #
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