Want ducks in my pond

[wagne223]

Sounds like you guys needed to kill and eat the males.
If you only keep the females then no unwanted birds.

Kinda like keeping chickens.

Unless a wild Male shows up and services all the girls!

 

[ning]

I used to have some Rouen ducks. They're basically somewhat heavier domesticated mallards; they look the same, though heavier. Pretty decent layers, actually. I don't care for the flavor of the duck egg as much as chicken eggs (they're too "eggy") but they make amazing cakes.

Mine lived with my chickens for a while. You want mess? At the time, I used an open water bucket, and ducks basically get a mouthful of feed and then go dunk it in the water and eat it together... half of it ends up in the water.

With mine the biggest problem was they were pretty aggressive to the chickens... also, they didn't want to go "in" to the coop at night. I gave up after a bit and then some otters got them. I was only somewhat sad.

With an acre and a half pond, though, you could definitely get some Rouens for the aesthetic you're going for. I've never had aggressive-to-humans ducks and suspect you could breed it out of them by making roast duck out of any that are overly aggressive.

 

[LouNY]

There is a reason they are called fowl and quite often it needs to be spelled foul.

 

[bunyip]

The last house we had had an inground pool and wild ducks discovered it, not pleased I can assure you and really put a strain on my pool cleaning duties and they are difficult to get rid of.

 

[BoylermanCT]

We raised 24 mallards and put them on our 2 acre pond. They would spend the days in the front yard and go to the pond at night. Late summer they flew south. Each year for the next 4 years some of them would come visit in the spring and fall. They would land in the pond and then walk up to the house.

The next year I raised 12 mallards and tried the same thing. They refused to go out on the pond. I still have these 12 in my coop with the chickens. They swim in a kiddie pool instead of the 2 acre pond!

 

[oosik]

I always have a variety of ducks in my lake. As long as there is open water - ie, not frozen over. Several years ago I even had a Snowy Egret stop in for a couple hours. Blue Herons will stop by to look for a fish or a frog. I don't feed them - they dive and get something where its shallow - on either end.
The little red circle at the far end is the house for my resident family of beavers. They have built a low dam on the outlet and helped maintain a fairly constant level in the lake. View attachment 582601

 

[kittyhawk]

We inherited two geese this summer when my neighbors small pond dried up. They found my 5 acre pond and have not left. My neighbors have given up on getting them home, they tried luring them with feed, even catching them and they keep coming back. Now they are starting to be a Huge PIA! They are pooping everywhere and begging for food any time we are out side. Stand at the storm door pecking at it, and almost followed my wife in the house. My father in-law made a mistake, he started feeding them and the female nipped him on his arm a few weeks ago, he had old mans skin and bleed all over. The only thing that scares them is a broom, so we now we are keeping a corn broom outside to sho them away.

 

[oosik]

Half way down my lake the basaltic lava cliff has a huge indent like a big amphitheater. Every year hundreds of cliff swallows build their mud nests on these cliffs. Ages ago my FIL thought it would look nice to have two pair of big 'ol tame white ducks on the lake. So he bought two pair and we chucked them out onto the lake. Then one day I noticed that all four were making many trips into the amphitheater area. Lots of commotion, screaming adult swallows - just one big hullabaloo.

Those darn ducks were going into the amphitheater area - knocking down the low mud nests and EATING the baby swallows.

I put a very quick stop to this - the coyotes enjoyed the free meal. I have NEVER before or after, heard of carnivorous puddle ducks.

 

[Alien]

We have had most fowl because my wife has a soft spot for them. We even had some peacocks for a while. Now those were the most ungrateful birds I have ever dealt with. They do huge messes! On the roof and everywhere else. Just don't drink water from your run-off tank.
Cost a fortune and then disappeared after about 3 months and never came back. I was rapt. Had all the other duck and exotic chook breeds too. Still have 3 Chinese geese. (Pain) Like to poop near the door no matter how often you chase them. About 7 special chook things and of course some guinea fowl that have now reached old age. The only little blokes I didn't mind were the pair of wood ducks (Mayne geese) they hang around but keep their distance and when they have babies they bring them up to show us. We provide drinking water for them as well as some kibble.
If I had the choice, no ducks, no chooks, no geese, just my dogs. They are my best mates.

 

[BoylermanCT]

My 24 ducks would hang out in the front yard each day, and one day a storm came and we had 15 minutes of hail. All of the ducks huddled under the large eaves of our front porch, and when I opened the door to check on them, they all made a bee line into the porch. Having ducks has been amusing. I've learned how to keep my ducks in a row! Everywhere they go, they naturally form a single file line.