An ornithologist told whether it is possible to feed ducks white bread

The capital has been abnormally cold for almost the entire month of February; many ponds and rivers have frozen. Against this background, the ducks have nowhere to get food. Concerned citizens feed the birds and encourage others to follow their example. We tell you what you can treat ducks without harming their health, and also where to go if the birds are frozen in the pond.

Photo: portal of the mayor and government of Moscow/Maxim Denisov

Harm of bread for ducks

It is important to immediately get rid of the myth that all flour destructively “swells” or “poisons with mold” the defenseless internal organs of this species of avifauna.
This is idle speculation. Turn on logic. If it weren’t for the bread crumbs, crackers and chips that onlookers stuff any inhabited body of water with while walking? Yes, the population of quacking inhabitants of the city would have died out long ago. Of course, they do not know how to eat like their relatives in the wild (get food). Since they were already born in the city. And no departments specifically serve them.

In fact, the birds mentioned above consume baked goods. But only in a soaked state. They can injure their body if you throw those pieces at them on a dry surface. In this case, the food will be too hard and will not be digested. Everything is not the same as with us.

That is, it doesn’t matter what you throw to the ducks. The important point is that it gets into the water and gets wet first. In water, even the mentioned crackers and chips are essentially porridge.

The second aspect is that it is dangerous to eat one type of food - all day long only white or only black bread (and so on). The diet should be varied. And this is exactly what waterfowl have – mixed. After all, each of us brings something different, something different!

Everything here is explained by the same dietary laws that you and I must follow. Food should be varied. With carbohydrates, fiber (fruits, vegetables, berries, grains). Healthy fats (in nature, waterfowl get them by eating small fish). Aquatic plants that naturally fall into the duck's beak also contain minerals. Only now the city “quackers” will already turn away from any grass. Everything is logical here. After all, we ourselves have accustomed them to bread – to its smell and texture.

Features of the digestive system of ducks

Despite the fact that the domestic duck is conventionally an omnivorous bird, the structure of its digestive system is characterized by high-quality digestion of plant foods. The soft shape of the beak with fine toothed plates is necessary for straining water from vegetation, and the small protruding “claw” of the beak is used for tearing grass.

Did you know? The largest number of domestic ducks is registered in China - the annual production of this bird is at least 2 million heads. The least is in Latin America, where keeping domestic duck is not popular, since its meat is practically not eaten.

It is noteworthy that due to the presence of a powerful enzyme in the pancreas, the digestion process itself occurs very quickly - due to the continuous secretion of large amounts of gastric juice, the production of which increases with each intake of food. Thus, food is not retained in the stomach (which, by the way, is relatively small in size), but passes into the large intestine.

To the question of what kind of food can be fed to poultry, the answer is simple - mainly plant-based: the stomachs of these birds are not able to digest high-calorie and heavy food.

What else should they not be given?

Having explained why you can’t always feed ducks the same type of bread (and even dry bread), let’s continue the conversation about the “forbidden” duck diet. There are really destructive things:

• moldy products (again, there is a harmless coating, we eat Dorblu cheese);
• over-salted products (and chips are not such: what is tasty for us will suit them too);
• food directly in the package (plastic and polyethylene, like other synthetics, contain toxins).

Speaking of dangerous food, let's mention one more type of harm. From excess sugar. Under natural conditions, mallards receive little of it. Their insides are not adapted to it.

Prohibited foods for feeding ducks

In addition to bakery products, the diet of a domestic duck should not include:

• sweets, candies and chocolate are very unhealthy and high-calorie foods that cause obesity;
• spicy, salty and peppery foods - irritate the mucous membranes and receptors of birds;
• onions and garlic - causes nausea in birds, in some cases death is possible;
• nuts;
• avocado is deadly poisonous to all birds without exception;
• tomato tops;
• celandine, henbane, nettle are poisonous herbs for ducks;
• porridge with milk - such a product disappears after 1 hour, so feeding only freshly prepared porridge is allowed, and then in rare cases;
• boiled potatoes and flour - these products stick together in mash and make it difficult for the main food to pass through.

