Ducklings require a diet rich in B complex vitamins, especially niacin. This can be achieved with livestock-grade brewer’s yeast added to their food.
When feeding ducklings, it is essential to provide insoluble grit to help them grind their food. You can find commercially available chick-sized grit at any local feed store.
Contents
Water
Ducklings consume three times more water than chicks do, so it is important to provide them with fresh, clean water multiple times a day. Additionally, adding sugar to their water may encourage them to drink it more readily.
In addition to water, newborn ducklings should eat starter food for ducks which contains plenty of vitamin B complex and niacin. Furthermore, they should eat small grains (chick grit) to help their gizzard grind up food more easily.
Growing ducklings love floating greens, herbs and veggies like Swiss chard, kale and peas due to their high protein content.
In addition to feeding your ducklings starter food for ducks, you can also add some brewer’s yeast to their water to boost vitamin B complex levels and provide additional niacin. Alternatively, if you want a more varied diet for your ducklings, mix in crumbled waterfowl meal.
Feeding
Newborn ducklings are just like children – they get hungry quickly and need access to food at all times. To ensure the health of your ducklings, keep their feeding area open all day and night until they reach three weeks old.
Feed your ducklings the best way possible is by scattering their food onto water in a shallow dish. This gives them an ample supply of liquid as they take bites, aiding digestion.
You could also supplement your duck’s diet with some brewer’s yeast and dried meal worms to make sure they get all of the essential nutrients, including niacin (Vitamin B3).
If you’re uncertain what to feed newborn ducklings for breakfast, start by offering greens such as kale, romaine lettuce and celery. You could also feed cooked vegetables like peas, broccoli, corn, tomatoes, cucumbers and blueberries; just remember to chop these up finely before placing in their water bowl for easy access.
Health
Ducklings require similar nutritional needs as chicks, but they require an additional vitamin B for proper bone and bill development. To give them this essential nutrient, add 2 tablespoons of brewer’s yeast per 1 gallon of drinking water or give them a few milligrams of niacin per day in their feed.
For their first few weeks, ducklings require a high-protein diet to promote proper growth and avoid “angel wing.”
Never give your ducklings medicated chicken or duck food; they could become overwhelmed and succumb to overdose from these medications.
They can also eat vegetables such as lettuce, carrots, grapes, broccoli, apples, pears and celery if mashed and removed the seeds and skins before giving them to your ducklings.
Training
Ducklings can be an integral part of your homestead, whether you raise them for eggs or meat. Not only that, but they’re also a lot of fun and make excellent pets!
However, they can get quite messy and require to be bathed at least once daily. Furthermore, they have the tendency to deposit feces and water all over their bedding, which makes cleaning up a challenge.
As a general guideline, younger ducklings should only consume small amounts of food at once. Diving for food is more challenging in young ducklings, which could put them at risk from predators or cause them to consume less than necessary.
At around two weeks old, they can start exploring on grass and eating if it has not been sprayed and they have access to grit with their feed. While swimming in ponds is allowed, it should always be supervised at all times; never leave a duck alone in a pond if an adult duck is nearby.
