Provide about 3 cm of drinking space for each adult bird.In this layout I will be talking you through how to produce modular engines in an efficient setup using the vanilla recipe. To prevent damp litter, place drinking vessels outside the shed or on a wire grid. Keep drinking containers shaded at all times. Birds should be able to immerse their heads completely and hence clean and prevent blockage of their nasal passages caused by food and dirt. To limit wastage of eggs, it is advisable to prevent outside swimming until about 10.00 am, when most eggs will have been laid (most ducks lay their eggs in the evening and early morning).Īlthough swimming water is not necessary, ducks do need plenty of clean drinking water. In both cases, good drainage is essential. Alternatively, saucer-shaped pools 0.25 m deep and 2 m wide may be used. To keep litter in the shed dry, place the ponds away from the house. Concrete ponds 1 m wide by 0.25 m deep are satisfactory. However, pools can be made available where outside runs are provided. Provide each duck with a feeding space of at least 12 cm (the equivalent of four 2 m flock feeders per 100 adults). Flock feeders are the most satisfactory types of feeders for ducks. As a general rule, ducks need twice as much feeding space as hens. No special feeding equipment for ducks is manufactured in this country, so equipment made for other poultry has to be used. The nest boxes must be at floor level, as ducks will not use elevated nests. In intensive buildings, encourage Pekin ducks to lay in nests by providing open-framed nest boxes on the side of the walls. Individual duck production can also be recorded. Identify and discard ducks that continually lay almond-shaped eggs or other misshapen eggs. If you wish to follow a system of progeny testing, use trap nests to facilitate identification of eggs laid by individual ducks. Broody ducks will further line their nests with their own body feathers. Use shavings, sawdust, sand or shell grit. Nesting material should be placed in the nest to a depth of about 7 cm. A suitable size is 30 cm by 30 cm by about 40 cm deep. Build them from timber and place them in rows along the walls. Nests should be clean, dry, comfortable and only large enough to be used by one duck at a time. This may be difficult with breeds other than Muscovies. Furthermore, eggs laid in nests are not exposed to sun or damp. NestsĮncourage ducks to use nests because cleaner eggs result and fewer breakages occur. A combination of litter and slats prevents possible leg damage to heavy breeding ducks, which may occur if they are housed on slats only. The litter area is used by the ducks for mating and for laying eggs. Feeders and waterers are placed on the slats. This greatly reduces the amount of wet litter and improves overall production. The ideal method of housing breeding stock is in a building which has both litter and slatted or wire floor areas. Whatever housing is chosen, a cheap and effective type of shed is one with a skillion roof. When planning the farm, allow for housing growers and adults separately, and make sure there is no drainage from the adult housing area to growers. This will enable you to make modifications. Layoutįor a systematic farm layout, first draw up a ground plan and spend some time thinking about the plan and shed design. Since ducks are very susceptible to excessive sun, provide adequate shade. The shed should face north to north-east and should be at least 2 m high at the back, to give enough head room. For siting and layout contact your local council for development advice. If the site is too hilly, sheds will be difficult to build if the site is too flat, drainage will be impeded. The area selected for sheds should be gently sloping. Cover the shed floor with litter for the comfort of the birds, to absorb moisture and to prevent egg breakage - wood shavings are probably the most suitable, but any soft absorbent material to a depth of about 7–8 cm is satisfactory.Allow each breeder an area of at least 0.2 m 2 of floor space inside the shed (i.e. 5 birds/m 2).The housing must be clean, dry, adequately ventilated and able to keep out beating rain.semi-intensive housing - the birds have access to outside runs during the day, but are locked indoors at night and during adverse weather conditions.intensive housing - the birds are housed indoors for the duration of the season.Breeders may be housed either intensively or semi-intensively: Elaborate sheds are not necessary, but you should observe the general principles of poultry house design.
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