Keeping Ducks as Pets
One reason that ducks make good pets is because they have a unique diet. They will eat fruits and vegetables as well as different bugs such as worms and slugs and everything else that they can chase after and get their beaks on. If you have some ducks as pets, you will want to purchase some type of duck food that you can supply the ducks with. They need the right amount of minerals in their food. You will also want to supply the ducks with fresh water at least once every day.
You will probably want to either keep the ducks indoors in your home or keep them in some type of heated outdoor facility or shed. You can purchase custom made dog houses to keep them in at night which have heat if you need it. You want to provide the ducks with plenty of bedding and shelter to protect themselves from the wind. You might want to also provide the ducks with a blanket as well. Ducks are not usually outside during the winter month so if you can find a way to keep them indoors they would greatly appreciate it.
Ducks are very easy to take care of. You do not need to take the duck to the vet for vaccinations. When the ducks lay eggs, you can eat them just like you can eat chicken eggs. You will want to provide the duck with duck food and a water dish which is around 1 foot deep. You will need to provide them with warm shelter during the winter months and at night as well. A lot of bigger animals will snack on a duck if at all possible.
Ducks are not very messy animals, you will just need a place for them to go to the bathroom. You can build an enclosure which is easy to clean with a tray in the bottom. I would suggest making it yourself so that it is big enough.
Published by Shannon Frye
I am a stay at home mom. I have a 2 year old daughter. View profile
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18 Comments
Post a CommentWe are proud owners of 2 Pekin ducks, as easter present from our Lovely daughter. Our 3 dogs and 2 ducks are a regular parade up and down our street, my neighbors slow down their cars to watch us on our walk. They are very sweet and tame (not our neighbors, the ducks), we all spend time with them during the day so that they can play in the yard and go for a swim in their baby pool. The pool is small enought that we change the water daily, they are a regular comedy act every day, they blast out of the pool and run around the yard peeping and quaking. They are constant companions during yard work, a new bug is a treat, june bugs are like "jelly beans" to these guys! At night they are in a retired hutch with food and water, as they grow we may expand the hutch to include an indoor heated area for cool weather. Keeping them in the house, not an option, they poop everywhere! They are outdoor animals, unless they have a barn to go into. We may invest in a small shed for winter with a straw floor and heated area, maybe a doggie door to go outside in a fenced in pen for nice days, I am hoping that they can tolerate the weather in the midwest during the winter.
does it poop everywhere?
I have a few ducks that we raise as pets. The writer of this post must be crazy. Ducks poop everywhere, often and they stink. I love my ducks and spend time holding them and playing with them but in the house NO WAY. I have an outdoor pen that my ducks go into at night. During the day they are free to roam around. We have 5 acres but they usually stay close to our house. I have a hard time keeping our driveway and porch clean of duck poop. I couldn't imagine them in the house.
I have five peking ducks.We live on a large farm with a good size pond.they seem to be very happy here.their fun to watch,and I enjoy them.Far as I'm concerned there here to stay
Ducks are not easy to take care of and they are very messy. Indoor ducks need diapers and they molt (shed their feathers) every year - quite a mess. They also slop food all over and get into things in the house.
Ducklings need heating pads, unmedicated feed, fresh water and a sibling to keep them company. I have saved many ducks and I love them, but they don't make good pets for most people.
That's why SO many people DUMP them off at local parks - to die...
We have a Peking and a Mallard duck. The Peking (Phil) we have had for four years now. They roam in our yard during hte day and sleep in an enclosure in our garage at night. They are very friendly and the Peking is very intelligent. The peking will follow you wherever you go and the mallard follows her. Something happened to Phil's foot this evening and she can barely stand or walk on it. We are going to keep her inside for a few days and hopefully it will heal up enough that she can walk. They are great pets but prime targets for dogs and all kinds of predetors. We bought the ducks as Easter gifts for our daughters. Keeping them safe has been the hardest part of owning ducks.
Thing about owning ducks... IF you do not own at least a half acre, I would not recommend getting one. They need more then a tiny grass only yard to roam around it. Also if you live in or close to an HOA, don't bother getting one, the HOA Nazi's will constantly create hell for you. Bottom line is, no land no duck. People with bad stories about ducks often are the ones with no room for one (of course not always the case but most of the time). MY duck feeds it self most of the time, I have no shortage of bugs and plants. I also leave food out for the duck to, I am able to dig a pond because I have land that I OWN (non HOA).
very helpful info. i have one Q. : r pets a problem allergy wise?? i am allergic to cats and dogs so will i be allergic to ducks????????????
I have a baby Peking and a baby Mallard that are 30 days old. I have also lived through taking care of a baby muskovie duck that is now an adult and lives outside. I keep the babies in a bird cage at night in the house, and there is always tons of poop to clean in the morning...They live on my back porch during the day, and poop everywhere. They also splash their food everywhere and make paper mache out the newspaper. I can't wait for them to get their feathers, so I can put them outside. They are messy eaters and poopers. However they are very sweet, and I would never give them up. You just have to get through the baby stage. My adult muskcovie is awesome. She follows us all through the yard and hangs out with the dogs. She flys, so she sleeps on top of my house at night to get away from predators.
Has this woman ever kept ducks?!?! Clearly not. You CANNOT KEEP DUCKS INDOORS, you may like it but they will not. Ducks are outdoor creatures and will be miserable indoors, it is horribly unfair to keep them indoors.
Secondly "ducks are not very messy" - wtf! Ducks are very messy creatures they poo where they stand, even where they sleep.
Agreeing with Adam - ducks do not need heated shelter (apart from when they are ducklings) they have lots of feathers to keep them warm, thats what they are designed for!
You cannot have a single duck, this is also cruel, ducks are very sociable animals, 2 at a minimum they will become very lonely and depressed.
We have 2 aylesbury ducks, we hand reared them indoors until they were big enough to go out into the elements they are super friendly and tame, they follow us up and down the garden and love to be near us.
They have a small shed to sleep in at night with lots of hay and newspaper to soak up any water and we clean them out almost every day