The correct diet for a domestic duck is a predominance of plant foods. To ensure good productivity and health of birds, it is necessary to exclude baked goods and other prohibited foods.

What can you feed ducks?

Does the described living creature need special food? No. But she still has her own “culinary” preferences, which is why “special rations” are sold to visitors in menageries.

What is it about? About well-chopped apples and vegetables mixed with grains. This is for ducks what a birthday cake or a fancy pie is for us. In addition, this wetland fauna loves boiled carrots and peas. Potatoes and beets (also after heat treatment in boiling water).

There's one more thing to add at the end. The meat of village-bred duck is fattier and more nutritious. Thanks to the juicy diet, rich in fiber and vitamins, that this bird consumes. Duck is much tastier than chicken. And she only pecks grains and crumbs.

What can you feed your bird?

The list of products that can be fed to domestic ducks is quite extensive. The main condition for such food is that it is rich in fiber, minerals and vitamins, which ensures not only the proper functioning of the bird’s digestive system, but also the health of the bird as a whole:

• cabbage (white and cauliflower);
• varietal salad;
• cucumbers;
• corn;
• tomatoes;
• pumpkin;
• zucchini;
• eggplant;
• beet;
• peas;
• oats;
• duckweed, fresh grass;
• seeds, grains;
• cake, flour, bran, etc.;
• banana pulp (in small quantities, because bananas are high in calories);
• a pineapple;
• watermelon;
• melon;
• apples;
• pomegranate seeds;
• fish flour.

This list is far from complete, but these products can fully provide the animal with all the necessary microelements and vitamins.

Important! It is necessary to regularly clean the feeder from old food debris, and every month treat the drinker and feeder with antibacterial natural preparations: this will prevent the appearance and development of mold and fungal diseases.

How to feed mulards from the first days of life?

Before feeding newborn Mulard ducks, you need to teach them to eat. Usually they are taught this “science” by the breeder and it is easy to do. In the nature of this breed there is something that moves (duckweed, worms). That is why it is necessary to find any dark background (food stand), it must be flat, without bending. Then food is slowly poured onto it. You can also sprinkle it on ducklings; they will eat right off each other’s backs. There is usually no need to repeat the procedure; after the first “lesson” they already know what to do.

It is extremely important to introduce any food into the diet gradually

For the first five days, mulard ducklings are fed once every 2 hours. This is very important, so you have to tinker. You can set alarms so you don't miss feeding. Otherwise, the bird may grow up weak.

Ducklings can immediately eat cottage cheese, chopped, boiled eggs, soft steamed porridge (cereal). From one day of age it is worth giving steamed and crushed corn and wheat. There should always be water in the brooder where they are kept, and you can also give whey to drink.

It is extremely important to introduce any food into the diet gradually in order to test the bird’s body’s reaction to it.

Why do chickens eat polystyrene foam and is it harmful to eggs?

As you know, chickens are not smart animals and can consume useless or even harmful substances. This also applies to polystyrene foam, to which birds often have free access, because the material is used to insulate outbuildings.

Polystyrene foam is a building material that contains chemicals, so if it enters the stomach, it can harm the entire digestive system. And chickens are curious creatures and peck at everything that catches their eye. Given that this building material has an interesting shape, it is not surprising that it attracts birds.

We suggest you read: What can you feed decorative rabbits? Milk

Important! It is necessary to try to exclude access to polystyrene foam, because its use often leads to the death of the bird

Making your own feed

Ready-made feed mixtures are easy to use. They contain everything necessary for duck: crushed grain, mineral supplements, protein products, grass and bone meal. But buying factory concentrates is unprofitable. It is more profitable to prepare duck food yourself, purchasing all the ingredients separately.

