What do I do with my ducks?

I have 3 pet ducks, 2 pekin and the other is half pekin I think. I live in michigan and we already got about 3-4 inches of snow. At night we put them in my dads polebarn in a separate room where their dog house is with lots of straw for bedding. During the day we let them out, but today it’s really windy and they were shivering like crazy, it made me feel useless so I got another dog house from outside (the ones that look like an iglue) and moved it to the side of the house were not much wind blows with also a lot of straw, food in a bowl and a bowl of water. Underneith the straw is a blanket from when the cats would lay in it before I started to do this plan. Will I need to do anything differently I mean it gets cold here, do they need a heat lamp, should they even be outside? Please help I’m worried about them it’s my and their first winter together.

Answer #1

ha thanks mikeh, I like the pic, and no yubh8n2010 I’m not about to get rid of them, their our pets not just an animal that just sticks around.

Answer #2

Try putting them In row and your life will improve ! ( just joking around) Try craigs list. You can also find a nice nieghborhood with a pond and let them loose. (that is if they are adaptable to being on their own. You could also drive by residential farming communities and see if you see ducks on the property. If so, ask if they want more .

Answer #3

I did some more checking, and found a bunch of pics like this that should make you feel a little better:

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3096/3117644593_69af504207.jpg

So no worries, they can take care of themselves when it gets cold. It sounds like they got lucky, though, having an owner that is so attentive.

Answer #4

yeah but just having them shiver and then the half pekin (black and white one) acted like he couldn’t walk because he was so cold, I’m worried about how their gunna be when it gets under 0 degrees, but thank you for your advice it ‘s really starting to calm me down.

Answer #5

they’re big now so I don’t think that would work, and deff not in a bathtub mom wouldn’t allow it lol

Answer #6

If you have 2 bathrooms set them up in a bathtub. Get them water, food, a heat lamp, and some straw to lay on.

Answer #7

We used to have ducks on the farm growing up, several Pekins, in fact, and they never had a problem with the snow or the cold. Michigan probably gets a little colder than Pennsylvania, but as long as you have provided them reasonable shelter to get out of the weather, which you have, they’ll be fine. Keep in mind that these animals have a substantial layer of down under their outer feathers, which traps warm air close to their bodies, so while it looks like they’re unprotected against the elements, that’s not the case. Your ducks are almost certainly warmer outside then you are.

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