What kind of maintenance to they require? Do ducks HAVE to have a pond? I'm sure I can google all this stuff but I'd like to ask someone with personal experience.

5/18/2008 12:29:38 AM

I have pet chickens.

I also have a poultry science degree, so. . .

It's not too complicated. Make sure they have food and water. Check for eggs. Make sure that they have a good enclosure to keep them safe from predators. Give them an outside area where they can scratch for bugs and make sure that they have shelter and a place to roost.

5/18/2008 12:42:20 AM

you've been watching Friends haven't you?

5/18/2008 1:35:58 AM

not as pets exactly... more as source of food, but sure one could call them pets. what alee said. and let them out of the coop some so they wander around in the grass to eat grubs an stuff. an happy chickens make tasty chickens.

oh an dont let foxes or other critters get them. a well made coop will keep you from having to replace chickens.

[Edited on May 18, 2008 at 2:12 AM. Reason : .]

5/18/2008 2:11:15 AM

we used to have chickens when i was a kid. they'd just wander around the yard.

but when they got older, they got aggressive (towards our dog and cats) and we had to get rid of them.

5/18/2008 8:12:37 AM

this community bike shop has a buncha chickens... they're open today, you should go by and check them out. 1304bikes.org

5/18/2008 9:16:08 AM

Quote :

"not as pets exactly... more as source of food, but sure one could call them pets."

Mine are 100% pets though.

5/18/2008 9:19:06 AM

my mom has 3 pet chickens. send me your questions and i'll ask her

5/18/2008 9:26:23 AM

we're moving to an area where i could potentially ahve a duck or chicken and i've always wanted one. do they have to have a buddy or are they okay by themselves? i don't want to eat it, i just want it to be happy in my yard

5/18/2008 9:57:49 AM

make sure u keep the children away

they are mean

5/18/2008 10:29:07 AM

^^i'm wanting to get a chicken also. from what i've read you can get a single hen so you don't have to worry about the crowing and shit and she'll be fine. it's not like she has to have a cock roaming around to survive. very few numbers of females do.

[Edited on May 18, 2008 at 10:51 AM. Reason : you do need a coop, though.]

5/18/2008 10:51:08 AM

^^

Seriously? What could you have possibly done to the hens in your life to make them mean?

5/18/2008 11:06:03 AM

I've owned ducks and I work in the poultry industry.
Don't just get one duck or one chicken, they are social animals and need a companion!
duck's don't have to have a pond, but get them a babypool or something at least.
Have a coop with a pen around it, they can hang out in the yard during the day and then put them up in the evening. Make sure you have a feed supply close by, you're not going to be able to get this stuff at petsmart. Think about bedding and make sure to clean it out regularly, you don't want them sitting in their own filth and it getting muddy or your birds will get sick.
I love ducks and chickens but they can be alot of work.

And whatever you do, don't buy them and then decide to "let them go" later on. They will get eaten.

If you get baby chicks and baby ducklings they are cute as pie! Just be sure you have a heat source for them!!!! a heat light will do. I know it sounds obvious, but you'd be surprised what people do - make sure they are eating some sort of starter feed when they are little, they can't eat the big stuff just yet.

some helpful links (ducks):
http://www.howtodothings.com/pets-and-animals/a3728-how-to-raise-a-duck-as-a-pet.html
http://www.forthebirdsdvm.com/ducks.htm
http://members.cox.net/gsdvominsel/ducks.htm (I agree with everything in this article except don't use cedar shavings as bedding)


[Edited on May 18, 2008 at 11:50 AM. Reason : sauce]

5/18/2008 11:31:52 AM

my brother had some turkeys that were pets

the hen would follow you around the yard if you let her out of the cage, if you sat down she wanted petting


it was odd

5/18/2008 12:34:14 PM

http://www.wral.com/news/news_briefs/story/2902206/

5/18/2008 1:05:42 PM

I have a Poultry Science degree and I raise chickens to sell to people for small laying flocks. Most of them wind up being pets, and they are very easy to take care of.

5/18/2008 1:09:37 PM

Bantam chickens make good pets. They stay small.
I plan on getting 2 Silkie or Polish pullets in the fall to keep.
We just hatched out 30 white leghorns and 30 jap. button quail. All the leghorns have found homes but I have some button quail left. The Quail make good pets, they don't need a lot of room and can stay indoors.

5/18/2008 1:53:24 PM

wait nevermind
haha

[Edited on May 18, 2008 at 2:50 PM. Reason : sorry]

5/18/2008 2:47:20 PM

i've always wanted a pet squirrel

so no

5/18/2008 2:54:14 PM

there were some baby ducks near my apartment, i was hoping one would follow me home:

5/18/2008 3:09:57 PM

I've had several of both. Damn, them's some tasty critters.

