How to make a ducks nest
Ducks' nests are one of the primary attributes of house design. In order for the birds to have the desire to lay their eggs in homemade nesting places, and not where they please, it is necessary to make them as comfortable as possible. Of course, you will have to spend a certain period of time to accustom the ducks to nesting.
DIY nests for ducks
General requirements
Making nests for ducks with your own hands is more difficult than it seems at first glance. You can look at the photo for a very long time and try to reproduce what you saw, but without knowing the basic rules, you will not be able to make a comfortable nest. Socket requirements:
- the duck's nest must have a roof so that the bird understands that nothing threatens it,
- to install the nest, the place should be chosen a secluded one, so the female is more comfortable, she feels safe;
- in the nest, it is imperative to make a nut, otherwise the egg will simply roll out of the box and break.
Location
Before starting work, you need to decide where to put the nest. Depending on the location, the dimensions will be calculated. It is strictly forbidden to put nests in places of accumulation of moisture. Also, do not install them right next to the entrance. The ideal option is to be located against the far wall.
Even in the daytime, where the female is rushing, the illumination should be muted. If there are too many window openings in the shed and the room is light, it is necessary to partially cover some of them. A sharp noise will also affect the egg production of ducks. Where there is constant noise, the bird does not feel safe.
In order to determine the optimal location for nesting, it is necessary to clearly understand how many ducks are planned to be kept. It is better to allocate a separate nest for each individual. With a lack of nests, duck can find another place for himself and begin to lay eggs there. If ducks start to rush in a different place, it will be very difficult to accustom them to the nest.
The nests must be placed so that the owner has free access to them. The box will have to be constantly cleaned and eggs collected, which is why it is so important to ensure all the comfortable conditions. It is important to remember that the bird will only fly in the safest place.
Preparing for the workflow
First you need to decide on what tool you need and collect all the necessary material. In a private household, there are probably always wooden boards from which you can construct a cozy nest. However, before building a nest for a brood hen, it is necessary to draw a diagram on paper and only then take up the tree.
The size of the nest will depend on the size of the brood hen. The container should be roomy enough for the bird to turn easily. Often in the sources you can see measurements of the box 50 x 40 x 40, but these parameters are too average. The sizes are calculated depending on the size of adults and the area of the room. Every centimeter counts. To build a nest you will need:
- 6 slats made of wood, each 40 cm long;
- 2 slats 50 cm in size;
- hardware, saw, meter and pencil for marking parts.
Construction process
Roughly speaking, you need to build an ordinary box. Initially, you need to make side walls of a square shape, 40 cm high. Since most ducks are quite heavy and slow, it is necessary to make special manholes for them, along which they will begin to climb into the nests. For this purpose, a square is cut out in the side wall.
To prevent the products from rolling out of the boxes, it is necessary to leave a threshold of 9 cm. The dimensions of the next three parts are 50 x 40. Now you can make a frame from rails. All pieces of plywood must be fixed to the frame. If the floor is good in the barn, then it is not necessary to make a floor in the nest, otherwise, even before assembly, it is necessary to cover the bottom of the nest with linoleum or other waterproof material.
Arrangement plan
It is not enough to correctly design the nest, it still needs to be arranged so that the duck wants to sit inside. The bottom of a hand-made product must be covered with warm material:
- hay;
- straw.
The flooring should be fairly thick. It is worth considering that the softer it is in the nest, the sooner the duck will rush in it. Plus the thick bedding minimizes the risk of testicular damage. Most ducks try to bury their testicles, because they naturally nest on the ground. If the litter is thin, then the egg will simply burst, being under the pressure of the duck body and wooden bottom.
The most important
Building a nest for ducklings with your own hands is not at all difficult. Putting a duck in it is the tricky part. There are times when the owners try to put ducks in brand new boxes, but they prefer an old basket, so this attribute is simply turned into a container for laying eggs by placing a large layer of straw inside. The basket is brought into the barn and placed in a secluded spot.
Domestic ducks are able to independently choose a nesting location. Sometimes you just need to take a good look at where this or that individual sits and put a container for it in that corner.
You should not install nests in a row in close proximity to each other. This can lead to a decrease in egg production.
Each individual masonry should be in a quiet, secluded area. This arrangement will bring the bird as close to natural conditions as possible. The side on which the hole was made should be looking at the wall, and not at the entrance, then the duck will feel that no one can see it when it climbs into the box. The first few times you will have to put the birds in containers yourself.
In no case should you collect products while all the females are in the barn. Seeing how their testicles are taken away, they can stop laying in the nests and find themselves more secluded corners. Egg collection should be carried out regularly at the same time, after all individuals have gone outside.
How to train
In some cases, as soon as a makeshift nest is in the house, the ducks understand what it is for and begin to climb in there themselves, but more often than not they have no idea how to handle it. In the winter cold, females do not rush, nevertheless, it is necessary to establish nests in the autumn period. For a long time, the birds will get used to the houses and will begin to select a separate one for themselves.
In order for the birds to quickly understand what the nests are for, a clay egg should be left there. You can accustom an individual to the nest by closing the duck in a room with a box for several days. This method is quite effective.
Requirements for the premises
Domestic ducks are birds that prefer to sit down to incubate their eggs all alone where none of the inhabitants of the yard can reach them. It is not recommended to keep several females in one nest, even if separated by partitions. The optimal number is one nest per individual.
The musky look of ducks does not tolerate an increase in air humidity at all, moreover, it is a waterfowl. In winter, you should not save on heaters, otherwise you can lose half of the herd. In summer, when it is too hot, you should, on the contrary, spray the walls with water. How to make nests and teach ducks to them, will tell you a video on the relevant topic.
Conclusion
Domestic ducks are rather picky about the living conditions. In order to get the maximum number of eggs and not collect them throughout the area, it is necessary to equip the poultry houses with nests. The female does not always want to lay eggs in the nest. Why is this happening? There are two explanations for this:
- improperly designed socket;
- the duck is carried elsewhere.
In order for the birds to want to lay eggs in the nests, it is necessary to make the boxes themselves as comfortable as possible and place them in remote places. However, at the expense of the location, the issue is controversial. It is recommended to look where the duck sits and put a nest there. Most farmers unanimously insist that the most optimal place is in the corner of the poultry house, but if a certain individual decides to rush near the threshold, then a nest should be placed for it there. Also, if the duck liked the basket more, then you need to retrain the thing in the nest and put it in the poultry house.
The parameters of the nest will depend on the size of the adult female and the area of the house. The house should be fairly spacious. In winter, there should be a thick layer of straw or hay on the floor so that the birds do not freeze their legs. It is also necessary to make as thick a litter as possible in the nest so that it does not get damaged when trying to bury the egg. It is better to start accustoming ducks to nests in advance, in the fall, by installing boxes in the poultry house.
Domestic ducks should under no circumstances see how the owner takes their testicles from the box, because then they will have to look for another place to lay their eggs, so it is necessary to carry out all the manipulations when the herd is walking. Among other things, you need to make sure that the wood on the box is carefully processed. It is not recommended to paint with paint, it is better to just use sandpaper. Ducks do not like loud sounds; during incubation, they need to be provided with peace.
The box should look like a house with a roof and a sill for the ducks to want to hatch their eggs in. A special manhole is made on the side of the structure. When located inside the house, it must be installed so that this opening is facing the wall. This will give the duck a sense of privacy.
You can watch and find out all the nuances of caring for ducks and arranging containers, their sizes, in the video.