Backyard Farm Dreams : Ducks, Chicks and the Unexpected

This blog post has been in the works for a while. Exactly one year ago, I found myself dreaming about getting ducks. It was the middle of winter, and like clockwork, I was deep in the winter blues, prepping for seed starting, and imagining all the ways I could make summer even better.

I spent months researching ducks—reading books, watching videos, and digging into every resource I could find. Eventually, I found a reputable company I wanted to order from, and after a lot of deep consideration, I decided on Black Runner Ducks. My reasons were solid:

• They’re excellent for pest control in the garden.

• They’re small, which means small poop (important).

• They’re relatively quiet.

• They can’t fly.

• They lay consistent eggs.

• And honestly? They’re just really fun to watch.

Once I made up my mind, the real work began. I started stalking Facebook Marketplace and eventually found an old doghouse for free, perfect for transforming into a little duck coop. But, of course, that was just the beginning. Brandon had to drive after work to pick it up, then take it apart, rebuild it, power wash, stain, and paint it—a full-on renovation project for a couple of ducks I didn’t even have yet and Brandon definitely didn't agree to. But, when I set my sights on something, I map out every detail to make it happen—manifestation at its finest.

My real roadblock, tho? Brandon.

His initial response was an immediate and resounding NO—which was funny, considering how much he loves our chickens. But ducks are different, he said. They’re messy, need constant access to clean water, and, well… they poop a LOT. We had been working on our backyard for the past few summers, slowly removing trees, growing grass, and creating little seating areas we actually enjoyed. To him, adding ducks felt like a step backward.

So, he resisted. For months.

But I was patient.

Then came our annual beach trip in June. Sitting together on that first weekend of summer, soaking up the sun, I asked him—so sweetly—if he would reconsider.

And if I know anything about Brandon, it’s that he usually gives in to me.. and he did.

Of course, I made sure he was really confident in his decision before I took action. But the very next day, I didn’t just order two ducks—I also ordered six chicks. Because, why not?

Well… technically, I had to.

The website had a minimum order of 10 birds, and since I only wanted two ducks, I had to add brown egg layer chicks to reach the requirement. I figured, why not add a few more to the flock? But in a bit of a twist, they ended up only sending six chicks instead of eight—so I guess it was meant to be!

The Ducks Arrive

On June 13th (Brandon’s birthday) the black ducklings and 6 little red chicks arrived, and let me tell you: no book could have prepared me for the amount of work ducklings are.

They were adorable, messy, sweet, and—did I mention messy? They needed water at all times, so we started them off with a little paint tray setup that worked great… for a while. But they grow FAST.

Ducks need to submerge their bills completely right after they eat, so as they grew, their water setup had to grow with them. I ended up making a makeshift waterer out of a gallon jug, which worked surprisingly well—until it didn’t.

Then, on July 6th, we walked into Tractor Supply to buy a larger water dispenser… and walked out with four more ducks.

Because apparently, “end-of-the-season dollar ducks” are impossible to resist.

I honestly couldn’t believe myself. I had spent months preparing for two ducklings—and suddenly, I had six.

I didn’t even know what kind of ducks they were.

Truly, the cuteness dopamine had taken over my entire body.

I rushed home, jumped into a Facebook duck owner group, and posted pictures, begging for help identifying my mystery ducks. The verdict? Pekin Ducks.

Cue me immediately Googling “Pekin Ducks” and realizing… OMG. These are HUGE ducks.

Not just big—these are birds typically raised for meat.

What was I thinking?!

The Reality of Raising Ducks

Keeping a brooder clean with six ducks was a whole different level of chaos. Compared to my original plan of two, this was a LOT more work.

Since growing chicks need to stay dry, I ended up separating them into their own brooder because the ducks’ ever-growing water mess just wasn’t suitable. For what felt like forever (a few weeks, but let’s be real—it felt longer), I was changing the bedding one to three times a day to keep our entire basement from smelling like a barn, but it still did.

We kept them in our laundry room downstairs. Each day, I fenced off an area outside and let them soak up the sunshine (summer-off-teacher perks!). I also watched a few kids over the summer, and they loved feeding the ducks—it was the highlight of their day!

But they always needed supervision because I constantly worried about hawks. If it rained, the ducks stayed inside all day, adding to the ever-growing mess.

After five weeks, they were finally ready to move outside permanently.

I wanted to integrate them slowly with the chickens, so I set up a dog crate next to the chicken run for a few weeks before allowing them to fully free range together.

Rehoming Some Ducks (Because WOW, the Poop)

At the end of July, my friend Morgan came to visit from out of town. She had always wanted ducks, and I was actively debating if my backyard could handle the sheer amount of duck poop that came with raising six full-sized ducks.

After a long discussion, we decided the timing was perfect—she would take three of the four Pekins home with her. She has a huge backyard and convinced her fiancé it was a solid idea. (Spoiler alert: He resisted at first, but eventually built them a beautiful duck coop. Oh, silly men.)

Nugget Becomes a Momma Hen

This same summer (2024), our little Bantam hen, Nugget, decided she was ready for motherhood. She went broody, and we were so excited that we got hatching eggs from my mom. I’ve always grown up with chickens, and my mom currently has a flock of about 20—including roosters—so she was more than happy to share. We placed the eggs under Nugget, and 21 days later, just four days after our Metzer Farm delivery, we had four tiny baby chicks! Thankfully Nugget did all the work and took good care of those babies.

They grew up into three healthy hens and one rooster. Unfortunately, once he started crowing, we had to rehome him to House of Wiggle Goats Farm Rescue, where he could live his best rooster life. But Nugget? She proved to be the best little momma, and it was such a sweet experience watching her raise her chicks.

A Heartbreaking Loss

Unfortunately, a few nights after I started having the little red chicks from Metzer Farms sleep outside in a dog crate, we had an attack, and three of the chicks were gone.

It was heartbreaking.

The ducks had grown up with these chicks, and they were all incredibly bonded. Plus, these were the sweetest, friendliest chickens because they had been carried around all summer by kids at “Niki’s Summer Camp.”

We also lost one of our older hens due to illness that same summer.

Now, our flock stands at 11 chickens, two Runner Ducks (Taco & Olive), and one Pekin Duck (Dandelion—aka “Dandy”).

I absolutely love our Runners—they’re shy, silly, and quiet. Dandy, on the other hand? Big, loud, and friendly. The perfect flock… for now.

What’s Next?

This spring, I’m hoping to incubate Runner Duck eggs in my classroom (and, of course, find good homes for them). I’d also love to order a few hatching eggs to expand the variety of chicken breeds in our flock. If our Bantam hen gets broody, she would make the best momma.

Do you have chickens or ducks? What are your favorite breeds and why? I’d love to hear about your flock!