Wet or Dry Food for Ducklings?

[Duck Drover]

I feed my ducklings wet Flock Raiser until they are feathered and outside, then they get dry Flock Raiser. I wet the feed so it is easier for them to swallow without having to mix water with it themselves. I have been doing it this way for 3 years and it works for me. Someone else who raises ducks suggested I feed dry chick starter to ducklings because that is what she feeds hers. From what I have read, she is not using what is considered a best practice so I am not going to change what I am doing but if it works for her she can feed her own ducks that way.

I also use the small meat baby food jars for water and she uses the chick waterers. Because ducks get feed in their water more than chicks do, I change their water and clean their water jars frequently so I can't imagine how I would keep chick waterers clean with ducklings. The chicks get some food in them but it works to clean them when I fill them and the plastic does not get slimy from the mess the chicks make (their habbit of pooping on them is what makes them the hardest to keep clean). The glass jars and the short glass dishes I use for ducklings when they outgrow the jars are easier to clean than plastic and I can even run them through the dishwasher. They are deep enough for the ducklings to clean their bills properly while the chick waterers are not designed with duck bills in mind.

I feel like I have a good system for raising ducklings but I am always looking for good ideas that might work even better. I have plenty of chick feeders and waterers I could use for ducklings but I can't visualize how they would work as well as what I am using. Does anyone feed ducklings dry feed in chick feeders or is feeding wet feed in low dishes the standard practice for ducklings? I can't imagine dry feed staying dry with ducklings wanting a wet environment!

 

[AliciaM]

I tried feeding wet once and it was very wasteful.. I was always having to change it to make sure it never got moldy..
Right after hatch and as soon as I put duckings in the brooder I sprinkle dry food all over the paper towels I put down in the brooder... The paper towels are only for a day or so until I see them nibble on the food then the food goes into a shallow bowl.. Once they are all going to the shallow bowl, I put the feed into one of those chick feeders that is long with holes in it... The duckling can get there heads in there to get the feed, but cant walk all over it... and I put it far enough away from any water where they cant just jump back and forth getting it wet..
This system works for me and I have never lost a baby yet due to not eating...

For water.... the first day or so I just put the chick waterer in there on top of the shavings/paper towels until I see them drinking.. Once they know where it is and what its for, I put the chick waterer inside a larger shallow bowl with a reasonably high lip.. Low enough for the duckling to get over, but high enough where the majority of the water stays... They can dabble in the water with minimal mess....

This system works great for me.... My first few tries with ducklings i was about to give up due to all the mess and having to clean the brooders multiple times a day to keep up with it... And... the brooders are in my house.. Right now I have one in my kitchen.... The dust is a pain due to the chicks that are in with the ducklings though...

 

[Duck Drover]

I have found that the hatchlings seem to go for the spilled food over the food in the dish until they discover that the dish is full of food. They seem to have an eye for the little bites over scooping up the food into their bills so that is the main transition I deal with in getting ducklings to eat. I used to start with a milk jug lid but that is not big enough to hold much food so I have a weighted bottom flared dish that is probably for a candle that I use now. I have never tried feeding the crumble dry but I have varied the texture to find what works best. It gets sloppy if it is too wet but it has to be wet enough that it is loose. The crumble seems too big for a hatchling to swallow and I would not want them to choke. I use a coffee grinder to make smaller grains for my Silkie chickss and I start the Orpingtons on the smaller ground feed as well but they move up to the crumble sooner than the Silkies. I could try grinding the crumbles for the ducklings to feed it dry but it seems like there would be more waste with it not sticking together the way the wet food does.

It seems ducklings learn to eat one way and then they are not as open to a new food source. I have people feed wet food to ducklings they get from me and there has never been a problem so maybe ducklings started out on dry food need to stay on dry food because that is what they have learned is their food source. I had a Call duckling I hatched refuse to eat food and it would only eat poop for some reason so I watch for that problem but as long as they start on the wet food they are not looking on the floor for food, they go right to the food dish and shovel it in.

I know alot of people feed fermented feed and it takes a day of soaking before it has a chance to grow any mold. The wet feed gets eaten within a few hours so it never has a chance to grow mold in the brooder. I have considered trying to ferment feed but I don't have a location where I can keep it with the smell being so strong. I also like the convenience of keeping gravity feeders full at all times for the adults and I keep food in front of the babies at all times, it just requires feeding several times a day but then that also allows me to check on them to make sure they are thriving.

I am looking for a better way to catch spilled water. I was using food dehydrator trays with shelf liner over them and that worked well until I noticed the notches on the corners were injuring the ducklings' feet and stopped using them. I have read that roasting trays work well but I want something soft that I can cut to the size I need so I am going to check out the hardware store today. I don't mind cleaning tubs daily but it is time consuming and I don't like letting the ducklings step in poop if I can get it to go through the floor while still giving them a smooth surface for their baby feet to walk on. I am keeping more ducklings this year because I am hatching new colors and selling adults.