Do You Have To Have A Heat Lamp For Baby Ducks

Use a 100 watt bulb to start.

Do you have to have a heat lamp for baby ducks.

You need to hang a heat lamp above the storage container or bed. The lamp is normally hung about 18 from the bedding where it should be 90 95 degrees. Try to get close to 90 f the first week then adjust it by 5 degrees each week until the temperature matches the outside temp. The lamp will give sufficient heat even on the coldest days.

You can put a heat lamp over the brooder at a corner. The lamp must be secure and feature guards to keep it from directly contacting litter if it falls. There should be some type of solid wall or partition around the pen to prevent drafts which can be deadly. Plastic may melt with the heat produced by a heat lamp.

One heat lamp can handle about 35 ducklings 20 goslings 40 guineas or 60 pheasants. If baby ducks aren t being kept warm by their mother they need extra heat for the first couple weeks of life. Make sure dogs cats and rats are kept out. Use a thermometer to register the heat in your brooder.

However as long as the chicks aren t crowded a regular white bulb should be fine. But in barns or garages which may run 60 degrees chicks need supplementary heat until they are fully feathered at six weeks of age. For very young ducklings this should create the right amount of heat. This ensures that if they are cold they can go under the light for some warmth and if they get too hot they can move out from under the light.

If home temperatures range around 75 degrees you won t need a heat lamp past week four. You can place a thermometer in there if you like to regulate the temperature but it is pretty easy to see if the temperature is right. Be sure to use a lamp with a ceramic socket. But you should know that ducklings don t need heat for as long as chicks do.

Ducklings and chicks need to be warm since they are not with their mother. I provide constant feed and water for ducklings. Once they are about two months old and presumably living outside you can remove their feed and water at night if you wish. Buy a brooding lamp at a feed store or hardware store and affix it to the top of the brooder.

The porous material wicks moisture away from the feed and seems to keep it drier. Baby ducks need to be kept very warm in the first few weeks after they hatch to give them the chance to get used to the chilly air outside their eggs. It is also a good idea to place their feed under the heat lamp where the heat will dry it a bit.