Show off your duck houses!!

[NorthernChick1]

I haven't found a thread for duck houses yet so i figured id make one!
So im having a little of a hard time keeping my ducks with my chickens, it seems if i keep them locked up in the coop for more than a day they get bored and pick on my ducks causing them injuries. I live in nothern ontario where our winters are crazy cold (-35C) most of january febuary. Im looking for good ideas for a warm, solid, small winter ready duck house ideas. please share!!

I also have two questions.
1. what is needed in the house? (ex. roost, nesting boxes?)
2. How big do i go... i have two muscovies, the least messiest of ducks apparently.

 

[NorthernChick1]

Come on Duck lovers! Hope this thread catches on! I need all of your help

 

[Hillsider]

Hi there! I am also in Northern Ontario. We are new to ducks but I wanted to share our duck/goose house. We have 4 Khaki Campbell ducklings and 1 male goose that we will be keeping together. From what we've read, they don't need a roost or a nesting box. We've still got some finishing to do but I think it's pretty good so far. We tried to go with a roof pitch that would shed the snow (there's a lot of it here!). This is 4x4, I believe (I'd have to confirm with my husband/builder).

 

[aart]

I haven't found a thread for duck houses yet so i figured id make one!

Here's a few:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/se...oops&t=post&o=date&c[title_only]=1&c[node]=42

 

[Duckworth]

Low to the ground, no nesting boxes or perches. I live where winters get to -10F, not including wind chill, and I have no heating in my duck house. I insulated the floor and lower walls and doors of my duck house with two-inch pink foam board insulation and the roof with two-inch styrofoam insulation. The upper walls are hardware cloth, since even in very cold temperatures, ducks need ventilation to allow the moisture and fumes they produce to escape. Less moisture means less chance of frostbite. Less fumes makes illness less likely. Ducks need ventilation, but not wind, so I board over the windward sides of the house during the winter and give them lots of straw to nestle into. My house is four feet by four feet, which gives my ducks room to move, but also allows their body heat to help them stay warm together. Their attached pen is fully enclosed by hardware cloth because of predators. In winter and rainy times, I put tarps over the storm/windward sides to protect them from wind and too much rain and snow. They don’t mind rain and snow, but the icing makes it hard to change our water buckets and get doors open and closed, so I put the tarps all the way up the walls to make things easier for myself. The pictures below are of the house when it was new. I keep adding straw over the soiled straw so the straw composts in place slowly over the winter. There is at least a foot of compacted straw in the house portion by spring thaw and I don’t put food or water in the house, just the pen. Now, I only close up the ducks in the house during the worst weather and always let them into the pen each morning.

 

[NorthernChick1]

Hi there! I am also in Northern Ontario. We are new to ducks but I wanted to share our duck/goose house. We have 4 Khaki Campbell ducklings and 1 male goose that we will be keeping together. From what we've read, they don't need a roost or a nesting box. We've still got some finishing to do but I think it's pretty good so far. We tried to go with a roof pitch that would shed the snow (there's a lot of it here!). This is 4x4, I believe (I'd have to confirm with my husband/builder).

OMG thats so cute! Where abouts in ontario if you dont mind me asking? and are the walls insulated for winter?

 

[NorthernChick1]

Low to the ground, no nesting boxes or perches. I live where winters get to -10F, not including wind chill, and I have no heating in my duck house. I insulated the floor and lower walls and doors of my duck house with two-inch pink foam board insulation and the roof with two-inch styrofoam insulation. The upper walls are hardware cloth, since even in very cold temperatures, ducks need ventilation to allow the moisture and fumes they produce to escape. Less moisture means less chance of frostbite. Less fumes makes illness less likely. Ducks need ventilation, but not wind, so I board over the windward sides of the house during the winter and give them lots of straw to nestle into. My house is four feet by four feet, which gives my ducks room to move, but also allows their body heat to help them stay warm together. Their attached pen is fully enclosed by hardware cloth because of predators. In winter and rainy times, I put tarps over the storm/windward sides to protect them from wind and too much rain and snow. They don’t mind rain and snow, but the icing makes it hard to change our water buckets and get doors open and closed, so I put the tarps all the way up the walls to make things easier for myself. The pictures below are of the house when it was new. I keep adding straw over the soiled straw so the straw composts in place slowly over the winter. There is at least a foot of compacted straw in the house portion by spring thaw and I don’t put food or water in the house, just the pen. Now, I only close up the ducks in the house during the worst weather and always let them into the pen each morning.

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Thanks very informative and nice duck house! With the house being 4x4 how many ducks do you house?

 

[Duckworth]

Thanks very informative and nice duck house! With the house being 4x4 how many ducks do you house?

I started off with four, but now have six, so I think mine might be a little crowded come winter. Last winter we closed the ducks up in their house every night, but now, our pen is fully secured, so the ducks can overnight inside or in the pen. I will probably stack some straw bales so that they block wind from going in the door to the house while allowing the ducks to go in and out freely. That should help keep the house warmer without crowding the ducks too much. They do sometimes all go into the house and hang out together, but to be shut in could cause then stress because of the space.

 

[Jpat]

Just finished last week! 9x9 walk in, Run isnt attatched in the photos but it now has a 100ish x 100x run attatched

 

[Hillsider]

OMG thats so cute! Where abouts in ontario if you dont mind me asking? and are the walls insulated for winter?

OMG thats so cute! Where abouts in ontario if you dont mind me asking? and are the walls insulated for winter?

We are just north of Muskoka. It's currently not insulated but we'll likely have to do that before next winter.