can baby ducks eat chick starter

can baby ducks eat chick starter

You can feed niacin by adding brewer’s yeast to their feed, at a rate of about 1/2 cup of brewer’s yeast per 10 pounds of feed. Medicated starter feeds include amprolium, a coccidiostat which is not approved for use with ducks or geese. His paper states “Frequently publications pertaining to waterfowl state that medicated feeds should not be fed to ducklings and goslings. It can be purchased in either medicated or unmedicated form. do not feed them medicated chick feed b/c they will eat soo much of it and overdose the medicine and it can kill them since they are ducks and not chicks. I personally found three abandoned ducklings in the middle of a busy intersection, and I wanted to share with you how to successfully raise them to adulthood! I would go with whichever is the most cost effective. Baby ducks can be fun to raise and play with whether you buy them at a feed and supply store or hatch them yourself from an incubator. Baby Ducks (Ducklings) and Baby Geese (Goslings) are fairly easy to raise, if you follow a few simple steps. Amazon does have feed especially for baby ducks. or What should I really be feeding them? The best thing to feed baby ducks and baby geese is a 21% “non medicated” starter feed. The answer is yes, you can feed chick crumbs / growers pellets however, they must not be medicated. However, make sure ducks can easily escape the water. I’m actually saving on the feed bill. Ducklings need niacin in their feed as they are not as able to convert it as baby chicks. What Ducks Can Eat. It wholly depends on the type of species as to which foodstuff they usually take. ... That is where my ducks come in handy. Picking Problems in Baby Chicks Birds between the ages of one and three weeks old may start picking around the tail stub, wing bow or neck areas. Reasons we don’t use chick starter: when chicks follow Mama Hen around, they eat what she eats. For feed, start chicks on a 20% protein (24% protein for broilers) starter ration. Feeding baby ducks and geese Generally speaking, baby ducks and geese can be given non-medicated commercially-produced chick starter feed crumbles. Baby geese eat pretty much the same thing as baby ducks. I’m actually saving on the feed bill. But you can also buy chicken feed too. Caring for a newborn duckling is not the same as raising baby chickens although there are a few similarities in caring for both types of birds. Ducklings will play in water, making a mess and splashing out their drinking water. Chick starter feed is what I should be feeding them. Is it ok for them to eat chick starter feed? Also, chopped up veggies and fruits are healthy for baby geese. The best thing to feed baby ducks and baby geese is a 21% “non medicated” starter feed. The additional protein in the starter/grower ration won’t hurt the older birds, but the calcium in layer feed can damage the kidneys of growing birds. Instead, feed your ducklings chick starter feed (20% protein) intended for feeding baby chicks. Is that correct? For baby ducks, one of the most important nutrients is niacin. The most important thing that many people do not know is that ducks and geese should NEVER have medicated feed. Generally, baby birds are fed by earthworms, small insects, snails, and larvae. Failing to do this will likely result in niacin deficiencies. I have changed my program for feeding ducklings, to using a flock raiser or higher protein non-medicated chick starter ration for only the first two weeks of growth with ducklings. December 9, 2019 PHOTO: Andy Purviance/Flickr If you raise both chickens and ducks that share living quarters, rest assured that they can eat the same feed. Feeding Ducks: What Do Ducks Eat, What NOT to Feed, and Everything Else You Need to Know. I have changed to using a flock raiser or higher protein non-medicated chick starter ration for only the first two weeks of growth with ducklings. I would go with whichever is the most cost effective. I always feed my ducklings chick starter and they are always healthy and love it but i only feed it to them for about a month or 2 or untill the 50 pound bag is gone. from a feed store. You can feed baby ducks non-medicated chick starter feed that you would buy for chickens. From weeks 3 to 14, I feed a 16% protein grain ration. You need to have a kiddie pool so the ducks can swim, or play in until they are big. But you can also buy chicken feed too. Baby geese love small crickets, and chopped up mealworms. Ducks have higher niacin dietary requirements than chickens, so if you feed them chick starter, you will need to add niacin. In some localities, producers and hobbyists who raise a small number of ducklings and goslings can only purchase medicated chick, turkey or game bird starter … My recommendations for what do you feed baby ducks for proper growth? What Do Baby Ducks Eat? RESTRICTED FEEDING A free-feed dining option is the best and most common in backyard flocks, one in which chickens eat in small increments at their leisure throughout the day. Yes Jeb, ducklings and chicks can live together. If you put to much water in the ducklings and chickens can drown. Water sources for ducks should be deeper than water sources for chickens so that ducks can dunk their heads.