Breeding broiler ducks is becoming an increasingly popular activity. However, it is important to take into account that this area is considered a difficult task that requires a lot of effort and time. In order for birds to grow well and not get sick, they need to choose the right diet. What exactly to feed broiler ducks, depends on their age and characteristics of the content.
Features of diet preparation
A properly formulated diet for birds helps to obtain healthy birds for slaughter in a short time.It is believed that it is cost-effective to keep a duck for no longer than 3 months. Subsequently, feed consumption increases significantly, while body weight increases much more slowly.
Small farms use grains and other natural products to feed birds, while industrial farms usually use compound feed.
When compiling a diet, you should focus on the following rules:
- First of all, it is important to consider the age of the bird. Adults should eat three times a day.
- Constant nutrition can be cereal mixtures or mixed feed.
- Broiler ducks need moist mash. They are made from root vegetables, carrot tops or beets. Also, the composition often includes greens - nettle, duckweed, clover.
- Be sure to install a container with crushed shells and chalk.
- It is worth adding fish oil to your diet periodically.
- It is recommended to always fill drinking bowls with clean and fresh water.
What to feed broiler ducks at home
Raising these birds has a number of features. When compiling a diet, you should definitely focus on the age of your pets.
Adults
When keeping adult broilers, they should be given finishing feed. It is introduced into the diet on days 26-27. Adult birds should be given a scattering of coarse food. It is also permissible to use the granular version. Its diameter should be more than 4 millimeters.
Some farmers replace 90% of the diet with corn to achieve maximum body weight at the end of fattening. In this case, the remaining 10% should come from vitamins, chalk, salt, and fishmeal.Some farmers increase the volume of cereals to 60%.
Choosing the best option is quite problematic. Therefore, you should focus on your costs and the results you plan to get. A complete finishing compound feed includes the following components:
- 60 grams of cereals - these include corn, wheat, barley;
- 35 grams of skim milk;
- 30 grams of boiled potatoes;
- 20 grams of greens;
- 7 grams of yeast;
- 5 grams of meal;
- 5 grams of cottage cheese;
- 5 grams of meat and bone meal;
- 3 grams of chalk;
- 0.2 grams of salt.
The number of feedings should be selected taking into account the age category:
- at 10-15 days it is recommended to feed ducks 6-8 times a day;
- in 15-30 days food should be given 4-6 times a day;
- Adult birds need to be fed at least three times a day from 31 days until slaughter.
Ducklings
For the proper development of ducklings, they require a balanced diet. It is important to start proper feeding literally from the very first day of life. Ducklings definitely need to be given food in the first 16-18 hours. This is of great importance for their full development.
The birds' first food can be crushed eggs. A special starter feed must be given from the 1st to the 10th day of life inclusive.
If you can’t buy a ready-made mixture, you can make it yourself. To do this you should take the following:
- 50% corn;
- 25% oats;
- 10% barley;
- 5% meal;
- 10% composition of premix, fishmeal, salt, chalk.
The grains must be thoroughly crushed before mixing. Moistening the feed is of no small importance. In this case, it is worth adding boiled potatoes, herbs, and low-fat cottage cheese to the composition. It is also acceptable to use boiled chicken eggs.
On the 11th day, ducklings should be switched to a growth mixture. In this case, you need to gradually eliminate fine-grained foods and moisturizing ingredients.It is necessary to transfer ducklings to growth feed within 2 weeks. At this time, there is a risk of a significant slowdown in weight gain. However, there is no need to worry - this is considered normal.
What should you not give to broiler birds?
It is forbidden to give birds the following food:
- Spoiled bread and moldy food. Such foods can cause the development of aspergillosis.
- Fine flour. This product can turn into dough, which will lead to blockage of the nasal openings in the beak. As a result, there is a high likelihood of breathing problems.
- Fresh milk. First of all, it should not be given to ducklings. This product often turns sour in the stomach, which causes diarrhea.
- Poisonous herbs. These include henbane, celandine, cocklebur and other dangerous plants.
Feeding broiler ducks has a number of features. To achieve success in breeding birds, it is necessary to provide them with a balanced diet, taking into account their age.
