How to Build a Domestic Duck House

Learn how to build a domestic duck house.

Your pet ducks need a home, too. Whether they wandered onto your property on their own, or you brought them home to be your pets, they need a warm, safe place to live. You can build a domestic duck house to shelter your ducks from the weather and keep them safe from other animals. Ducks don't usually fly, so the home you build them will be their permanent nesting spot.

Things You'll Need

• Measuring tape
• Saw
• Wooden boards
• Screwdriver
• Screws
• Plastic composite sheeting
• Strips of wood
• Electric drill

Instructions

1. Cut five wooden boards, each measuring one 1-inch by 12-inch, by 3-feet long. Four of these boards will be used to assemble the floor and three will be the walls of your duck house.

2. Ask a friend to hold one of the walls that you cut in Step 1, upright and perpendicular to the ground. Lay another one of the walls on top of the first wall to serve as the floor of the duck house. Insert screws through the bottom piece and into the first wall to connect them. Insert the screws about four inches apart. Repeat this procedure to attach the other two walls to the bottom piece.

3. Cut another wooden board measuring 1-inch by 12-inch, by 2 feet long. Attach this to the bottom piece to make the fourth wall of the duck house. This will be the front wall, with a 1-foot open space as the front door for the ducks to come in and out.

4. Lay one piece of plastic composite sheeting on the top of the floorboard of the duck house. Attach the sheeting with screws.

5. Ask one or two friends to help you flip the floor and wall assembly over, so the floor board and plastic sheeting are now at the bottom. Place 2-inch by 2-inch strips of wood on the three corners to stabilize them. Attach them to the outside of the house with galvanized screws.

6. Lay the remaining 1-inch by 12-inch, by 3-foot long board on top of the duck house to make a ceiling, and attach it with screws. Lay the other piece of plastic composite sheeting on top, for the roof. Insert screws to attach the sheeting onto the top of the duck house.

Tips & Warnings

• Don't make the front door too wide, or the ducks will not feel secure enough to nest in your duck house.

References

• Poultry Keeper: A Cheap Chicken or Duck House
• Lame Duck Rescue: Basic Care and Feeding