The composition of the feed for ducks includes:

• grain (barley, peas, wheat, millet). It is better not to use rye: it causes fermentation and worsens the condition of the bird;
• bran from wheat or other cereals. It is acceptable to replace with rapeseed or sunflower cake;
• herbal, fish meal. In summer, fresh herbs are used;
• return;
• mineral additives: chalk, salt, shell rock, bone meal, yeast, vitamin premixes;
• vegetables (potatoes, carrots). Pre-cooked and crushed;
• animal ingredients: meat, cottage cheese, fish. It is added mainly to feed for young animals.

The ratio of components changes depending on the season: in spring and summer the proportion of cereals and bran is increased, in winter grass flour and vitamins are added. But the basic ratio remains unchanged: grain in any form accounts for up to 75% of the weight of the homemade mixture.

Mineral supplements should be handled with care and should not include more than 2 g of bone meal or yeast per bird.

The detailed feed recipe is presented in the table:

What and in what quantities to feed domestic ducks raised for meat

The main condition for raising meat ducks is rapid weight gain. Typically, about 2.5 months pass from the birth of a bird to slaughter.

Advice! Two weeks before slaughter, increase the amount of protein food in the diet (peas, cottage cheese. The bird will begin to gain weight even faster. One week before slaughter, give the ducks more boiled potatoes and mash so that the bird accumulates fat. It is not recommended to feed fishmeal during this period.

The table below shows the feeding rates for ducks per day in grams per head during different periods. By including these types of feed in your diet, you will speed up weight gain.

But in Canada, Finland, and Great Britain it is forbidden to feed ducks with bread?

Nina Sadykova explained: “The ban on feeding birds in European parks is usually dictated not by the fact that feeding birds is harmful, but by the fact that there are too many birds, and they, for example, pollute statues or dirty a fountain. Or, on the contrary, the existing birds are not enough to cope with the endless flow of crumbs, buns and seeds, and instead of feeding, the result is littering, breeding rats, etc.

In some cases, excess feeding and excessive accumulation of waterfowl can pose an environmental threat, not to the ducks themselves, but to the water bodies where they live. This usually applies to small, clean park ponds in European towns. There, indeed, local authorities may prohibit feeding birds, because due to the accumulation of half-eaten bread and bird droppings in reservoirs, the self-purification process is disrupted, they begin to bloom and become overgrown, turning into a swamp.

For our city, this problem is not very urgent; in our country, the pollution and overgrowth of park ponds is not associated with ducks and their feeding.”

What are the dangers of feeding moldy bread or crackers?

You should not throw moldy bread to ducks, because once the fungus enters the body, it quickly multiplies and completely blocks the functioning of internal organs. In a bird's body, the fungus can multiply in 2 days. A duck fed with a moldy product begins to refuse to eat and quickly weakens. Another reason why you should not use a product with mold is the occurrence of aspergillosis. Main symptoms of the disease:

• shortness of breath;
• breathing becomes frequent and intermittent;
• wheezing;
• the birds practically do not eat food, so they become weaker.

When aspergillosis of the respiratory tract appears, the bird dies within a few days.

The dangers of feeding ducks moldy food

Also, crackers should not be used as food. Large particles entering the digestive tract scratch its walls and accumulate, blocking the digestive organs. Such conditions can negatively affect the health of birds.

Important! If you want to feed wild ducks in winter, you need to use sprouted grains, cottage cheese or earthworms. Also, birds will not refuse wheat or corn grits.

How to give correctly

When thinking about whether it is possible to give bread to chickens, the poultry farmer must know how to do it correctly, so that the product can have a beneficial effect on the health and condition of the bird, and does not cause the development of a number of complications. Recommendations and tips for feeding bread to chickens:

• The optimal time to use flour products in the diet is winter, when chickens need an additional source of nutrients.
• Stale bread can be soaked in water with the addition of other products and cereals. But the time between preparing the treat and eating it should be minimal, no more than 2 hours.
• It is recommended to grind the rye product rather than soak it.
• If birds rarely go outside, for example, broilers, they can be given bread occasionally and in a very limited amount.

