Summertime duck treats are a good way to bond with our webbed-footed friends while providing them with entertainment and a delicious snack. However, treats aren’t just for fun; some duck treats will help your flock stay cool and hydrated during the dog days of summer. Here are 7 healthy and cooling options.
Why Summertime Duck Treats are Needed
Duck treats should be a part of your flock’s summertime diet as they help to keep ducks hydrated and cool, while providing a nutrient-packed snack during times when feed consumption is down.
During summer, when temperatures and humidity rise, ducks do not consume as much feed in attempts to stay cool. While this isn’t bad for short periods of time, a reduction in feed consumption can take a toll on ducks and cause health concerns, including reproductive issues, poor nutrition, and even death.
Feeding treats to your ducks can help keep them hydrated, provide extra nutrients, and help encourage your flock to eat. This is especially important for older flock members as the summer heat can cause even more stress on aging ducks.
While summertime treats are important, be sure to supplement no more than ten percent of your flock’s diet with treats to avoid an improper nutritional balance.
1. Watermelon: The Ultimate Hydrating Duck Treat
A member of the squash family, watermelon is one of the best duck treats to feed your flock during the dog days of summer. Watermelon is one of the most popular fruit choices for ducks, as it’s hard to find a duck that doesn’t enjoy the taste of this sweet fruit.
Consisting of ninety-two percent water, watermelon helps keep ducks hydrated even during extreme heat. The extra hydration in the watermelon helps to cool off the duck’s body temperature and also works to keep the digestive tract from overworking, to prevent their bodies from overheating.
Watermelon also contains vitamins A, B6, and C, as well as potassium. These essential vitamins and minerals help improve digestive health, reduce the risk of eye problems, and help keep a duck’s immune and digestive systems running smoothly.
2. Zucchini: Cool, Crunchy & Packed with Electrolytes
Zucchini is another popular squash for summertime duck treats. This popular vegetable contains 94% water, helping your flock stay cool and hydrated.
This mild-tasting squash is high in essential minerals, including manganese, magnesium, phosphorus and potassium. Zucchini is an excellent choice when choosing summertime duck treats, as it is one of the vegetables ducks can safely consume that contains electrolytes.
Zucchini can be fed by cutting the rinds down the middle lengthwise and allowing ducks to eat out the tender fruit inside the shell, or grated and placed into a fresh, clean bucket of cold water overnight for ducks to snack on. Dump and rinse the bucket thoroughly in the morning, before refilling with fresh water.
3. Peas: A Protein-Packed, Splashy Snack
Peas are an excellent choice for duck treats year-round, but they can be even more beneficial during the warmer months. Ducks love the taste of peas and will happily go bobbing for them in a bucket of water or even a kiddie pool.
Bobbing for peas not only offers ducks a nutrient-packed treat, it also helps to keep ducks cool as they dip their heads and necks into the water, and also encourages them to drink more.
Peas are an excellent source of protein and essential vitamins, including B1, B2, B3, B6, B9, and C, and are considered one of the healthiest treat options for backyard ducks.
4. Garden Greens: Fresh, Leafy, and Loaded with Nutrients
Garden greens are an excellent choice of duck treats during the summer months as they contain large amounts of water and are highly nutritious, too.
Whenever possible, pick greens from your own garden, as they are best if freshly picked and fed promptly to your flock. Ducks love all kinds of garden greens, but they are especially fond of home-grown lettuce.
Lettuce contains high amounts of vitamin A to protect against vision loss and promote healthy vision, as well as vitamin C, iron, and calcium.
Other garden greens to consider include arugula, dandelion greens, and kale. Never feed spinach to laying ducks, as spinach can prevent proper calcium absorption, causing egg binding, oviduct prolapse, or poor egg shell quality.
5. Grapes: Sweet, Juicy, and Full of Antioxidants
When choosing duck treats with high water content, grapes are an excellent choice. Grapes contain just over eighty percent water, and are an excellent choice during the late summer months when they are readily available.
Ducks love grapes and will happily consume a lot if given the opportunity, so moderation is key when feeding this late-summer fruit.
Helping to improve heart health, immune function, and eye health, grapes also contain antioxidants that help keep the body free of radicals.
6. Blueberries: Bite-Sized Superfoods for Ducks
Blueberries are not only a nutritious summertime fruit, but they are also fun duck treats for your flock. Roll some blueberries across the barn or coop floor and watch your ducks run after them for a tasty snack.
Blueberries are high in antioxidants and phytochemicals that aid in gut health and reduce inflammation. These superpower berries are also believed to have cancer-fighting properties.
While blueberries do not contain as high a water content as some of the other duck treats featured, ducks seem to enjoy their refreshing taste on a hot summer day.
For even more summer relief, place blueberries into an ice cube tray, fill the tray with water, and place in freezer overnight to freeze. Serve the next day in a bucket of fresh water and let your ducks enjoy bobbing for blueberries.
7. Bugs & Larvae: High-Protein Treats Ducks Love
Bugs are a nutritious summertime snack. Ducks love all sorts of bugs, but it can be difficult to know which species are safe and which ones should be avoided.
Allowing your flock to have some supervised free-ranging time in the garden will allow them to collect their own duck treats as they work to remove unwanted pests. Ducks naturally know what bugs are safe to consume, so there is no need to worry about them consuming a harmful bug while in the garden.
If supervised free-ranging isn’t possible, handpicking Japanese beetles from vegetation that has not been treated with pesticides, herbicides, or other harmful toxins is a great way to add some extra protein to your flock’s diet and reduce plant damage.
Feed Japanese beetles live or by placing beetles in a freezer-safe bag overnight for a delicious frozen snack in the morning.
Substituting dried black soldier fly larvae for garden bugs is another good high-protein treat option.
Ducks need protein in their diet to beat the heat, so adding some protein-rich duck treats, such as bug,s to their diet is crucial to keep them going strong, especially when feed intake is down.
Summertime Duck Treats: Final Thoughts
Combined with access to fresh water and a shady run, these water-packed and nutrient-rich summertime duck treats will help your flock stay cool and hydrated during the hot summer months.
This article about duck treats was written for Hobby Farms and Chickens magazines. Click here to subscribe.
