Uninhibited Ducks - Duck and Duckling Rescue

Givealittle update

I have added some photos of receipts to show typical expenses.

Every week I buy the following in food:

Pellets 25 kg min $32 per 25kg bag

Wheat 10-20 kg ($11.50 per 10kg)

Frozen vegies 9-10 1kg bags a week $2.20-2.50 per 1kg bag of either mixed veg or frozen peas.... Maybe I could forgo this expense, but its the highlight of the ducks day, they LOVE their nighttime plate of warm vegies in water, so much so, they will start making a racket if its late in being served!

Cat food 2-3 kg a week. This is necessary for the young ducklings, as they need over 20%protein in the first two weeks of life. Pellets are only 15-16%. Cat food (dry) is about 30 % so I mix it with pellets.

Have started supplementing with apple cider vinegar in their water, for general good health, and immunity plus aids worm prevention. Ive been though most of a bottle in 3-4 days, so a bottle of this a week at around $5 for the cheapest one

Bird seed mixes. I usually spend a few dollars a week on bird seed mixes, and add a small amount to their wheat each day to give it a bit of variety.

Oyster shell grit. I supplement this for the laying ducks. When buying grower pellets as I am currently they need a fair bit each day to provide the calcium needed.

Every few weeks, the following need to be brought:

Niacin supplement $20 a bottle of 100 tablets. I go through about 8-12 tabs a day in their water.

Recently started using diatomaceous earth. This is $22 for a 500gm bag. It is added to the feed at 2% of feed. Actually to add it at this rate all the time would mean Id need a bag a week. At the moment adding it occasionally, and using in houses, to prevent or kill off parasites like mites. Diatomaceous earth is a natural supplement which kills mites and other parasite insects, and prevents worms, without having to dose birds with chemicals.

Bedding

In the past I was purchasing bedding and run materials:

Wood shavings $15 for 3& half sacks

Straw $7 for one large bag

I am currently using pine needles in runs and houses, and need to collect at least two large sacks a day.

If I were using wood shavings, I would be using more as they cant be hosed down like pine needles can. Id be using probably 2-3 bags of shavings, maybe more, and at least a bag of straw a day.

The costs of this on a weekly basis are prohibitive. Which is why I am using pine needles. However collecting them is time consuming. And I already have no time.

If anyone out there has any hay, straw, wood chips (untreated wood) or would like to donate their time to collect some pine needles please get in touch asap.

Lights:

The ducklings have to have heating in their housing. At the moment they have their lights on day and night, so if any get cold or wet in the day they can go in to warm up

I use workshop lights which I get from the warehouse for $10 each. A better option would be proper ceramic heat lamps, however these are outside my budget at the moment.

I put fluroscent floodline light bulbs in these and they put out a reasonable amount of heat. The downside is they also put out light which means the ducklings are exposed to light basically 24/7, as it is too cold during the night to turn the lights off. If anyone wanted to donate specifically so I could purchase ceramic heat lamps (which put out heat not light, I can find out the cost of installing these (my understanding is I also need a special light fitting as standard light fittings cant cope with the ceramic bulbs.

At the moment I have 3 of these warehouse lights, and always keep a supply of spare bulbs, as it would be unthinkable to have one blow in the middle of a frosty night and not have another. It would also be good to have spare lamps in case one of those crapped out unexpectedly. At the moment all 3 are being used by groups of ducklings, so if one of them stopped working I would be forced to buy another immediately.

Vet Bills:

I still have a bet bill to pay for Thumbelina, who was badly injured at 2 days of age, when she got outside her cage, then managed to get stuck in between the outer wire netting and the inner chicken wire. Her mother tried to pull her back inside but because of the chicken netting there was no way she would fit back through, and the mother kept pulling at her and tore all the skin off around almost the entire circumference of her neck, exposing muscle and tendons etc. The vet gave her a 50:50 chance at best. Thumbelina beat those odds and is now a healthy happy 'teenage' duck with virtually no physical signs she suffered such a horrible injury.

The vet bill is shown. Though I have questioned the consultation fee as they said that was free for rescued wildlife. So the actual amount let to pay may be that much less.

Lettuce

I am fortunate to have all the lettuce and watercress my ducks eat donated by Karen Orpwood from Moonshine Farm who gives me all the lettuce and watercress 'seconds' for free. Id never be able to afford to give the ducks fresh lettuce every day otherwise (and that would mean duck mutiny)

If you want some nice fresh hydroponic lettuce (the nice crispy flash looking lettuce you get in your meal at a restaurant and only $2 which is a great price mid winter!) stop by 455 Loburn Whiterock Road and you can buy some from their roadside shop. If you see any on the shelves, snap up her home made plum jam too which is delish!

Another way to support my ducks, by supporting someone who supports us :-)

On my next update I was thinking of posting a wish list, in case anyone has stuff on it...

There are lots of things I would like to be able to provide for my ducks, but they all cost money. And between the cost of food and supplements, and the time spent caring for the ducks (which is making it very difficult to get much money-earning work done) they are out of my reach

If anyone can donate food, bedding, or simply time, please contact me via the facebook page (www.facebook.com/uninhibitedducks) to arrange.

Food is a huge ongoing cost on my budget, and at the moment I am paying for it all myself.so any help there would be appreciated. Its getting rather costly at the moment as I have 17 ducklings who are fledging and eating a lot. Plus 12 juvenille ducks (and their mum, and her boyfriend!) who still expect dinner every night! Thats the rescued ducks. There is also my 12 domestic ducks. But its not really them that this plea for help is about...