i made my ducks a micro habitat.

[fumbduck]

ive raised 2 rescued game roosters and 4 reds only lost 1 chick because of drowning.. ducks are a new thing. i have bricks in the water a piece of plywood and hay on top of the bricks and about an inch and a half of lukewarm water covering the whole floor . ive also got it blocked off with a thinner brick so they can use it as a stepping stone so they can come off the wood and down into the water and they cant get under the plywood. its a tight 80 degrees in there and probably will stay that way till summer when i move them outside in 2 months. the whole thing is about 6 square feet cause i made it out of the bottom of a big dog house . is this enough room and is that too much water? i know ducks are into water cause nature and stuff. plus thier starter cage was flooded in about 4 days lol. anything you can think of that they need other than that and food (obviously)?

 

[Mrs.H]

These are duckling right? Maybe I read that completely wrong but....their house is on water??

 

[The Humanatee]

How old are they? If they are ducklings they need a heat lamp, and they should not be left alone with deep water. Could you post photos of the coop/cage you made?

 

[Orca5094]

Yes, photos would help! And how old are these ducks? If they are ducklings then your set-up does not sound safe, honestly. They shouldn't have access to water they can get their bodies into without supervision. That would just be a few minutes a day kind of thing in a shallow tub for bathing. Ducklings are not water-proof and will get waterlogged, chilled, and/or drown if allowed in the water too long.

 

[fumbduck]

this is it. theres lining in the bottom of the dog house so the water stays in. the things below thier walking platform that looks kinda like matted hay are 1 inch bricks for them to get up out of the water. thier water bottle is sitting on the bottom for depth indication. the water just comes up to the bricks. the platform is 2 inches above the water and not dry at all cause they seriously turn it into a swamp. i have the lamp there. its got a 120 watt bulb in it and foil covering it except for the open part pointing at the side for light so it dont hurt thier eyes and kinda catches some heat and refracts it out a bit. its warm enough in there to evaporate the water, so i made a kinda solar still that makes it rain back down into the water end. you know like a sustainable type micro habitat that will recycle the moisture. i just made it yesterday because they flooded the hell out of thier plastic box i made them because the first cardboard box i made got soaked as fudge in the first day... but yeah... the only way they could drown in it is if they just absolutely hated life. and they can self regulate thier temp by distancing themselves from the heat source if they want. if it seems dangerous let me know and ill drop a few rocks in it. some pebbles to raise the floor up a little.

 

[fumbduck]

also they just soak the crap out of thier food... is that normal? i mean like getting water and spitting it into the food and then eating it. should i make them a thick mix of food goop? i may obviously be over thinking everything...

 

[Amykins]

also they just soak the crap out of thier food... is that normal? i mean like getting water and spitting it into the food and then eating it. should i make them a thick mix of food goop? i may obviously be over thinking everything...

Yes, that is totally and completely standard behavior for ducks. Trust me, it just gets messier from here!

As for their habitat, drowning isn't the issue. Bacteria and hypothermia are. In such an enclosed space it's going to be very difficult to keep that thing clean, and since they're gonna poop in that water (which already looks very mucky) they're likely to try and clean their nares out in it which could lead to a respiratory infection. Coccidosis and salmonella can easily be fatal to ducklings.

Honestly, when they're still that small, they don't really need constant access to bathing water. As long as they have enough to drink and flush their nares, it's best to keep their enclosure as clean and dry as possible, even though with ducks that's easier said than done! My suggestion is to give them a bigger, more secure pen on dry land where you can easily clean it out every single day and keep a good eye on them.

 

[Orca5094]

Yeah, I just don't like the set-up unfortunately. It's going to keep the area very humid and damp, which will allow mold to grow alot faster and potentially cause health problems (in addition to the mucky water itself).

I think your problem is actually your waterer. I have one like that I use for tiny little ones, but once they are too big to be able to clear their nares in that water, they are too big for the waterer and just end up splashing all the water out the sides of their bills every time they take a sip. Do you have any old plastic food containers with lids? Take one of those and cut a hole in the lid just big enough for them to get their heads in, and make sure the water is deep enough for them to get their whole bill in so they can blow out their nares. That is very important for ducks to be able to do. Those containers will also keep the bedding and brooder much dryer as they can't just spit the water out over the edge of the waterer like with the one you have. I think that will help with your problem quite a bit.