The Complete Homestead Duck Guide
(Page 6 of 9)
BROOD A BUNCH
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Hatching eggs can be a bit of a gamble, though, so you might prefer to purchase day-old ducklings and brood them. (If there are no reliable duck hatcheries in your area, write to Willow Hill Farm and Hatchery, Dept. TMEN, Richland, Pennsylvania 17087 for a price list. This firm will airfreight you a bunch of tiny quackers within a day of their birth.)
Whether you use a wire-floored commercial brooder, a hover type, or a homemade device, give special attention to temperature during your birds' first few weeks of life. Start the heating unit a day before the ducklings arrive and stabilize the temperature at 85-90°F. If you use a hovertype brooder, raise the hover three to four inches and brood only half as many ducklings as you would chicks.
Actually, any good-sized packing box equipped with an electric light bulb for heat makes an adequate brooder. Place straw or some rough paper on the bottom of the box. (Newspapers are too slick and can cause leg injuries, and—since baby ducks are born hungry—they might eat sawdust or ground-up absorbent litter.) And be sure to hang the bulb so it doesn't touch any combustible materials.
Generally speaking, you can lower the temperature to 80-85°F after the second week .. . and to about 75°F the following week. After that, 65-70°F will suffice. It's best, however, to watch the birds for indications of needed temperature changes: If they're noisy and tend to pile up, raise the temperature, and if they move away from the heat, reduce it. Too much warmth will delay growth and feathering ... while too little can cause crowding and trampling, and the loss of a number of ducklings.
During the brooding period, replace wet or moldy litter frequently . . . because accumulated manure can burn the ducklings' breasts, and damp litter actually encourages diseases. To avoid chilling, use a wire guard over your waterers so the young birds can't get wet during the "down" stage. Remember also that, because of the construction of the ducks' nasal passages, they must be able to submerge their bills when drinking. Hence deeper waterers must be provided as the waterfowl grow.
A DUCKLING'S DIET
You can substitute chick rations for duck food, but only if the feed contains no chemical additives whatsoever! Any chemicals or antibiotics will be lethal to ducklings.
If you can't get an additive-free ration or buy regular commercial baby-duck food, you can make up your own "formula" with rolled oats, cornmeal, wheat middlings, and a source of extra protein (such as soybean, fish, alfalfa, or cottonseed meal). However, you must never allow this "mash" to get stale or moldy . . . and be sure to mix it with some grit. DO NOT FEED YOUR DUCKLINGS ANY WHOLE GRAINS UNTIL THE FOWL ARE AT LEAST A MONTH OLD! Cut the small birds' greens into one-inch pieces, and be sure the vegetation hasn't been sprayed with pesticides. (Though it may seem a little cannibalistic, another good duckling food is a ration of finely diced hard-boiled eggs.)
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