It is best to grind stale bread through a meat grinder and use the prepared crumbs as an additive to the main diet

Preparing bread before feeding chickens

It is strictly forbidden to give birds fresh, soft crumb. The product is used exclusively in dried form. In order not to harm the birds, the loaf is dried in the oven or in the sun, after cutting it into thin slices. Paper bags or fabric bags are used to store the workpiece.

Before serving to chickens, you need to carefully inspect the bread for insects.

Note! You should not feed moldy food to birds, even if it looks like the bad parts can be cut off.

How much can you give, norms

Compliance with the recommended dosages of flour product in the poultry diet is the most important condition in order not to harm them. Standards and recommendations:

• Chickens over 5 days old can be given bread crumbs, mixing them with cottage cheese, herbs or root vegetables.
• For adult chickens, baked goods can be replaced with grain in mash mixtures in a ratio of 1:3.
• Bread soaked in water is added to the mash in a ratio of 1:2.
• Small chickens are given 1 small piece in addition to the main feed; such feeding is allowed every day.
• For chickens weighing over 2 kg, the volume is increased by 0.5 times; for large-sized individuals, an increase in volume by 2 or 2.5 times is allowed.
• Gray bread can be consumed by chickens no more than 1-2 times a week in a very limited amount.

If in the cold season the product can be present in the diet of chickens daily in a small volume, in the summer the frequency of feeding birds with bread is reduced to 2 times a week, no more.

It is important to know how much baking to give to birds, and not to overuse it

It is highly not recommended to exceed the recommended volumes of bread. When chickens eat bread frequently, they develop obesity. Overweight birds are susceptible to a number of diseases; obesity negatively affects the process of egg production.

What kind of bread is allowed in the chicken nutrition system?

To create conditions for the entry of this element into the body, the chicken menu should be enriched with fiber, sugars and polysaccharides, found in large quantities in bran, pumpkin, fodder beets, boiled potatoes and carrots.

Due to its carbohydrate content, it is advisable to feed it in doses and always in a dried form.

You should be careful with the latter and not exaggerate its role in the chicken diet.

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Regarding whether it is possible to give bread to chickens, livestock specialists recommend introducing the chicks to nutritious crumbs only after reaching 7 days: the crushed loaf should be soaked in water, then mixed with boiled cereal and only served to the babies in this form. As an independent food unit, this product is not so effective.

It brings great benefits in combination with the following ingredients:

• Bran;
• Cereals;
• Greenery;
• Vitamin complexes;
• Boiled potatoes;
• Cottage cheese.

Bread is a powerful food product, a source of calories and energy for the body. Consequently, meat productivity and egg production of laying hens will depend on proper metabolism.

A qualified approach to breeding poultry families implies the distribution of the relevance of certain feeds according to their seasonal importance

In general, flour products are best served in winter. To warm their own bodies, birds consume food rich in carbohydrates because they need them, and crackers as part of warm and liquid feeding are the best source of energy.

Let’s also not ignore summer - in hot weather, the soaked crust undergoes rapid souring, which can cause gastroenterological difficulties. To avoid digestive problems, mash is served to laying hens in small portions, then it does not stagnate, but is consumed quickly - within a couple of hours

To avoid digestive problems, mash is served to laying hens in small portions, then it does not stagnate, but is consumed quickly - within a couple of hours.

To achieve a special aroma, softness and juiciness of the meat, the rooster is well fed with porridge with soaked wheat crumbs, about ten days before slaughter.

Consequences of overeating

Overuse of modern flour products leads to the formation of sand in the gall bladder, liver and pancreas of ducks. There is a violation of metabolic processes in their body. There is an opinion that baker's yeast causes cancer.

Constant consumption of high-calorie foods leads to diseases of the gastrointestinal tract of birds. Bloating, constipation, lack of appetite are the main symptoms. Ducks cannot talk about their problems, and it is not always clear from their behavior what happened. If you have any suspicions, always contact your veterinarian to resolve concerns.

Benefits and harms of the product

The harm from feeding bread is much greater than the benefit. A product unfamiliar to the bird’s stomach causes an increased acid content. Bread swells in the digestive tract, often causing blockage. In the goiter, lumps of bread may well block the larynx and trachea, leading to suffocation.

