What is missing from your little patch of rural heaven ? Aahhh … maybe you should get yourself some ducks . For ducks have a number of features in their favour : ❑ Ducks are hardy birds that mayliveforuptoseven years . ❑ They lay eggs that are larger than chicken eggs , creamy and delicious . ❑ They provide meat . ❑ They are easy to contain . ❑ They aren ' t as prone to infectious diseases as chickens . ❑ They eat slugs , worms and other garden pests . ❑ And of course it ' s nice to have them waddling around making happy quacks . ❑ Finally , their basic requirements are simple . They need little more than water , food and a safe place to spend the night . Before you acquire them however be sure that the facilities are in place . Ducks need water , space and infrastructure . Fences , additional food , housing and facilities for breeders and young are essential . Ducks need water to swallow and a water depth of at least 10cm to clear their nostrils and keep their beaks clean . A natural pond , lined with something impermeable , is ideal and preferable . If you can ' t manage that , ducks can be provided with a child ' s wading pool . Water for swimming is not strictly necessary as long as they have tubs of water for drinking , and the water is clean . Clean drinking water must be provided separately . The ducks must not be able to climb into drinking water containers , but they must be deep enough and big enough for both adults and young to immerse their heads . This keeps their eyes clean and free from bacteria . The drinking water should be changed daily as the birds habitually mix food in it . It is best to have the drinkers outside the duck house because ducks are very good at splashing it all over the place , and if it is just outside the house and their food is inside , they won ' t have to travel far to drink and clean their beaks .
WATERFOWL
Keep ducks , for looks , table or eggs
They are easy to keep , hardy , good at keeping pests at bay ~ and they ! re great to eat as well
Generally a diet of household scraps is not sufficient for good health , good growth and good egg production . Free-range ducks can be fed a grain-based diet just like chickens . There are feeds made for duck , although they are not always available . Ideally , table ducks should be fed poultry growing meal , and laying ducks should be fed laying mix . To prevent a digestive upset , any change of feed should be gradual over a period of weeks , with the new feed slowly being substituted for the old . Ducks must have a supply of enough green feed . This can include kikuyu , lucerne , oats , barley sprouts or any other vegetation suitable for them . Provide them with additional
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