Features of keeping Indo-girls in winter: care rules
Indoor women, whose homeland is South America, are far from exotic in our country. Calm disposition, unpretentiousness, moderate feed intake along with excellent meat qualities have made this bird very popular. Keeping duck ducks can be difficult only in winter.
Peculiarities
Indo-duck is a domesticated species of wild tree duck. She is endowed with excellent immunity, so she practically does not get sick.
The variegated plumage of black, white, and fawn flowers has good downs, which allows ducks to endure the winter period well. The presence of a large reservoir is not necessary for them, a small trough will be enough.
Breeding them at home is not accompanied by the noise typical of ducks. They react to stimuli with a low hiss. Females are excellent brooders. They are used for incubating ducklings of other breeds, chickens and turkey poults.
The meat has an excellent taste without the characteristic smell of waterfowl. The southern origin of this species is reflected in the low ability to accumulate subcutaneous fat, which gives the meat a special dietary value. The weak point of Indo-Ducks is their paws, not protected by feathers and fatty layers, with an extensive network of blood vessels. Dampness and low temperatures lead to frostbite of the paws. In severe winters, if certain rules are not followed, the bird will die.
Video "Indoor Features"
From the video you will learn about the features and characteristics of the Indoor.
Insulated room
Keeping duck ducks in winter is impossible without a warm barn. The walls must be insulated to retain heat and eliminate drafts. The floor is raised above ground level by 15-20 cm. The plank floor is much warmer than the cement one, but short-lived. A piece of old linoleum laid on top can protect it from rotting. The concrete floor is very cold, so a thicker layer of bedding will be required.
Indo-women like to sit on a platform for which you can use pieces of logs or old boxes. In autumn, the cleaned floor of the poultry house is sprinkled with fluffy lime and covered with a 5 cm layer of straw, shavings or sawdust. As it gets dirty, a new layer is poured on top.
In winter, the premises are not cleaned; in the process of litter decomposition, heat is generated, which naturally heats the house. This is accompanied by an unpleasant smell, so it is necessary to take care of the arrangement of ventilation in advance. In severe frosts, additional heating will be needed, for this they lay out a stove in the room, install a stove or hang special heating lamps. For the bird to go outside, it is necessary to make a hole, 40x40 cm in size at a height of 20-30 cm from the floor.
For the convenience of short-legged pets, an inclined ladder is brought to it from both sides. The hole must be equipped with a door or a heavy curtain.
Winter walking
Full-fledged winter maintenance at home is impossible without the organization of a walking yard. Fresh air and sun rays increase the sexual activity and incubation properties of eggs, improve metabolic processes and resistance to negative climatic factors and various diseases. It is better to place it on the south or southeast side of the building in order to provide more illumination.
The plot can be small, but always protected by a canopy to save the owners from clearing snow. For Indo-girls in winter, a sufficiently high fence is necessary, since they fly well. The floor of the enclosure is covered with sawdust mixed with sand or straw to ensure proper care of the paws during winter walks.
In autumn and winter, the feeders can be taken out into the street, but it is better to keep the drinkers indoors, because the water can not only cool down, but also become covered with ice. The bird is not allowed out into the fresh air only if the temperature has dropped below 10 degrees. The ash bath can also be taken out to the walking yard, the canopy will protect it from getting wet, and the birds will be happy to clean the feathers while walking.
Indo-women use much less water in winter than in the warm season. The bathing trough does not need to be used. And for drinking, special drinkers should be made with a width of no more than 5 centimeters, which will prevent splashing water.
Winter feed
The winter diet, like the care of Indo-girls, is slightly different from the summer one. To make it up correctly, one should take into account the absence of greenery and insects, the increased energy consumption for keeping warm.
Grain is the main source of energy in the diet of Indo-women. Wheat, corn, barley, oats and millet are especially valuable. They are given dry in the morning and evening.
Daily feeding consists of a wet mash. It includes chopped raw vegetables: fodder beets, carrots, pumpkin, cabbage. Potatoes and peelings are fed only boiled. Steamed hay flour also increases the biological value of the diet. Meat, bone and fish meal enriches it with complete, well-digestible protein.
In the summertime, Indo-ducks get it on their own, eating earthworms, insects and all kinds of larvae. Bran, meal and sunflower cake are also introduced there. The mash should be salted at the rate of 1 g per 1 bird per day. Winter feed should contain mineral additives that are added to the mash or poured into separate feeders in the form of broken shells, chalk or crushed eggshells.
Ducks can be fed any food waste, as long as they are not spoiled. Indo-ducks consume almost the same amount of feed in winter as in summer, which is why it will be easy for you to calculate the daily ration of your bird based on the amount available.
Video "Content in winter"
From the video you will learn how to keep wild ducks in the winter.