[phil2005]

hi all . im new to site but seems good from wat ive read .....

right ive  recently picked up 6 baby duckling over the week end from sales what i thought i was bidding for piegones .... but turned out i had won 6 lovely little duckling and i come home and showed my 5 year old boy and wife so we made a 5ft x 5ft mesh shed /pen to pop them out  side on a day time with a 3ft rabbit hutch and straw as bedding but
all day there have been swiming about and playing eating plenty thrn around 18:00 hour as was  comeing in cold.. i went to the  pen to bring them in the house over night and there was one that had died ... (sad .... but im now wondering if it was shock or cold
and other thing i want to ask is about food as a kid my uncal had chickens and duck and gooses but was feeding chicken pellets so could i feed me duckling that plus as veggie and stuff or mashed up bread .....

thanxs

[Vember]

Do you know how old they are?
Are they fluffy or do they have feathers?
If they are fluffy they could be cold, need heat? How deep was the water ?

They need special crumbs to eat for the first 2/3 weeks not chick crumbs! Then waterfowl grower after that



Sarah

[Foxy]

Hi and welcome to the forum

Do you know how old your ducklings are? If they dont have a mum they will not be able to waterproof themselves until feathered at 6 weeks old. If they are swimming in water and are younger than 6 weeks they may get chilled and that will be fatal.
It sounds like they may need heat if young so DO NOT keep them outside. If they are stressed from the auction they will need a little more care as will be stressed. Please keep them inside and give them a little extra heat.

[Vember]

Phil where abouts do you live?


May be one of our members would be able to help you out with some food and heat for them?

[phil2005]

thank you for ur replys the water was 4 inc deep and there still fluffy little lovely things
so im going to keep them indoors for a few weeks and im going to put them under a warm light ...
so wat type of light a low heat or would i be better off with a heat mat in the box


thanxs again

[phil2005]

im in teesside town called stockton on tees

[too many girls]

you need a proper heat lamp Phil, failing that a 40 watt red bulb over a cardboard box should do the trick temporarily (be careful of over heating them but if they huddle up it means their cold) i wouldn't let them outside again until they are a bit older.

[Kate and her Ducks]

I kept my first ducklings in a big plastic box under a normal lamp but a proper heat lamp is better if you can get it. How they behave is a good guide to if they are warm enough. If they are huddled together under the lamp they are too cold. If spread in the corners panting they are too hot which can kill them just as quickly. Sleeping comfortably in a group, running about, eating and drinking and its about right.

They need water to drink available at all times. It needs to be deep enough that they can dip their eyes and nostrils in to keep them clean.

They need feed available all the time while they are tiny. The best is waterfowl starter or chick crumbs. If you really can't find anything else thay can be given chick crumbs BUT IT MUST BE NON-MEDICATED AS THIS CAN POISEN THEM. Organic ones will be unmedicated.

Make sure they have a non-slip, absorbant base to whatever they stay in to prevent them getting leg problems and to keep them warm and dry. I use old towels to begin with and then horse bedding or wood shavings when they are a bit bigger. They are messy little things so they need cleaning out most days.

If you can post a pic we would be able to give more specific advice as it is always a bit of catch up when trying to care for impulse buys!

[too many girls]

Phil, have pm'd you.

[phil2005]

once again thank you all for ur info and help im trying to take pics for u all and all info was very helpfull and ive pop them in my very large cat carryer in the house and poped the heating on over night and then going to sort the lamp out in morrrning ......
 ive just took a pic its not very good coz i took with my mobile phone .....

so thanxs to all

[joyfull]

Oh phil they are soooooo cute, hope TMG can help you as Darlington to Stockton on tees isn't very far. 

[cathangirl]

Phil, they are gorgeous.  Best of luck with them.
Will you still be going for pigeons, or have these little darlings put you on another track?   
cathangirl
ps Stockton to Darlington was the first ever train journey, wasn't it?

[phil2005]

thanxs all they went really well over night and ive managed to keep them warm ... witha  lamp that gives of a little heat ... other than that i will keep u posted .... and yea darlington not to far .... yea ive got a challange with chicks dont need pigeons ..... even my 5 year old son wants to help .... as i was getting the lamp out of the summer house and he was up helping at 2 am lol

so thanxs all

[Kate and her Ducks]

They are gorgeous, do you know what breed they are? They look to only be a week old, give or take a few days, so are going to need loads of TLC for a couple of weeks yet.

I'm sure TMG can point you in the direction of a local supplier for the starter crumbs and a heat lamp which need to be todays priority.

At this age I kept mine in a rabbit/guinea pig cage I got from Pets at Home (I know, I know but it was convenient). I got one with a plastic base and a wire cage over the top. Easy to position the heat lamp at one end so they can choose what temp, they want, easy to clean out and now they have all outgrown it the base is used as a pond for them in the garden!

Think it was this one.
http://www.petsathome.com/find/category-is-6+small+pets/breed-is-guinea_pig/product-is-11930/pgs-is-142

[too many girls]

mine are in one like that, only i got mine from the local skip, cost me 50p, it was brand new and even had the toys, water and food dishes and an instruction book on rearing guinea pigs (i gave them to pip's school as they have g pigs)  i use a red 40 watt bulb and clip it on through the top opener (bulb holder with clip £2.20 from Wilko's) it's been a real godsend.