How to make a duck nest

Duck nests are one of the primary attributes of the design of the house. In order for the birds to have a desire to lay their eggs precisely in makeshift nests, and not where they want, it is necessary to make them as comfortable as possible. Of course, it will take some time to train the ducks to nesting.

DIY duck nests

General requirements

Making DIY duck nests is harder than it seems at first glance. pics and try to vos to produce what was seen, but without knowing the basic rules, it will not be possible to make a comfortable nest Requirements for the nest:

• the duck nest must have a roof so that the bird understands that it is not in danger,
• to install the nest, the place should be secluded, so the female is more comfortable, she feels safe;
• in the nest you should definitely make a nest, otherwise the egg will simply roll out of the box and break.

Location Location

Before you begin, you need to decide where to place the socket better. Depending on the location, dimensions will be calculated. To place nests in places of moisture accumulation is strictly prohibited. Also, do not install them immediately near the entrance. The ideal option is the location near the far wall.

Even in the daytime, where the female rushes, the illumination should be muffled. If there are too many window openings in the barn and the room is bright, part of them must be covered. A sharp noise will affect the egg laying of ducks. Where they constantly make noise, the bird does not feel safe.

In order to determine the optimal location of the nests, it is necessary to clearly understand how many ducks are planned to be kept. For each individual, it is better to allocate a separate nest. With a lack of duck nests, you can find yourself another place and begin to lay eggs there. If the ducks start to rush elsewhere, it will be very difficult to train them to the nest.

Nests must be installed so that the owner has free access to them. The box will have to constantly clean and collect eggs, so it is so important to ensure all comfortable conditions. It is important to remember that the bird rushes only in the safest place.

Preparation for the work process

First you need to decide which tool you need and collect all the necessary material . In the private sector, there are probably always wooden boards from which you can construct a cozy nest. However, before building a nest for a hen, it is necessary to draw a diagram on paper and only then grasp a tree.

The dimensions of the nest will depend on the dimensions of the hen. The container should be spacious enough so that the bird can easily turn.Often in the sources you can see the measurements of the box 50 x 40 x 40, but these parameters are too averaged. Sizes are calculated depending on the dimensions of adults and the area of ​​the room. Every centimeter is important. To build a nest you will need:

• 6 slats of wood, each 40 cm long;
• 2 slats 50 cm in size;
• hardware, saw, meter and pencil for marking parts.

The construction process

Roughly speaking, you need to build a regular box. Initially, you need to make lateral piers with a square shape, 40 cm high. Since most ducks are quite heavy and slow, you need to make special manholes for them, along which they will climb into the nests. For this purpose, a square is cut out in the side wall.

To prevent the product from rolling out of the boxes, it is necessary to leave a threshold of 9 cm. The dimensions of the following three parts are 50 x 40. Now you can make a frame of battens. On the frame you need to fix all the pieces of plywood. If the floor in the barn is good, then it is not necessary to make the floor in the nest, otherwise even before assembly it is necessary to cover the bottom of the nest with linoleum or other waterproof material.

Set-up plan

Build a little right nest, it is still necessary to arrange it so that the duck wants to sit inside. The bottom of the product made by hand should be covered with warm material:

• hay;
• with straw.

The flooring should be fairly thick. It is worth considering that the softer the nest, the sooner the duck will rush about in it. Plus a thick litter minimizes the risk of testicular damage. Most ducks try to bury their testicles, because in natural conditions it nests on the ground. If the litter is thin, then the egg will simply burst, being under the pressure of a duck body and a wooden bottom.

The most important

It’s not at all difficult to build a nest for ducks with your own hands. To put a duck in it is the difficulty. There are times when the owners try to plant the ducks in brand new boxes, but they prefer the old basket, so this attribute is simply turned into a container for carrying eggs by laying inside a large layer of straw. The basket is brought into the barn and placed in a secluded place.

Domestic ducks are able to independently choose the location of nesting sites. Sometimes you just need to take a good look at where an individual sits and put a container for it in that corner.

Do not install the nests in a row in the immediate vicinity of each other. This may cause a decrease in egg production.

Each individual masonry should be in a quiet secluded corner. Such an arrangement will bring the bird as close as possible to natural conditions. The side on which the hole was made should look at the wall, not at the entrance, then the duck will feel that no one sees it when it crawls into the box. The first few times you will have to put the birds in the containers yourself.

In no case should you collect the products while all the females are in the barn. Seeing how their testicles are taken, they can stop rushing in the nests and find themselves more secluded corners. Egg collection must be carried out regularly at the same time, after all individuals have gone outside.

How to accustom

In some cases, as soon as a home-made nest is in the house, the ducks understand what it is for and start to climb there themselves, but most often they don’t have no idea how to handle it. In winter cold, females do not rush, however, it is necessary to establish nests in the autumn period. For a long time, the birds will get used to the houses and begin to select a separate one for themselves.

So that the birds quickly understand what the nests are for, a clay egg should be left there. You can accustom an individual to the nest by closing the duck in the room with a box for several days. This method is quite effective.

Space requirements

Domestic ducks are birds that prefer to sit to hatch their eggs all alone where they cannot reach not a single inhabitant of the yard. It is not recommended to keep several females in one nest, even if separated by partitions. The optimal number is one nest per individual.

The musky appearance of ducks does not tolerate an increase in air humidity, moreover, it is a waterfowl. In winter, you should not save on heaters, otherwise you can lose half the herd. In summer, when it is too hot, you should, on the contrary, spray the walls with water. How to make nests and train ducks in them, will tell a video on the relevant topics.

Conclusion

Domestic ducks are quite picky about living conditions. In order to get the maximum number of eggs and not to collect them throughout the whole area, it is necessary to equip the houses with nests. Not always the female wants to lay eggs in the nest. Why is this happening? There are two explanations for this:

• an incorrectly constructed nest;
• the duck rushes elsewhere.

So that the birds want to lay eggs in the nests, it is necessary to make the boxes themselves as comfortable as possible and put them in remote places. However, at the expense of the location, the issue is controversial. It is recommended to see where the duck sits, and put a nest there. Most farmers unanimously insist that the best place is in the corner of the house, but if a certain individual decided to rush near the threshold, then a nest should be put there for it. Also, if the duck liked the basket more, then you need to retrain the item in the nest and put it in the house.

The parameters of the nest will depend on the size of the adult female and the area of ​​the house. The house should be quite spacious. In winter, there should be a thick layer of straw or hay on the floor so that the birds do not freeze their legs. It is also necessary to make the litter as thick as possible in the nest, so that when you try to bury the egg, it is not damaged. It is better to start training the ducks in the nests in advance, back in the fall, by installing the boxes in the house.

Domestic ducks should by no means see the owner take their testicles from the crate, because then they will have to look for another place for laying eggs, so it is necessary to carry out all the manipulations when the herd is on the walk. In addition, you need to make sure that the tree on the box is carefully crafted. It is not recommended to paint, it is better to just use sandpaper. Ducks do not like loud noises, while they incubate, they need to ensure peace.

The box should look like a house with a roof and a door so that the ducks want to hatch eggs in them. A special hole is made on the side of the structure. In the location inside the house, it is necessary to install it so that this hole looks at the wall. This technique will allow the duck to feel privacy.

You can watch and find out all the nuances of duck care and container arrangement, their sizes, in the video.