Caring for ducks is a little bit challenging to keep them from wetting their bedding. Because ducks love to mess with water, but their bedding shouldn’t be getting wet or soiled. Having proper duck bedding allows your ducks to have a comfortable resting spot in which they can lay down and sleep soundly.
How to keep duck bedding dry? There are many ways to keep duck bedding dry. Changing duck bedding, using quality flooring, placing absorbent mats, do not give water overnight, and keep the water away. Wet bedding will make it easier for ducks to get diseases, smell bad on bedding, and attract insects.
To maintain the quality of bedding and duck’s health, you need to prevent wet duck bedding. Let’s learn about it in this article.
How to keep duck bedding dry?
3 Possible Reasons Why Duck Bedding Is Wet
Wet duck bedding will cause many problems for ducks, even though the ducks themselves make the problem. How to keep duck bedding dry is to know some of the possible reasons why bedding can get wet easily. The table below will explain some of the possibilities.
Possible reasons
Explanation
Ducks are tracking water
Ducks likes to hang around in the water. There is not only one perpetrator of wet bedding, so you need to check which duck spilled the water bowl or which brought water to the bedding.
Opening in the hutch
Water can wet the bedding because there is a leak in the hutch. You need to address the problem before the leak gets worse.
Rain
Place duck bedding indoors. During the rainy season, ducks will often play near water and easily wet the bedding. You can separate the wet ducks to dry, or put the bedding in a dry place with a roof over it and walls around it.
If you already understand some of the possible causes of wetness, the next step is how to keep it dry.
Different Ways To Keep Your Duck Bedding Dry
Keeping the duck pen dry can be exhausting if you don’t find the main problem. If you see that your ducks have frequent diseases, the bedding has many insects and a bad smell. You have to do many things to avoid making the hutch’s situation worse.
Wet duck bedding is unacceptable. In addition to worsening the condition of the ducks, you will find it challenging to keep the hutch clean and odor-free. Let’s take a look at some ways to keep a duck pen dry.
Put Duck Water Bucket In An Old Tire
The annoying thing is when you set the bedding, but your ducks soak it again with water after they are drinking carelessly. To prevent ducks from splashing their water while drinking, you need to put water inside an old tire or heavy large water bowls.
It is necessary so that the ducks cannot physically type the water over. Although water can still spill, the possibility is much smaller.
This is the first way about how to keep duck bedding dry because the main problem with wet bedding is that the ducks spill the water out, and many ducks are wet because of the water that has been scattered around the water bowl.
Change Duck Bedding Constantly
Changing bedding constantly has several benefits. First, we can’t potty train any ducks. The only way is to change the bedding to get duck bedding dry and clean. Second, duck bedding is usually made of straw, cheap, and easy to get.
Removing soaked straws and soiled beddings is the job of the owners. If it is wet or soiled for too long, it will cause unpleasant odors, problems at hand, and cause disease in ducks.
You can change bedding weekly, don’t do monthly. If you don’t change bedding for too long and you still can’t ensure the bedding won’t get wet, your ducks can get sick quickly.
Use Good Flooring For Duck Bedding
There are many options for ducks’ bedding. You can distinguish the quality of bedding when you’ve used it. The available options are pine shavings, straw, hay, or vinyl. Some owners use a straw because it is cheap, smells fresh, and is not dusty.
Some use vinyl because it is easy to clean and prevents the floor from getting wet. Wet duck bedding will cause a bad odor and problems when you replace it. Look for the best quality flooring that can help you keep your bedding dry.
How to keep duck bedding dry? In addition to using flooring that can keep it from getting wet, keeping access to water is also important because ducks like to play with water.
Change The Water Bowl Location
Sometimes the ducks are angry because the location of the water bowl is not to their liking, and someone spills water in the water bowl. Changing the location of the water bowl outside and away from the bedding area. It will keep the bedding clean and reduce the possibility of wet duck bedding.
If you can’t move the water bowl, use another method, such as using a similar setup for the chicken’s water system. Provide a pool of water large enough for ducks to swim, bathe, and drink. But before the ducks return to the bedding, ensure they’re dry and won’t be getting thirsty at night.
How to keep duck bedding dry? Between keeping the water bowl away from the bedding area or placing a special pool for bathing and drinking in a remote area so that the ducks can’t track water.
Put Absorbent Mats Around The Ducks Bedding
Place absorbent mats around the duck bedding. When some ducks track water, the feathers and their feet will get wet. If there are absorbent mats, their feet and weather can dry before they get to the bedding.
Although this is not a perfect fit for keeping bedding dry, it can minimize the problem of soaking bedding or the amount of water that enters the bedding.
How to keep duck bedding dry? If water access for ducks is far away and you wait for the ducks to dry before entering the bedding area, you can minimize the presence of water seeping into the duck’s bedding.
