How to Care for Snowy Mallards
Snowy mallards are a domestic variety of the common mallard duck. With the exception of Muscovy ducks, all domestic ducks are descended from mallards. This breed retains the typical mallard coloration on its head, throat and back with a few mottled white feathers, a white band around its neck, and distinctive white or mottled white bellies. All the standard duck care advice also applies to snowy mallards. Ducks are not difficult to keep as pets or for their eggs, but they are not low-maintenance animals. You need enough space for a sizable outdoor enclosure, a pond or other place for them to swim, and at least 30 minutes free each day to care for them.
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Things You'll Need
- Shelter
- Mesh enclosure
- Pond or child's paddling pool
- Straw or wood shavings
- Pellet mash
- Grain
- Vegetables
- Hard-boiled eggs
- Shovel
Instructions
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Set up your mallards' accommodation. Ducks need a house to roost in, which are available ready-made, a large run, or a predator-proof yard and a place to swim. If you don't have a pond, a child's paddling pool is a good alternative and easy to clean. Use straw or wood shavings in the house as bedding. You can keep ducks free-range, providing your neighbors do not object, but remember to lock up their house each night to keep out predators.
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Feed your ducks twice a day. Experienced duck owners usually develop their own diets, but a basis of pellet mash, available from agricultural and pet stores, supplemented with fresh vegetables, corn or wheat and fresh hard-boiled eggs should provide all they need. They will also find plants and insects to eat when they are out. Overall, your ducks' diet should be approximately 16 percent protein. Ducklings need a little more and should be fed a commercial starter food specifically for them.
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Clean the house, pool and food dishes at least once a week. The used bedding is fine for home-composting and the used water for watering lawns or flowerbeds.
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Tips & Warnings
Snowy mallards can be timid compared to other duck breeds. If you want tame, pet ducks, consider raising them from ducklings. For this you'll need an indoor cage with a heat pad. If one of your ducks raises a clutch of eggs, these ducklings will be fine outside, because they have their mother to provide warmth and care.
Ducks don't do well in cramped accommodation and may start pecking each other's feathers from the stress. Provide as much space as you can; each duck needs at least 10 square feet of outdoor space in addition to the house.
