When raising ducklings, farmers are faced with the problem of baldness due to feather loss. There are several reasons for this phenomenon. To understand everything, let's look at why and when ducklings go bald, what can lead to such a problem and how to deal with it at home, as well as preventive measures that can prevent baldness of birds.
Lack of vitamins and poor nutrition
Feathers in young and adult ducks fall out due to a lack of protein, vitamins and mineral elements in the feed (especially the amino acids methionine, sulfur and calcium). Moreover, for feathers to begin to fall out, this deficiency must be significant and last a long time. The feather falls out from the back, sides, neck, belly, large feathers on the wings and tail remain.
It's all about improper feeding. To prevent birds from going bald, their food must contain greens, young grass, and duckweed. As well as grains, root vegetables, vegetables, fish and dairy waste. The more varied the diet, the better. If there is a lack of quality products, then you need to use premixes, yeast, and chalk. Add bone meal, crushed shells, shells. Small fish and earthworms are useful.
To quickly make up for the lack of vitamins, ducklings need to be given vitamin preparations in drops. You can buy it at veterinary pharmacies or livestock stores. The dosage and course of treatment are prescribed in the instructions.
Cannibalism among ducks
Due to poor feeding, ducks can begin to peck each other’s feathers and peck at each other’s skin until they bleed. But this is not the only reason for this behavior. Pecking and tearing out feathers is the result of crowded housing, when there is not enough space, ducks feel uncomfortable. The mental state of the ducklings worsens, which is why they begin to attack each other. Bright light can also cause cannibalism.
If mulards have a bald back or neck due to feather pecking, you need to place the stock in another room or walk it longer in a pen.
And also, if the reason is bright lighting, hang a red lamp in the house, the light of which will distract the ducklings from pecking.
Pecking can also be observed when adding new birds to an already formed flock. Ducklings can peck the weak, thus establishing a hierarchy. If this is the reason, aggressive ducklings should be kept separately for a while. After 1-2 weeks, when the new individuals are accepted into the flock, the bullies can be returned back.
Feather parasites
If the feathers of ducklings fall out, and they itch, behave restlessly, and eat poorly, this is a consequence of the bird being infected with feather parasites. If red dots are noticeable on the skin, this only confirms the diagnosis.
Control measures - treatment with acaricidal drugs. Products are available in the form of sprays or powder. All livestock must be treated, regardless of whether the duckling is infected or not. If there are chickens, geese, turkeys, and quails in your backyard, they may also have parasites. They are also subject to treatment, like the room where the bird lives.
To prevent the appearance and reproduction of parasites, there should always be a container with sand or ash in the poultry house. The ducklings will swim in it. In addition, you need to clean the room, replace the bedding as often as possible, clean the feeders and drinkers, disinfect or at least steam.
Crowding
If ducklings are forced to live in a cramped nest, they behave aggressively. They may fight and pluck feathers. This usually does not happen if the standards for bird density are observed - per 1 sq. A meter of duckling house can accommodate no more than 2 adult ducks or 5 pcs. young animals
The situation gets worse if the bird is not allowed out for a walk or if it doesn’t spend enough time outside to get some exercise and rest.There should be a platform next to the poultry house where the ducklings can walk in the sun. It is better to make the walls of the walkway mesh. It’s even better to take the young animals to a pond if it is located nearby.
This is an excellent place for waterfowl to swim and get enough natural food.
Lighting also plays a role. Small ducklings need to be illuminated for at least 20 hours a day. In this case, it is impossible to do without artificial lighting, regardless of the period of the year. By the age of two months, you need to increase the lighting duration to 12 hours and maintain it throughout the entire growing period.
Poor ventilation and low humidity
Air that is saturated with ammonia and other harmful substances released during the decomposition of manure has a bad effect on any living organism. If the room is not ventilated, the ducks are forced to breathe this air. Low (below 50%) humidity also has a negative effect on the feather. It makes the feathers dry and brittle and they fall out.
For a bird to live comfortably in the coop, the humidity must be maintained at 65-70%. This can be done by installing several containers of water in it. It will evaporate, increasing the humidity on hot summer days.
The air temperature is not higher than 27-30 °C in the 1st week of keeping ducklings, 23-26 °C from the 2nd week and 19-22 °C from the 3rd week. You must remember to ventilate the house every day by opening windows and doors. But it is better to install a ventilation system that will maintain an optimal microclimate artificially.
If ducklings lose their feathers or pluck them, this is a signal that the owner has made serious mistakes in their care or feeding. To identify the cause, you need to analyze how the diet is composed, whether it has enough all the nutrients or not.Is there enough space, how do the ducklings behave, are they calm or excited. Usually, if it is possible to normalize nutrition, provide sufficient “living space” for everyone, and take care to prevent infection by parasites, the problem with feather loss will be solved.
