Will pea gravel hurt my ducks feet?

[katiebob]

Hi all,
I want to put a thick layer of pea gravel in my ducks (future-soon to be constructed) enclosed pen so that I can spray the poop to the ground. I prefer pea gravel over sand as it won't wash away as easily. The girls will have a little house bedded with grass hay if they want to be inside. Does anybody have any experience with this?
Thanks

 

[janastasio]

I don't have an answer, but I would like like to know as well. I'm getting a new pool for my ducks and want to put pea stone around it! Already have some ducks predisposed to bumble foot, so I also don't want something that will encourage this.

 

[duckyfromoz]

I havent use pea gravel but I do have a graveled area that is very hard on my ducks feet- They by choice never walk there. Tumbled stones will have more of the sharper points removed - they are larger- and probably more expensive- But tumbled river stones are what I use in my yard to insure that my ducks feet are ok.

 

[Amiga]

I have seen a few different things sold as pea gravel. Don't know the official definition, but it may just be size. I have seen pea gravel that looked like gray and brown m&m's, and almost squirted out from under my feet as I walked on it!

I have also seen rather rough-edged pea gravel. Perhaps you can find sources for the stuff and get a handful of it. I would not just order it sight unseen.

Storey's Guide recommends pea gravel around watering areas (you probably are aware of that - sorry if it's a repeat). So far (and it is early) the soil in the duck yard is holding up beautifully. It is well drained, sandy loam, and I am setting up a low-effort gravity system using small swales to direct water I dump from their pools into some raised garden beds downhill from there.

 

[Amiga]

I have seen a few different things sold as pea gravel. Don't know the official definition, but it may just be size. I have seen pea gravel that looked like gray and brown m&m's, and almost squirted out from under my feet as I walked on it!

I have also seen rather rough-edged pea gravel. Perhaps you can find sources for the stuff and get a handful of it. I would not just order it sight unseen.

Storey's Guide recommends pea gravel around watering areas (you probably are aware of that - sorry if it's a repeat). So far (and it is early) the soil in the duck yard is holding up beautifully. It is well drained, sandy loam, and I am setting up a low-effort gravity system using small swales to direct water I dump from their pools into some raised garden beds downhill from there.

 

[mightieskeeper]

Pea gravel the size of a pea. It is just small rock. You can buy river rock pea gravel it is rounded not pointy.

 

[katiebob]

I want to use the smaller ( m&m size or think large aquarium gravel), smooth and rounded type. But it occurred to me they might sallow it? I know that some ingestion is fine, but to you think they might go overboard on it? Hmmm

 

[WadeMD]

I got 2 tons of "mortar sand" - the kind used in concrete production for cheap. Its a mix of pea gravel and sand and does a VERY good job of protecting the surface inside my pen. The mixed sand is good in that the pea gravel settles into the sand and is smoother than gravel alone. My ducks went nuts in the mud this past weekend... any standing water and they'll dredge into it looking for yummies.

 

[Amiga]

katiebob I wouldn't put much past ducks when it comes to doing nutty things. I suppose you could get a few shovels full and spread them around and see what they do. But I read regularly that people put pea gravel out in their duckyards.

I keep thinking I would like to harness their energies and their droppings and have some area in their yard where there is mulch that they can enrich, that I can then add to the compost. I am making some swales backfilled with stone to direct runoff water onto garden areas.

I will probably put some kind of sand or gravel or both right around their water area. Going to wait and see a bit on that. Also I'm thinking of planting a low raised bed with poultry fence over it and planting it with greens they can eat as the greens grow up through the fence.

 

[Katy]

I use pea gravel in my call duck's pen. It's the small rounded size and it doesn't seem to bother them any.