can i let pekin ducks free range??

[Dylon]

I have done chickens and quail, now I want to try a couple ducks.

I have an old bantam pen, which is where the kiddie pool and food will be.

If raised there , and the food and water is there, will they return there at night??


Any other tips are welcome too!!

 

[Ultra]

You can let any duck free range, and assuming they know where home is, they will return at night. My ducks free range all day and walk into their pred-proof house on their own at dusk.

The issue is how are you going to deal with predators during the day? We use guard dogs and have never had a loss to predators. If you don't have a way to keep them safe, you will suffer losses to raptors, skunks, and coons to name a few.

 

[Dylon]

I have 2 dogs outside. The chickens free range all day and I haven't lost one to day time predators. My yard has loads of big bushes and trees .

My losses come at night, which is why I need them to go to the pen, and hopefully into the old hen house for the night

 

[ducklover87]

I have done chickens and quail, now I want to try a couple ducks.

I have an old bantam pen, which is where the kiddie pool and food will be.

If raised there , and the food and water is there, will they return there at night??


Any other tips are welcome too!!

Yes you can. You can free range any type of duck. What most people do is keep them penned for about a week or so. When they are penned if you get them in a habit of going into the hen house at a certain time every night than they will learn to go in at that same time, possibly even on their own. Mine don't have a routine for this so it makes it a Lil difficult but with some good herding techniques it gets done. I'm always on call with my job so my schedule is never the same which makes it hard to get them into a routine. But they know when I step outside and open my arms that its time to go in and for the most part it works. Every now and again they veer off but I just correct it.