Chicken Memorials

[debbie26pet]

kids are going mad over a duck we have 6 chickens and in a back garden so no acres of land, can we have one can they live with chickens? are they noisey? what about water, be only as a pet and eggs so whats best i havent said yes to kids said id look futher into them

[mariajames49]

Hi there

 

I've been researching into ducks as pets myself recently - to give you a bit of info from what I've learnt.

 

The Call Ducks are the most friendly/tame, they will eat out of your hand and be handled so are very good for young children, however they don't lay many eggs per year (approx 60 - 80) I believe so if it's eggs your interested in probably not such a good choice.

 

Then there's the khaki campbell which is probably the most common of ducks, generally laying one egg per day so reasonably guaranteed layers, however, they are not so tame as the calls.

 

The next sort of ducks I have researched are the indian runners (which are the tall lanky sort - very funny to watch) I have heard they can become quite friendly and will lay quite a few eggs like the khakis

 

Certainly my friend has two female khakis for the eggs and two male calls, together with 4 chickens and they all get along just fine together.

 

Most types of ducks need to have access to water every day to keep their eyes clean - you can usually just use a small kids paddling pool for this and will need to be emptied and refilled often (as can get very mucky).

 

I believe the female call ducks are the noisyiest of the three types - so if your not worried about eggs, probably best to go for males (as they don't make much noise at all).

 

We have created a fair sized run area in our garden with a poultry house at one end, as the ducks will turn the garden into a complete bog if you let them and they will need to be shut up at night cos of foxes.

 

I hope this helps you

 

Let me know if you think I might be able to help further

[bronze]

I wouldnt have one duck as that is unfair and I also wouldnt rely on the chickens getting on with them. You need to know what you would do if they didnt get on. If you dont have that kind of space dont even think about it.

[fairy&cake]

if you dont have much space i wouldnt advice it. We have two ducks ad=nd 5 chiooks, and the ducks STINK . I clean them out everyday and they still smell really bad. I clean the paddling pool out everyday, sometumes twice a day and it still reaks!

 

They need some space and ideally a pond or padlling pool.

 

Our chicken run is 10 feet by 18 feet and i sometimes wonder if its big enough.

 

If you are going to get some, i would advice a male and female call duck couple as they are nice.