5/18/2008 3:22:54 PM

As much as I love to eat chicken, duck is on a whole other level. Roasted duck is one of the best meats I have ever eaten. I cooked a goose a couple of years ago for Christmas and it was very good, but not as good as duck.

5/18/2008 5:19:07 PM

^agreed, duck is fantastic.

roast in the oven in an orange juice and white wine gravy, stuff with grapes, mushrooms, shallots, and apples.
Serve over rice with the remainder of the white wine to drink, and caesar salad to go with it.
mmm.

I dont think I would want to do it with a pet duck though, that would be sadder.


p.s.
alee's pet chickens are awesome

5/18/2008 9:53:53 PM

^That's similar to the way I cooked the goose. Citrus seems to compliment duck and goose very well.

5/18/2008 9:58:48 PM

best ways i've had goose:
goose jerky
goose gumbo

5/18/2008 10:08:44 PM

Friend of mine had a pet duck.

That thing was mean as hell.

5/18/2008 10:25:05 PM

has anyone ever had/heard of turducken?

Its where you stuff a duck with a chicken, then stuff the turkey with the duck? Recursive stuffing I guess you could call it.

I've heard it is really good, because duck is a somewhat oily meat, and those oils get into the turkey and chicken

5/19/2008 2:07:27 PM

they have them at the grocery store at thanksgiving.

however, i'm not looking to eat said duck or chicken, i just want it as a pet. i don't think my dogs would be so happy with their new friend though. i may have to rethink this

5/19/2008 2:32:31 PM

Quote :

"has anyone ever had/heard of turducken?"

5/19/2008 2:35:48 PM

it comes in a can??

5/19/2008 2:37:04 PM

that's the dog food version. i got a can for my dog one christmas and she loved it.

5/19/2008 2:40:48 PM

I have had several as pets. Hens are much better pets than roosters. As chicks, they have to be kept warm under a light or inside where they don't get too cold. As long as you handle them and let them out of their pen during the day, they will most likely be tame and allow you to pet them, etc. Make sure their pen has an enclosure with a water-proof roof and sticks or such for them to roost on. It's also nice if you build the pen with a wire top so that nothing can get in or out, but sunlight can still get in.

5/19/2008 2:56:33 PM

will they run away if you let them out of the coop? or do they kinda of just know to hang around and not go too far. theres a house on old stage road that lets their chickens out and they get pretty close to the road, i always wondered if they could get run over.

5/19/2008 3:05:20 PM

They will learn to stay in the yard or wherever you want them to. The best thing is to start them out as young chicks and train them to stay in the yard. For the first several weeks, you will have to supervise them closely. If one starts to stray, quickly bring it back to you. However, most chicks will bond with you if you spend time with it and will follow you around like you are its mother. So, keeping it near you shouldn't be an issue. After those first few weeks, you may notice the chicks becoming more independent and adventuring farther away from you. If you start early, you can teach it to come by calling it like "chickchickchick" or another call like that. Even once you train your chicken to stay in the yard, I would still keep an eye on it and would never advise letting it out of its coop when you aren't home as there are many predators that could kill it even if it didn't stray out of the yard.

5/19/2008 4:48:59 PM

5/19/2008 11:35:37 PM

I had a baby duck named 'Goose' once. We had it for a week or two. It was kinda cool, but would poop in its food and kick it everywhere. Other than that, I've heard they can be litter trained. I would NEVER recommend having a bird in your house though - just nasty. The one I had was a baby, that's the only reason it was inside - and that still got old.

5/20/2008 12:29:35 AM

5/20/2008 12:33:26 AM

little-aa yerry seinfeld....does he bounce checks too??

5/20/2008 6:11:03 AM

^^ SO cute!!!!

5/20/2008 8:34:06 AM

just watch episodes of "Friends" to find the answers.

5/20/2008 10:56:49 AM

It's weird you asked this a day after the Tour D'Coop. There were many chicken-owners who were very willing to give out some good ol' chicken advice.
http://www.kalmialandscapedesign.com/tourdcoop.htm

Look at the bottom of that page to find a good person to contact about raising chickens.

5/20/2008 2:21:00 PM

Quote :

"we had to get rid of them."

in the tasty way right?

Quote :

"make sure u keep the children away they are mean"

i think he means the kids will be mean

[Edited on May 20, 2008 at 3:01 PM. Reason : s]

5/20/2008 2:58:33 PM

Quote :

"alee's pet chickens are awesome "

I bet they taste great. Not that Alee would know...

5/20/2008 5:50:11 PM

chickens can be pretty damned mean

5/20/2008 5:57:37 PM

^

And the same can be said about every other species.

5/20/2008 5:58:36 PM

Watch out -- Alee's getting protective about her chicks!

5/20/2008 6:02:54 PM

i've never seen a mean frog...

5/20/2008 6:33:35 PM