The winter season has finally come, and everything is ready as the Yuletide season is fast approaching. Are you prepared to face the challenges of securing your ducks? These water birds love the outdoors to forage, but their lives could be at stake if you do not know how to care for them when the cold season sets in. Luckily, ducks are bird species that can adapt well to low temperatures. Despite their ability to survive in the cold season, you must take some steps to ensure their safety.
Traits that Make Ducks Withstand Low Temperatures
Ducks can survive in freezing temperatures, which makes you feel confident when the winter season comes. Here are some traits that make them resilient creatures:
- Ducks can protect their bodies against harsh environments, such as cold weather or heat, as they have natural protection. Thanks to its thick layers of waterproof down that provide insulation against cold weather.
- A layer of fat lies under their smooth down, keeping their body temperature at an average level of 106 to 108 degrees Fahrenheit. The fat layer gives them ten degrees of additional warmth to keep them active in the cold season.
- Compared to chickens, ducks can stay warm even if they sniff the cold breeze. Chickens shiver from freezing, even during heavy rains. Blame it on the chickens’ wattles and combs that exposed chickens to frostbite.
- Aside from thick plumage, ducks get insulation from their blood vessels, arteries, and veins that lie next to each other. These organs transport warm blood towards their legs to warm throughout the winter. Their feet stay warm when they parade on a snowy farm.
Despite these unique characteristics of ducks, farm owners must learn to care for their water birds in winter.
What Do Ducks Need & Avoid in Winter?
Water
Ducks thrive in winter if you give them clean drinking water to keep their bodies hydrated and in food digestion. There is no need to put up a pool or pond outside during winter as they do not have to swim or splash in the water. It is enough for them to clean their sinuses, beak, and eyes in the water.
Since ducks love to dunk their bodies in the water, you may give them a heated bowl of water in every nook of the barn to give them access when they forage. You must keep several shallow containers of clean water if you have more than a dozen ducks and ducklings so that everyone is comfortable and should not create a mess in the coop.
Supplemental Feeds
Provide your ducks with nutritional feeds to keep them healthy and vibrant in winter. Ducks have less appetite and energy to fodder in snowy weather, leading to weight loss. Give them premium quality layer pullets and greens to maintain their weight.
These water birds devour grass and tiny insects during the summer. These foods are difficult to source on snowy grounds as they are frozen. Ducks will appreciate it if you give them leftover greens, such as lettuce, cabbage, kale, wheatgrass, and other vegetables, to keep them alert and enjoy a quality life despite the cold weather. Their weight will improve even if food is available all the time. Scratch greens are extra treats for your ducks to warm them at night.
Artificial Lighting
Ducks need artificial lighting to increase their egg production. During the winter, ducks do not lay eggs. Turn on the lights half an hour before sunrise and sunset. Adding lights to their coop is unnecessary if you wish to give your ducks a respite from laying eggs. Ducks and chickens are less likely to lay more eggs in the winter as they become sexually inactive.
High Fat, Calorie & Protein
Adding fat and protein to your ducks’ daily diet in the winter keeps them warm and energetic. At this time, they conserve their body fat to keep them warm at night when the temperature is cooler. Energy snack foods and treats for your ducks include mealworms, kale, cracked corn, oatmeal, peanuts, Swiss chard, and cabbage.
Growing fermented foods on your farm can minimize your expenses on feed and treats. Feed fermentation is easy to make, and it uses simple ingredients. Lacto-fermented grains are high in digestive enzymes, probiotics, and vitamins to keep them healthy. The protein in fermented foods can encourage egg production and strengthen their immune system.
Protect Ducks from Ice
Ducks lack a sense of danger when they fodder on snowy grounds. Protect them from snow by laying down straw or hay in their coop. Add some low stumps, wood planks, or shavings to get their feet off the ice. The winter does not stop your ducks from splashing and swimming, so watch out for spilled water from the container to turn into ice.
Surround the waterers, bowls, or buckets with bedding of straw with a depth of two to three inches. Laying extra straws in their coops and pens can encourage them to stay put instead of nesting on the ice. You can build a makeshift hut to protect them from predators lurking on their premises. Coyotes, hawks, mink, raccoons, foxes, bobcats, or owls may find it challenging to prey on ducks confined in their shelters.
Wind Protection
While ducks can stand against cold temperatures, the wind is a different story. Line the inside of their shelter or hut with piles of straw or hay. Surround the exterior walls of their house with stacks of bales to insulate it and protect your ducks from drafts and cold wind. Ensure that the hut’s roof is sturdy enough not to get blown by strong winds. Surround the corner of your three-sided shelter with a tarp for wind protection.
Heat Lamps at Minimal
We mentioned earlier that artificial light could help encourage egg production. But if you want to give your water bird a break from laying eggs, adding a heat lamp in the coop is not advisable. Your ducks can live without lighting in the winter. The disadvantage of installing the light is that it can be a fire hazard— heat lamps or artificial lighting is usually the causes of fire incidents in farms.
Ventilation
The winter months can be challenging for duck owners as the season can lead to high coop moisture. Ducks can add moisture to the hut due to their fondness for water. You can minimize high moisture content by adding ventilation to their shelter. Look for areas to vent the moisture out of the coop to avoid drafts that can cause frostbite and respiratory illness to your pets.
Pull out the Pool on Sunny Days
Please take advantage of the sun in winter by allowing your ducks to swim and splash in the pool. Seeing them quacking while flapping their wings in the water would be fun. Fill the pond with clean water and let them enjoy it while the weather is warm. Let them forage in the ground if the ice melts.
FAQs
Can Ducks Die in Winter?
Ducks can protect themselves in the severe cold due to their natural insulation. They possess unique blood vessels, arteries, and veins that carry warm blood to their legs. Their warm legs help them recover from draft and cold so they can tolerate the freezing temperature. However, overexposure to shallow temperatures can be fatal. The ducklings are more likely to die in winter than adult ducks, as their frail bodies are less resistant to extreme temperatures.
What is the Tolerable Cold Temperature for Ducks?
Despite the duck’s resilience against freezing temperatures, its webbed feet may suffer frostbite if it is below 20 degrees. If left unnoticed, their feet may get amputated. It would be best to protect them from frostbite by placing piles of benches, wooden planks, straws, or hay in their coop to protect their feet from touching the icy ground. Since the ducklings’ body is too fragile to tolerate the cold temperature, you must keep them away from the draft.
Conclusion
Keeping ducks in the winter should not cause you a lot of worries. You can handle some issues by considering what makes your pets healthy, like giving them feed supplements, clean water, ventilation, and many more. Ducks are resilient and tough creatures that can tolerate the harshest elements and weather conditions.