Add Extra Straw In Duck Bedding
You can put an additional area with straws that are slightly lower than the duck’s bedding. It is to reduce the possibility of the primary area of bedding being exposed to water.
Although you have to change everything if it gets wet or smells, you can add more straws around the bedding to look dry and tidy.
How to keep duck bedding dry? Do not let ducks play in the water near their bedding, and place absorbent mats or extra straw around their bedding.
Don’t Give Duck Water Overnight
Ducks will be free at night because no one is watching. If you catch ducks in an act, they are like thirst or hungry at night. But the thing you need to know is that they don’t need water at night if you have given them enough food in the afternoon.
If you accidentally put a water bowl in the bedding area, some ducks will play with water, and in the morning you will see wet duck bedding with an empty water bowl.
If you’re worried about ducks at night, give them enough food in the afternoon, and bring duck water early in the morning when they get out of bed.
How to keep duck bedding dry? Never place a water bowl around the bedding area. Ducks at night will be tracking water, and they can play around it without drinking it. If you are worried, give them something to drink and eat early in the morning after ducks come out of the bedding area.
How to keep duck bedding dry?
What Do You Do With Dirty Duck Bedding?
Some owners change the duck’s bedding as a daily routine and throw it into the composting bin. While others replace ducks’ bedding on a less frequent basis. They will wait for the bedding to smell or wet.
You can sell old bedding after being used by the ducks. Many even look for it. Offer it at a local farm group, online market, or your acquaintances who may need old bedding with duck’s litter in it.
Do not let ducks dirty bedding for too long because ducks are susceptible to disease, and lots of insects can be on the bedding.
How to keep duck bedding dry? Replace with clean and dry duck bedding. Some owners do it every day by using a straw because it is cheap and smells nice.
Can You Use Shredded Paper For Duck Bedding?
Shredded paper works well as ducks’ bedding. Don’t let your duck get wet because shredded paper can become a mess if it gets wet. If you are in the rainy season, use other bedding such as straw or hay.
Using shredded paper can save costs, especially if you have a lot of unused paper at home. Clean the paper from dust and try to place it on the bedding area. If the ducks are comfortable using shredded paper bedding, use it for some time.
Why Do Ducklings Need A Lot Of Dry Bedding?
Ducklings are messy animals who like to play with water and get their bedding wet. Whenever they can find access to water, the ducklings will be in it to swim or take a bath.
If you don’t put the water bowl somewhere far away or hard to reach, they will play with the water bowl or spill it. It will make the duck’s feet and feathers wet. When the duckling immediately takes a rest, the bedding will be wet. Imagine if some ducklings were doing the same.
Initially, I used pine shavings as bedding. But because of changing it often, I changed it to straw. Besides being cheaper, replacing it is also easier.
How to keep duck bedding dry? Put the water bowl on the old tire or don’t put it in the hutch adjacent to the bedding area. Ducklings have more energy than ducks, making them messier than ducks.
What Happens If You Let Ducks Bedding Wet?
Wet duck bedding will attract insects in it. If there are many insects, ducks are easily affected by the disease. In addition, the duck bedding will smell bad. You will have difficulty cleaning the bedding and need to put in a new one.
If there are too many insects on the duck’s body, their feathers will easily come off. Parasites can also enter the legs of ducks and cause bumblefoot. Bumblefoot is an infection due to bacteria entering the foot from the scar.
Do Ducklings Need To Be Kept Warm In Their Bedding?
If you enter cold weather, you need to keep ducklings warm in their bedding. Ducklings can last up to around 20 degrees. But if the weather is at a low temperature, you need to provide straw for insulation. Ducks will snuggle down into the straw bedding to keep their body warm.
Install a thick layer of straw or additional straw in their bedding. If the weather is still cold, don’t allow the ducks to come out of the hutch. If ducklings get frostbite on their feet, they can lose their legs because they need to be amputated.
Final Verdict – How To Keep Duck Bedding Dry
Duck bedding needs to be kept dry to keep the ducks healthy and the hutch clean. There are several ways to keep the bedding dry.
How to keep duck bedding dry? How to keep duck bedding dry in winter? How to keep duck bedding dry during rain?
Keep water away from the ducks, change the bedding constantly, don’t leave the water bowl in the bedding area, put water in the old tire to ensure the ducks won’t be strong enough to spill the water.
If you leave the duck’s bedding in wet conditions, your ducks can fall over and be exposed to bumblefoot and attract insects. When you want to clean the bedding it will smell bad.
Welcome to Learn About Pet. My name is Rajkumar Ravichandran and I love all pets, travel, and amazing food. I write about my passion and personal experience caring for multiple pets in this blog! ❤️
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