Advice on wintering muscovies

I'm getting muscovies next year, and want to be ready well in advance for the winter. Temps here in Northern California can get down to 10 F at night, and we get a lot of snow (but not until December, usually). I was going to stack hay bales around their hut and give them about 1 foot of hay to stomp around on (over bare earth), supplementing the hay as the winter progresses. Does this sound ok? Advice would be helpful!

And will they eat cracked corn?

Ben,

Muscovies, though from South America are tough in northern climates.  We had these ducks from the 1980s to about 2015 and they survived northern Michigan winters with occasional frostbite.  They stayed out in the cow barn with on the threshing floor.  Some roosted higher up in the hay mow on their own.  We only babied them as babies, not as adults.  They eat full or cracked corn.  Yes zay eats zeebugs in spring, summer and fall but corn should also be available to them especially in winter to maintain their fat.

Our winter temps often drop into the negative numbers, and -10°F is normal. We didn't take any special steps with our muskovies, at all. We do, however, have a goat barn and many other places where they can shelter, like our front porch, under the deck, and the structure of our house has plenty of nooks and crannies, where they love to hang out. They're incredible foragers, but our ground is mostly rocks and clay, so we do supplement all our foragers diets with a high nutrition, good quality feed, year round, just a bit, in warmer weather(just enough to make sure they don't forget where home is, really), and we double or even triple those rations, in winter, to keep them robust, happy, and healthy. All winter, they all (muskovies, Rouens, heritage turkeys, and various breeds of chickens) happily greet us, as soon as we walk out, in the mornings, follow us around like puppies, and 'talk' to us, with the muskovies having the quietest voices, but very sweet personalities. Do be sure though, to block their access to any areas where you'd not want to slip and fall in their excrement, because there will be plenty of it.

We started keeping muscovies, pekins and buff orpingtons ducks in 2021 in southern Ontario, similar lattitude to northern California, temp sometimes down to -20C (-5F).  We kept 55-ish birds, ducks and chickens, together in a stripped down 28' trailer, minimal insulation, windows cracked slightly all the time, birds locked in at night, straw covered floor (bedding starting 4-6" deep, emptied out in spring), some roosting bars.  

All food and water bowls outdoors.  The birds all run out to eat and will filter in and out during the day as they see fit.

Muscovies and chickens prefer to roost.  The mallard ducks can't roost and sleep on the floor.

We feed a duck grower ration all the time.  Chickens are fine with it, and provides some of the essentials required for the ducks.  They are free range (within electro fencing) and will top up to the hearts content with whatever they can find.   (Beware: chickens do dig dust bowls just so they might dine on some extra proteun when someone when twists an ankle.)

They will eat cracked corn but that is not a wide enough nutrient profile if that is all they have.

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Suggestions:

Top up the straw periodically if it gets too damp or fouled.  The chickens will often scratch through it helping to keep in drier.

Straw will usually be much cheaper than hay.  Hay is feed for horses, cattle and other animals but not much for these birds.

Don't seal up your hut too much; ducks produce a lot of humidity.  Main thing is block precipitation on birds and bedding and block wind and drafts at bird levels.

All feeding and watering done outside  of sleeping area will be important; all ducks are messy, sloppy, wet, slurpy, muddy, yucky eaters.  (They are fun animals, just never invited inside my house.)

You will want to dump out yesterday's water /ice bowls and provide todays clean water.   Rubberish flexible livestock bowls work well because we can tip them over and stomp on them to break out most of the ice.  (Tractor Supply or feed supply store, 6-8" deep bowls.)   We carry water by bucket to them in the morning; hint: two buckets 1/3 full is balanced and much easier to carry.

Have fun.  Have your camera in your pocket because antics are always near.