In the cold season, you can give dried bread in the form of crackers to save birds from hunger. But you need to remember that even crackers are given in limited quantities - no more than 10 parts of the rest of the feeder. In addition to bread, it is forbidden to give pigeons meat, dairy products and leftover human food, which greatly undermine the activity of the intestines.

"Angel wings"

Pond feeders don’t think about how harmful the composition of the product is for ducks. Excessive carbohydrate consumption causes them to develop Angel Wings disease.

The duck's wings should fit snugly to the body and follow its curves. As the disease develops, the plumage gradually becomes filled with blood and bends. The wing moves to the side and becomes perpendicular to the body. Gradually it becomes deformed, which cannot be corrected. Because of this, birds can no longer fly, and therefore live a full life.

Features of winter feeding

In the cold there is no green meadow grass, aquatic vegetation, or fresh vegetables. They are replaced with hay harvested in the summer, as well as root crops stored in early autumn. In winter, birds are often given sprouted grain, and the volumes of components rich in proteins and carbohydrates are increased. This diet will help them survive the cold easier and not get sick.

Normally, ducks are given food twice a day until spring:

• in the morning – wet mash and combined silage;
• in the evening - grain mixtures with meat and bone or fish meal, steamed hay and rot, sprouted grain.

Everything that birds consume during the winter months does little to increase their muscle mass, but it does help them stay warm in low temperatures.

Fattening for the festive table

You need to prepare for any significant date in advance. The event determines how many birds you will keep for slaughter. Birds begin to be fattened 2 weeks before the holiday. They need to be given barley, millet, wheat waste, corn (crushed grains) more than 3 times a day.

A goose being prepared for slaughter is placed in a cube-box (box) made of wood with side dimensions of about 30 cm. It should limit the movements of the bird; if there are several of them, the appropriate number of boxes should be placed.

An opening is made in the back of the box for self-cleaning so that droppings do not accumulate inside. A lattice of slats is arranged in front so that the birds can stick their heads through and get food.

From almost any representative of the geese living indoors for more than 70 days, you can get about a quarter of a kilogram of products for stuffing pillows during the first molt, and about 1/8 kg during the second.

Mulard diseases

The hybrid is very resistant to most infections that are contagious to other types of ducks, but there are still a number of diseases that prevent the breeding of mulard ducks at home. The diseases differ in their symptoms and, if not treated, can lead to the death of the bird.

If it is not enough to keep order in the poultry house and do not change the litter, then it can rot or become moldy. At the same time, a fungus multiplies in it, which causes aspergillosis in birds. And if the sick are not properly treated, up to half of the livestock may die. Symptoms of aspergillosis:

• the bird is lethargic;
• doesn't eat;
• breathes quickly;
• she vomits.

For treatment, copper sulfate (0.15%) is added to the water, and the human medicine “Nystatin” is added to the food, but the veterinarian will tell you the dosage.

A lack of vitamins and protein can lead to baldness in birds, which cause them to pluck out their own feathers. Other factors include: dirt in the house, poor air flow, excessive crowding in a cramped area. The treatment is simple: restore the supply of vitamins A and D and keep the bird tidy.

The same vitamins, if they are insufficient in the diet, can cause cloacitis - inflammation of the mucous membrane of the cloaca. Increase the amount of vitamins, and lubricate the cloaca first with iodine, and on top of the iodine with zinc ointment. In advanced cases, penicillin ointment will be needed.

Worms that ducks can become infected with in water bodies cause polymorphosis in them - a dangerous disease that kills birds at any age. Symptoms:

• poor appetite;
• vomit;
• emaciation;
• diarrhea.

When opened, worms are visible in the intestines, attached to the walls.

Treatment is the same copper sulfate, given in a concentration of 0.1%. The doctor may prescribe bithionol, dichlorophen, filixan and other drugs. The poultry house will also need to be disinfected.

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