{"id":44125,"date":"2025-02-24T03:00:28","date_gmt":"2025-02-24T08:00:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/?p=44125"},"modified":"2025-02-24T13:02:27","modified_gmt":"2025-02-24T18:02:27","slug":"can-chickens-ducks-share-feed","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/can-chickens-ducks-share-feed\/","title":{"rendered":"Can Ducks and Chickens Eat the Same Food?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Can ducks and chickens eat the same food? This is a question you may have if you raise both chickens and ducks that share living quarters. The short answer is yes, rest assured that they can eat the same feed. Although commercial waterfowl feed is<\/em> available in some areas, it can be hard to find, and if you let your chickens and ducks roam freely together, providing different feed for each won\u2019t work, as both will happily eat anything you put in the feeders<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Beware Of Too Much Protein<\/h2>\n

There are feeds on the market labeled for mixed flocks, but most are formulated for meat birds. These formulas are higher in protein and encourage fast growth\u2014exactly what you don\u2019t want when you\u2019re raising ducks<\/a><\/strong> as pets or layers. Ducks that grow too fast can develop leg and foot problems, so be sure to read the label and steer clear of anything labeled for broilers or meat ducks if you\u2019re raising a flock<\/a><\/strong> for eggs.<\/p>\n

Too much protein can also lead to a condition in ducks called angel wing in which their wings start to curve away from their bodies rendering them unable to fly. While it\u2019s merely a cosmetic issue in domestic ducks that can\u2019t fly anyway, in wild ducks the condition can mean a death sentence because they\u2019re unable to migrate or escape predators. (Adding some raw oats to the feed can help lower the protein levels and prevent this condition.)<\/p>\n

What To Feed\u00a0A\u00a0Mixed Flock?<\/h2>\n

A mixed flock can be fed regular chicken layer feed. Ducks<\/a><\/strong> do require slightly higher levels of niacin than chickens, so adding some brewer\u2019s yeast is a good idea. Brewer\u2019s yeast (up to a 2.5 percent) can help ducks\u2019 bones grow correctly and is beneficial to chickens, as well. Ducks will self-regulate their eating just like chickens, so feed can be left out all day for them to eat as much or as little as they need.<\/p>\n

If your flock free-ranges<\/a><\/strong>, your ducks will eat all kinds of bugs, grass and weeds to help supplement their diet, which can result in a lower feed bill. If your flock<\/a><\/strong> is penned up, a few handfuls of greens in their water tub is a great way to amuse ducks and give them some added nutrient-rich treats. Ducks also need free-choice grit and calcium just like chickens do.<\/p>\n

Can Ducks and Chickens Eat the Same Food: A Caution About Feeding Ducklings<\/h2>\n

Ducklings can be fed regular chick feed, but it should not be medicated. Because they aren\u2019t as susceptible to coccidiosis<\/a><\/strong> as baby chicks, they don\u2019t need the Amprolium that\u2019s in the medicated feed. However, brooding ducklings with baby chicks isn\u2019t a good idea. Not only do ducklings grow much faster than chicks, they splash around and make a huge water mess, which can lead to wet, chilled chicks.<\/p>\n

Additionally, ducklings should only be on chick starter feed for the first two weeks (in contrast to eight weeks for chicks), and then switched to the lower-protein grower feed until they are about 18 weeks old. At 18 weeks, they can switch to the layer feed and be integrated into a flock of adult ducks or chickens.<\/p>\n

This article about can ducks and chickens eat the same food was written for Chickens magazine. Click here to subscribe.<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Your Two Flocks Can Share Feed As Long As You Keep Some Things In Mind <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":108,"featured_media":127302,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[10456],"tags":[39,11932],"class_list":["post-44125","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-poultry","tag-raising-chickens","tag-raising-ducks"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nCan Ducks and Chickens Eat the Same Food? - Hobby Farms<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Can ducks and chickens eat the same food? Yes. 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