The popularity of keeping pet ducks and other types of wildfowl as pets is skyrocketing right now due to so many people realizing that ducks can be an excellent pet for pest control in a vegetable patch and eat just as many pests as chickens without scratching up the roots of your plants.
As the popularity of keeping ducks skyrockets, we have noticed a correlating spike in the number of questions we see from the community relating to how you should care for ducks too.
We have noticed a wide range of questions being asked but one of the more common ones that we see month in month out is if ducks need water at night or not.
Although there are arguments for both sides with both being correct in certain situations, it can be difficult to find a solid source of what you should be providing your duck with at night as well as any potential negative effects of not giving your ducks drinking water when locked in their coop at night.
With so many people reaching out and asking questions about giving their pet ducks drinking water at night we wanted to publish our own dedicated article on the topic.
Our hope is that we will be able to help as many of our readers as possible who are unsure of what their duck requires at night.
Do Ducks Need Water At Night To Drink?
In most situations, ducks do not require a source of drinking water at night and they will be able to sleep through the night and then drink water when they wake and are let out of their coop.
If you have a sick duck or live in a particularly warm area then we would highly recommend that you do consider leaving some drinking water in your duck’s coop at night though but most ducks will not require it.
If you think that you may not be able to consistently let your ducks out of their coop early in the day so they are able to go and get drinking water then you should probably leave a source of water in the coop at night too.
If you do think that you may not be able to let your ducks out of their coop early each morning then it may be worth looking into getting an automatic coop door that you can set to automatically open for you.
If you do fall into these categories then a cheap poultry drinker is all you need to supply drinking water to your ducks at night.
As we mentioned though, the majority of our readers will be able to go without giving their ducks drinking water at night and not have any problems at all.
Should You Give Your Ducks Food And Water At Night?
If you live in a warm area where dehydration is a risk then you should provide your ducks with water at night.
Some conditions that a sick duck may suffer from may also require you to give your duck water at night too but your veterinarian will be able to offer you specific advice on this when they give you the medication.
One of the counterarguments against giving your ducks water at night is that your ducks will poop and pee more often in their coop and spoil their bedding and increase the clean up required.
As the majority of ducks will only be in their coop for a maximum of eight hours or so, the majority of people will not give their ducks food or water at night to prevent this.
With people leading busier and busier lives we can see why most people do choose this path as it reduces the amount of time required to keep the coop of your ducks clean.
In some situations, ducks who have access to food and water at night may not settle down to sleep quickly too and this can cause potential issues with egg laying but this does tend to be rare.
Can A Lack Of Drinking Water Cause Problems With Ducks?
A lack of drinking water will cause problems with ducks over a prolonged period of time just like with any other animal but the majority of healthy adult and juvenile ducks should be able to go through the night without having problems with not having access to drinking water.
A large number of people who do keep ducks do not provide their ducks with water through the night and don’t have any problems.
If you leave your ducks without a source of drinking water for a full day in warmer areas then your ducks may end up having some problems start developing that will get worse into the second day without water.
This is why you should always make sure that there is drinking water available for your ducks as soon as they are out of their coop in the morning with cheap poultry drinker being one of the best options by far.
In colder areas, ducks can usually go for longer periods of time without water and not have issues but we would still recommend that you make sure your ducks have access to water as soon as they leave their coop.
If your ducks have a swimming pool or pond that they are able to swim in then many ducks will simply drink that water source anyway.
Conclusion
That brings our article going over if ducks need water at night or not to an end. We hope that we have been able to help our readers better understand the water requirements of ducks and that the majority of healthy, adult ducks should easily be able to make it through the night without a water source. There are some situations where you should provide your ducks with water at night but most people tend to avoid it due to the additional poop and pee in the coops from the ducks.