We've had various types of ducks over the years on our little farm here. We're located in the lower SW corner of Michigan, USA. Temperatures range from low 90's to the low single digits with very rare below zero temps. We have always made sure that our ducks have access to a decent feed not just cracked corn. Even though they forage they are on dry land with the occasional dip into a children's pool so I've always wanted to make sure they have all the nutrients they need. The price difference for the amount that they eat if you let them forage isn't very much at the end of the month so I think it's worth it. They also put on weight quick and lay regular so it's worth it. I've seen other places where the incorrect feeding has caused the poultry to look thin and feathers are missing. I feel it's better to have less animals and poultry, take care of them properly, and keep the feed bill where it's affordable. If money gets tight, it's time to butcher and/or sell some livestock off. Also, we try to give our ducks enough water to play in at least twice a week during the winter and all the time the rest of the year. I know that they don't require it but the laughs and smiles that we get watching them enjoy themselves make life worth living. Probably the most important advice is that you make sure your poultry can get out of the wind. The cold wind is a killer to them. We don't heat our chicken/duck house but it is sound. No leaks and no drafts when I close it up for the night. Also, no unwanted critters. Been there - done that. The ermine won. I lost. Getting back to the feed. Talk to a local co-op if possible. They can usually help you figure out a way to have a good feed for a reasonable price. They are very knowledgeable. And I have found that they are more that willing to answer questions to get a new customer. Best wishes. Jeff

Regarding keeping ducks in winter: I kept my ducks in a fenced house with a solid roof. To offer protection against wind-driven snow, rain and just wind, I collected several discarded shower doors (glass). In late fall, when winter was coming, I would put the shower doors against the fencing and hold them in place with mulch hay bales. The floor was dirt and stones. Muscovy ducks are so much easier to herd inside at night than Mallard type ducks. In the coldest months, I would bring hot water outside in large containers (empty plastic jugs from kitty litter are the best) in a wagon or sled (in the snow). I had large Fortex watering bowls. These bowls hold about three gallons of water. I filled the bowls with water and put out layer pellets (keep the bowls of pellets away from the water or the ducks will splash the feed into mush and then not eat it). When it was extremely cold, the water would freeze by noon or 1 PM. I would bring fresh water out for the ducks. Later in the afternoon, more fresh, hot water and feed. They were very happy to eat WHOLE corn, as did my chickens.

Whole grains are much better for nutritional value. Once a kernel of grain is cracked, the nutrients evaporate. You have no idea how long the corn has been cracked. Whole grains are so much healthier. Whole grains, fed late in the day will keep the birds warmer over the long nights since they are intact and take longer to go through the digestive system. You will see how much they love whole corn by the size of their crops where they store food until it goes into the gizzard. In the morning they will not be starved as they would be if given pellets or cracked corn.

I have easily sprouted whole corn in the tub during the winter months. I believe there is another forum on sprouting whole grains. You get more bang for your buck when you sprout whole grains.

Ducks will happily eat green lettuce from the discount rack at the supermarket. They wouldn't touch red lettuce! But would eat strawberries! They will eat mung bean sprouts (I lived near the Jonathan Sprouts plant), in winter they got sprouts almost daily.

Muscovy ducks are seasonal layers. They start laying in late February or early March. They lay every other day and are not possessive of their eggs until they get broody. Then watch out! Muscovies can give you a harsh bite that will bruise or even break the flesh. But they are the best mothers ever! They will stop laying eggs in late July or early August. Some Muscovy moms raised one brood early in the summer and the started laying again with their eye on raising another brood. The one thing you don't want to have happen is a clutch of duck eggs hatch around Thanksgiving! Baby ducks are fragile and susceptible to the cold, even with a good mother.

To protect my ducks and chickens from predators while they ate and drank water, I found two discarded truck caps, brought them home, set them up on cement blocks for height. In winter, I would close the sides up with mulch hay bales. The open end of the truck caps faces south. I found two discarded trampoline tops and laid them on the ground under the truck caps. Since the trampoline tops (this is the part of the trampoline that you bounce on) are porous, water goes through. On the warmest days, I would drag out the hose and hose off the trampoline tops, to the delight of the ducks. On those warm days, I got out the kiddie pool and filled it. After the ducks splashed all the water out, it was easy to dump the kiddie pool out onto the trampoline top.

I didn't use any bedding inside their house. I did have egg nest boxes (I used discarded bread crates with shavings inside) for the ducks to lay eggs in. I took them out until February or until I found an egg on the ground.

I am not farming anymore. I didn't have the support of my local consumers and since I was certified organic for ducks, chickens and turkeys, I had to give up the farm.

