just a comment on feeding ducks & geese

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I have read all of the threads about not feeding medicated feed to ducks or geese. I had 14 chicks & also got 2 ducklings & 2 little geese. They were day old. I asked my feed guy & he said the chick starter would be fine for everyone. I was a little leary at first, but they are all thriving on it! He said it depends on what it's medicated with. I haven't really read my label so not sure. The goslings are huge, much bigger than their siblings that the mother is raising. The ducks are also growing well. Just thought I'd share.

-- Wendy (weiskids@yahoo.com), May 28, 2001

Answers

hi Wendy, my ducks also ate chick feed. Didn't hurt them any either.

-- mary, in colorado (marylgarcia@aol.com), May 28, 2001.

Same here all my ducklings, goslings and chicks eat the same thing. Amprolium is the medication in my chick starter.

-- Kent in WA (kent@premier1.net), May 29, 2001.

Hello there fellow new-to-poultry-raisers! I was told the same thing by my local feed mill. Someone else, however, told me to buy "duck crumbles" for my goslings, which also came from the feed mill &, I'm sure, is treated. However, I found an organic feed source & I buy layer mix & dairy goat feed from him. He said you can also use the layer mix for ducklings & goslings alike. I have 2 "rescue" mallard ducklings in w/ some week-old chicks & they're all doing just fine. My goslings don't like it & will pick their "duck crumble" out of the layer mix when I pour it all into their "pan". They're going to be on layer mix soon, so they'll have to acquire a taste for it, LOL!

If anyone's looking for organic feed sources, please email me privately. I've scoured the internet & found the few very informative websites that cover most of the US & Canada. I'm especially informed about feed sources in MI, OH & IN, LOL.

Regards, Sarah/MI

-- Sarah/MI (chilechile@hotmail.com), May 30, 2001.


Hi I fed allmy ducks, goslings and chicks on the waterfowl starter with no coccidiostats added... they all did very well. Now they are almost grown, I will feed everyone a layer feed by Blue Seal... says onthe back safe for all waterfowl and chickens,,, only feed I've found that states this.

-- Michele Rae Padgett (michelesmelodyfarm@Yahoo.com), May 30, 2001.

watch the protein content of the feed fed to waterfowl. If you read the label you will find that waterfowl feed has less protein. Chickens are ominvores and waterfowl tend to be herbivores. If geese and ducks get too much protein while growing they can develop "angel wing" which is not only UGLY but tends to get caught on things all of their life. Angel wing is the condition that causes the wing joint at the end (where the flight feathers are) to hang weak and outward when the wings are folded. My poor goose got caught all her life and often had few feathers on that wing. Luckily I had an experienced poultry person to ask when it started to happen and was able to switch to a lower protein feed in time to keep it from happening to both wings; that looks REALLY UGLY and must hurt!(my neighbor didn't think I knew whereof I spoke). When I raised my gander I was careful to give him a lower protein waterfowl food and his wings were perfect. With my ducks I feed a mix of scratch feed and lay crumbles with green feed. I prefer to let them all free range but have lost too many to racoons because I couldn't round them up each night. If they are free ranged they tend to eat what they need if it's available. Currently I am raising a few indoors and am using a lay crumble because the local feed store doesn't have a waterfowl feed and I can't locate one that does. I'll cut it soon with sratch if I can't find what I want and hope for the best. There aren't many people here into poultry I quess-or maybe they no longer shop at the local feed stores. Good luck with your babies, betty.

-- betty modin (betty_m9@yahoo.com), June 01, 2001.


The feed stores here do not carry waterfowl feed, either. I fed my ducklings non-medicated chick feed, but emptied a few niacin capsules into a gal. jug of water that I refilled their water dishes with. Has anyone else done this? The books say they need more niacin than chx feed has. I've never seen a post where anyone mentioned niacin in conjunction with duck feeding.

-- Duffy (hazelm@tenforward.com), August 30, 2001.

I've raised Muscovies, Mallards, White Pekins, and Cayugas. They've all had medicated chick starter and never had a problem. This has come up many times on the poultry board and apparently there used to be a medication in the chick starter that was bad for ducks, but it's no longer in them. I'm thinking it was Amprolium but I could be wrong.

-- elliemae (elliemae@surfsout.com), May 03, 2002.

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