Help! Chickens attacking ducks

[Janay]

I have 9 red stars, all over 1 year old. I just got 8 ducklings, 3 pekins, 5 khaki campbells. When the ducks were over 3 weeks old, I moved them out to the coop with the chickens. That was on saturday, May 10th. Then the chickens were attacking the ducks. So I put the ducks in a large dog carrier (airport kind). That was on May 14th. This morning I decided to let the ducks out to see if the chickens would accept them yet. They didn't. Immediately, one chicken attacked a duck and started pecking it. I put them back in. I don't think there is any damage except for some missing 'fur'.
So my question is, how long should I keep them in the kennel? They are growing fast and I think they are getting squished in there.
I have a couple of options, if the chickens won't work with the ducks. (1) I could butcher the chickens and let the ducks have the coop. (2) I could put the ducks in a pen outside the coop and keep them separate from the chickens.
Any advice?? I really want my ducks safe and happy. The thing about keeping the ducks separate is that the cost of a pen and dog house for them at night will be kind of expensive. I would like to use the coop if at all possible.

Thank you! Please reply asap!

 

[chicmom]

This is very common. Chickens are very territorial, and will even attack newly introduced chickens. I wouldn't put your ducklings in with them until they are the same size as the chickens. But your little ducks will definitely need more space now. If you can pen up the ducks next to the chickens, so they can see eachother, but not touch eachother, that would be your best bet. Also, your ducks would love a baby pool. You can get those for about $9.00.

Now, even when they're all the same size, once you stop separating them, the chickens will still attack the ducks at first. It will take a few weeks for everyone to settle down. It should improve as each day progresses though. So you're going to see alot of scuffles......It's the nature of the beast.

Hope this works out for you,
Sharon

 

[Janay]

Thank you for your reply. Ok, so what would be your ideas about penning them beside the chickens? I mean what should I use to do that?

 

[Janay]

Alright, I got a dog pen, 10' X 6' X 6' tall and put it beside the chicken run with a dog kennel inside. It is working great! Thanks!

 

[TLWR]

It's doable
I had 3 ducks. Lost 1 to something injury related. Left me with 2 ducks for a year.
I added 3 ducklings.
When big enough, combined and they worked it out.
Following year added 3 chicks and about 5 weeks after that, 2 more chicks.
This spring I had 5 ducks and 3 chickens.
Then added 2 ducklings.

Ducklings are now 8 weeks old.

They have been outside from the start on the patio. Ducks and Chickens could hear them.
I would bring their brooder into the yard when it was nice and sunny out starting about 2 weeks. So ducks and chickens could investigate, but everybody was safe.
Then would let the littles out for supervised time and the bigs were allowed to get close, but not chase the littles. So this way, everybody got to see everybody as well.
Littles were then given a 12x12 pen under a tree where they spent their day.. with the kiddie pool. Everybody can still see. LIttles would get free time outside the pen each evening while I sat and watched everybody. At night, I'd bring the littles back to the brooder on the patio and the bigs would go check out the pen and clean up left over food and use the pool and whatnot.
For the last couple of weeks, they've been out all day and come up to the patio when they want a meal or just to chill. But they spend most of their time in the pond. One big chases them out of the pond. We are working on that by having them all in the pond and supervising.
Other than being chased out of the pond, all is fine. The littles do their own thing and the big ducks and chickens are just around the yard doing their own thing.

I'm hoping to start getting the littles ready to head to the duck house and get them off the patio entirely soon.


It can work with time and patience.

 

[Janay]

Well, once again I tried to add the ducks to the chicken coop and run at 7 weeks old. The chickens pecked unmercifully at the ducks and the ducks could not defend themselves so I knew it would end in blood or worse. So I separated them. I really want to give the ducks a try so we are giving the chickens to a friend. I am sad it didn't work for us, but hoping that adding chickens to ducks will be easier than adding ducks to chickens. (What is your opinion about that??)

 

[Going Quackers]

I am not surprised actually, chickens are something else highly territorial. I have watched one of mine put off a Muscovy now if your not familiar BIG birds with big claws who are pretty confident themselves, i do not house chickens and ducks together.. they do free range so somewhat co-mingle but i think if they start off as wee ones and used to one another then things mesh better.

Definitely not doable with young birds and mature ones.. of completely different poultry bases, younger ones will be picked on and the defensive mechanisms are different.

 

[Janay]

Yeah, it makes sense to me know. But for some reason, I thought I read a lot online about people harmoniously keeping them together. Oh well, that's what I get for not doing more research.

 

[LilyD]

I really think it depends on the chickens and the ducks. I have a group of 34 chickens that are staying in a large coop with one rooster. I recently added 4 Khaki Campbell (3 weeks) ducklings and we also have 17 Muscovy Ducklings (1 week old today). The ducks are kept in a separate pen for now in the same yard as the chickens but they are out during the day with the chickens and will eat drink and play right around the chickens. So far I haven't had any problems and the ducklings will walk right up to the rooster and large hens.They just ignore them so I think it can be done I just think it depends on the chickens. If there are issues once the ducks are permanently in the coop with the chickens I will remove the trouble maker from the coop and crate them but my birds are so loving I really am not too worried. They will reprimand them if they are in the way or being too pushy but they are treating them like they would a baby chicken. I have Black Australorps, Cochins, Brahmas and a few other varied birds.

 

[subhanalah]

I put up an x-pen in my chicken coop and the ducklings are loving in there for a few weeks to get used to that being "home."
The ducks are the ones harassing the chickens.