How old should ducks be to...?

Question

How old should my ducks be to put them on a pond with catfish we have heard that they will drown them 4 no reason we also have cats what kind of shelter should we build to protect them from both the cats and the catfish!

Answer 1

Ducks should not be allowed to swim too much in a pond until they are about 10  weeks old or so and have grown the protective down on their bodies.  If they are younger than this, they can get a chill when they spend too much time in the water. The down they have before this time is just "baby fuzz" and is not the water repelling down they need for protection.  Letting them swim some each day right now is okay, but limit the amount of time in the water til they are older. Build them a "duck house" somewhere near the water.  It should not be right on the bank of the pond, but near it. How big it should be depends on how many ducks you have.  It should have good ventilation.  If you are worried about the cats, putting a fence around it would help some, but it's hard to keep cats out because they can jump the fence...