Cynda, My heart goes out to you for the loss of your farm. I cannot imagine life without ours. It brings up a point that many people face. Often one or two adults have to work off the property to pay for it. In our case, I was in the army and my wife followed me around for about 14 years. So we had an income besides the farm. Still, Renee worked as a nurse for benefits and the money for improvements the place needed. Having a farm near her parent's place was her dream. I actually grew up in the Adirondack Mountains. I knew nothing about farming until we bought this piece of property and then I was taught by other farmers, taught by the Amish, watched videos, read a ton of books and magazines, and listened to a lot of advice. Little by little, I've carved out my way of doing things in a monoculture area. Sometimes I'm given the cold shoulder but most of the people in this area have seen the difference that regenerative style farming can make. The problem is that they are too stubborn to change themselves. It doesn't matter who you show them as an example so I keep plugging away and, I shouldn't say it doesn't make a difference because it does. Some of the farmers are beginning to make changes in the right direction. The largest one in our area, who happens to be my neighbor, now puts compost on his fields that now have winter crops like radishes and rye. Little by little headway is being made here and that is why I so strongly believe that Paul's way is the correct way. lf I can show someone that I got rid of a bad spot in a field by applying compost and in a couple of years that area now grows the best pasture for my horse, then may try it on their field on a bad spot. When it works, and it will, then my next idea will be listened to with just a little less skepticism. It will take time but we are headed in the right direction.

Hey Jeffrey, I understand your struggle! The farm I had was farmed for many years. Then, it became desirable to live in the country. The property next to me was sold to city people. They soon started to complain about my roosters crowing. Roosters will crow in the dead of night, they don't need a reason! My new neighbors were so thrilled to have their lawn installed! They brought in "loam", which is just dirt scraped off some field. The dirt had tons of weed seeds. So, of course, the next thing they did was to apply weed killer. Their property was on a slope upland, so all the weed killer ran down the slope onto my (very healthy, thick) clover yard for the chickens, turkeys and ducks. The year before, I had replanted the chicken yard to Dutch White Clover. All the clover died. I was faced with a mud yard for my birds. The next thing was the new neighbors planted a row of fast growing conifers along our common property line. The trees began to cross over my fence line. I had to prune the trees to prevent my turkeys from escaping. Hawks found places to hide and attack my chickens. The ground was so affected by the weed killer, I couldn't get any more clover to grow. It was just a muddy poultry pasture. After a couple of years, I gave up and sold out. City people who move to the country...wanting the country life really don't. They want the city in the country!

You are correct in your way of learning. It's called the School of Hard Knocks. On-hand learning is the best way to find out how to do something. The Amish do have the right path to better land stewardship. But not all they do is the best way. Reading, joining your state's organic organization, watching videos and then trying what you have seen & learned. Perseverance is the only way to succeed.

Good luck!

cynda williams wrote:Hey Jeffrey, I understand your struggle! The farm I had was farmed for many years. Then, it became desirable to live in the country. The property next to me was sold to city people. They soon started to complain about my roosters crowing. Roosters will crow in the dead of night, they don't need a reason! My new neighbors were so thrilled to have their lawn installed! They brought in "loam", which is just dirt scraped off some field. The dirt had tons of weed seeds. So, of course, the next thing they did was to apply weed killer. Their property was on a slope upland, so all the weed killer ran down the slope onto my (very healthy, thick) clover yard for the chickens, turkeys and ducks. The year before, I had replanted the chicken yard to Dutch White Clover. All the clover died. I was faced with a mud yard for my birds. The next thing was the new neighbors planted a row of fast growing conifers along our common property line. The trees began to cross over my fence line. I had to prune the trees to prevent my turkeys from escaping. Hawks found places to hide and attack my chickens. The ground was so affected by the weed killer, I couldn't get any more clover to grow. It was just a muddy poultry pasture. After a couple of years, I gave up and sold out. City people who move to the country...wanting the country life really don't. They want the city in the country!

You are correct in your way of learning. It's called the School of Hard Knocks. On-hand learning is the best way to find out how to do something. The Amish do have the right path to better land stewardship. But not all they do is the best way. Reading, joining your state's organic organization, watching videos and then trying what you have seen & learned. Perseverance is the only way to succeed.

Good luck!

Truly the stuff of nightmares