How important is a pond for ducks

[duckdog]

How important is it for a ducks to have a solid pond to use? I ask because until yesterday the info I came across was essentially that a kiddie pool is good enough for a few ducks. But I came across a video in which the person was talking about mistakes they made with ducks. They mentioned that even for a few ducks they really need enough water space, to dive some and really spend sufficient time in water. What has been your experience? And do you have any idea of a measure need per duck? Thank you

 

[Evadig]

A kiddie pool is good enough for a few ducks, but you will be emptying it out rather frequently. I bought a 17 gallon rubber tub from TSC, that works just as well (though rather small) and is much more durable. Recently I dug them out a pond, which they love. It's about 3 ft by 4 ft and is 3 ft deep. But I live in an area with lots of clay soil so it holds water to some degree. So the bottom line is, a kiddie pool is fine, they will just be happier with something bigger. Hope this helps!

 

[Miss Lydia]

My 20 waterfowl have 2 pools a large kiddy pool that my dh put and drain in so I don't have to use a bucket to empty it and a smaller pool down close to the house I also have a 50 gallon stock tank not in use right now. My birds have never had an in-ground pond but they love their pools I can usually find at least 6 at one time swimming and diving in the big one sometimes they get so carried away they will all jump out at once then get right back inside. If we had to wait till we got a pond dug or moved where we had a pond most of us wouldn't have waterfowl. they even have the wheel barrow pool that they love.

 

[Evadig]

All I can say is my 20 waterfowl have 2 pools a large kiddy pool that my dh put and drain in so I don't have to use a bucket to empty it and a smaller pool down close to the house I also have a 50 gallon tank not in use right now. My birds have never had an in-ground pond but they love their pools I can usually find at least 6 at one time swimming and diving in the big one sometimes they get so carried away they will all jump out at once then get right back inside. If we had to wait till we got a pond dug or moved where we had a pond most of us wouldn't have waterfowl. they even have the wheel barrow pool that they love. View attachment 3798580View attachment 3798581View attachment 3798582

We must have posted at the exact same time!

 

[Bubblesduck]

How important is it for a ducks to have a solid pond to use? I ask because until yesterday the info I came across was essentially that a kiddie pool is good enough for a few ducks. But I came across a video in which the person was talking about mistakes they made with ducks. They mentioned that even for a few ducks they really need enough water space, to dive some and really spend sufficient time in water. What has been your experience? And do you have any idea of a measure need per duck? Thank you

A kiddie pool that you refill daily is the minimum. I have a pond and still have a kiddie pool in another part of the yard so they always have water close by. Pond is round, 8’ wide x 24” deep with an island in the middle …

 

[BrittKay]

How important is it for a ducks to have a solid pond to use? I ask because until yesterday the info I came across was essentially that a kiddie pool is good enough for a few ducks. But I came across a video in which the person was talking about mistakes they made with ducks. They mentioned that even for a few ducks they really need enough water space, to dive some and really spend sufficient time in water. What has been your experience? And do you have any idea of a measure need per duck? Thank you

I got ducks this year, so I don't know a ton... But I decided since we have irrigation that instead of a pond, we would use the ditch. I incorporated 25 feet of ditch into our duck pen, and we have 6 ducks (thinking about extending it to 30ft because we may add a couple more). I can tell you that they spend 60-70% of their time enjoying the ditch and eating the leaves, moss, and putting their heads to the bottom to sift through dirt/grit that is on the bottom. They can swim back and forth, but they can't really dive because it's not super deep. Our irrigation runs about 6 months out of the year so I'll be placing a pool in their pen for the wintertime but haven't had the experience yet. I purchased a pretty large rectangular pool that is shorter so they can get in and out of it, so I'm hoping for the best this winter. I know people who have ponds for their ducks (built them when they got ducks) and every year their digging up their pond to fix issues and having pump and filter issues. I feel like if you want a pond that is sustainable that you have to go BIG because it's not worth the insane amount of maintenance smaller ones have.

 

[Miss Lydia]

This is a popular one they can get a 6 pack in here.