Duck Nesting Boxes

[ksmith]

I am planning one getting two female Blue Swedish ducklings in about a month, so I need to figure out how they like their nesting boxes. My coop is about maybe 4ft wide by 6ft long and off the ground about 2ft I have 6 nesting boxes for my 10 hens, but I know the ducks cant reach them and they are way too small for the ducks. So what i am planning on doing is covering the coop floor with plywood, and then in the corner adding two larger nesting boxes to fit to the ducks. what dimension did you use? thank you!!

 

[Eroc1_1]

From what I have read, they may not use nesting boxes. They can lay their eggs about anywhere. But, if you were gonna build a nesting box, I think it would need to be 18" x 18" x 18". That is just my best guess.

 

[Hunter0704]

The flooring shouldn't be made of only wood...the ducks and chickens will poop on it, spill water on it, and before you know it the wood floor will start rippling and need replacement. Found that out with my first coop. Cover the wood flooring with lineoleum or other type of water reflecting product. This also helps in cleaning. I just built a coop and run for 4 baby chicks and 3 ducklings I got this week....the run is 12' x 6' and the coop 4' x 6' with a lineoleum floor over wood. Plan to cover it with shavings plus straw in the nesting boxes. The underside of the coop, which is off the ground a few feet, has siding on two sides to keep the ducks out of the weather of rain, snow, etc. I have heard they will probably build a nest of their own outside the coop, so this is why I enclosed an area underneath. Am hoping they will join the chickens and go into the coop each evening. The flooring in the run has hardware cloth stapled to each side of the frame so the whole bottom is covered (to keep out critters), landscaping cloth layed over that so we won't have grass or weeds, then that is covered with several inches of pea gravel....dry on the surface even after a rain. For a 12' x 6' run I got 1 yard of pea gravel and actually have a bit too much. Hope this helps!

 

[ChickieBooBoo]

My ducks don't lay in a next box, they lay wherever they are when they get the urge. Outside, inside, in the pool etc

 

[zzGypsy]

we use milk crate size - 12x12x12 or 14x14x14 and one that is 18x12x12 (18 wide)
these are solid wall wih tops, and we turn them so they're 45 degrees diagonal to the wall but with the opening facing the wall instead of the open area. we've had nestboxes across the bottom of the wall on the ground floor, but they seem to like the ones with the door turned to the back better. ours lay Oh, Just Anywhere for at least the first month or so, and then seem to pick a favorite spot and mostly lay there. when they think about being broody, they'll sometimes look for a hiding place to lay and stop laying in the box. we do occasionally find eggs in the muddy area around their pool.

we've got a mixed flock, sweedish, rouens, appleyards, cayugas.

 

[Rosecomb-Ryan]

Here are what I use for nests for my Muscovys. One of the main reason I like these is because the Males cant get into it and hurt the female or the eggs.. These are 1/4 of a Barrel with a bottom and 2 2 by 4s on either side of the bottom to hold them off the ground, I am thinking of putting some sand on the bottom of the nests this year but they worked fine last year (Have to make them off the ground because the back of our property where the birds are floods some)

 

[Highlander]

When one of my ducks started laying last month at 16 weeks I was unprepared and hadn't sorted out nest boxes so I put an old drawer in there while I figured something out. I have shavings in it plus straw on top for them to hide the eggs under. Well she used it every day and when another duck started laying last week she was using the drawer too so I have just left it.

 

[pirtykitty]

Mine use there nesting boxes.. They have three in their night pen.. They sleep in two and lay eggs in the 3rd... I used dummy eggs to train them ....

 

[ksmith]

Thanks everyone! They have been laying the eggs under the raised coop, so I have to crawl under the coop everyday to retrieve them. But today I went to collect the eggs and a duck egg was in the coop! woo hoo! The only thing that puzzles me is the nesting boxes are about 2' off of the coop floor...Is it really possible for the ducks to get up in the nesting boxes??

 

[Tivona]

I am not sure about your lay out but I have a duck that loves a large big bucket made for watering horses that is about that high and she can just do this hop/fly thing and jump into it. She loves the depth and will swim around diving in the bucket. I showed her a couple of times it had water by lifting her and placing her in it. Now she does it all the time. My guess is if yours want to lay the eggs in the nest boxes the 2 foot height will not stop them. I would still recommend lowering it a foot if possible though. Also I have over sized nest boxes and the girls have no problem sharing.