Ducks? Tips to make them a fit.

I grew up with chickens.  Once on my own I tried ducks a few times but they didn’t work well.  Then I fell in love with them. I discovered how to make them fit.  The main problem most people say with ducks is they are messy!  They can be but only around their water.  They splash and make puddles,  Then dig holes playing in the puddles. If you remove the puddles they aren’t messy. They are easy keepers that two foot fencing keeps where you want them and out if flower beds or gardens.  They are wonderful mowers. Keeping the grass trimmed without scratching holes like chickens do.  

Ducks need water not only to drink, but to wash their faces. They love to play and splash and clean themselves tossing water everywhere.  This isn’t something they have to have all time. You can treat them to bath. A cheap swimming pool works. If you do that I suggest that you have a swimming area and then when you dump the pool shut them out until the puddles soak in. 

This is a good example of them digging holes.  This is where our ac drips onto the big rock  and puddles on the ground.  As you can see the ducks have enjoyed digging a pit.  

 

Today I hope I fixed the problem. 

A few rocks allowing the drip to soak in not puddle. Wet ground isn’t a problem.  Only standing water. 

Here is my solution to the duck water mess.  

I use a smaller pan with a float so it stays full. I sit this in a larger tub filled with pea gravel.  The larger tub has holes in the bottom. Ducks splash and play and all the water needs up in the pea gravel. Soaking into the ground with ever making a puddle. The smaller pan is easy to dump and clean as needed.  

If you want to take the idea onto a larger scale here is my duckponics.  It cleans the water and allows a swimming hole for the ducks without any puddles.  

The tub is the swimming pool. The rocks hold back a buffer of pea gravel. This allows the water to soak in.  Because this is my duckponics it has a pump that circulates the water cleaning it for them to swim in without me having to dump and clean.  

If you have them where you have plants they will trim them. A two foot fence is needed to keep them from trimming your flowers are vegetables.    Grass is different. Once it establishes then they just become lawn mowers.  Days you water shut them out until there are no puddles to keep them from making holes.  It’s that simple. 

Here are examples of how I have flowers and ducks.