Page 6 - Demo

To maintain ducks’ physical and behavioural health, open water access is important. Photo: Kai Dahms
Preening is preceded by
Water sources that only provide partial head-only immersion or no immer- sion, such as drinkers or shallow troughs, com- promise ducks’ ability to perform the full range of bathing behaviours.
In addition to these open water sources, ducks should be provided drink- ers separately.
These risks can be min- imised with good man- agement practices and facility design such as having open water sourc- es separate from litter areas, appropriate drain- age, as well as regular cleaning and changing of water sources.
Open water access important for farmed ducks’ welfare
DUCKS are waterfowl and therefore adapted to spend a large extent of their life in the water.
immersive bathing behav- iours and then followed by the shaking of water all over the body and dis- tribution of oil from a special gland through the feathers.
Therefore, the ability for ducks to perform these water-related behaviours is critical in ensuring their health and welfare. Type of water access ducks need
drinking and dabbling, and use baths for bathing. When observing bath- ing and swimming be- haviours, ducks appear to spend the majority of their time in the wa- ter performing bathing behaviours rather than
Challenges associated with providing ducks water access
When ducks are provid- ed access to water they use it to perform a vari- ety of highly motivated water-related bathing be- haviours such as sieving, dabbling, preening and head dipping.
Ducks provided open water, particularly sourc- es that provide full-body coverage, have improved eye and nostril cleanli- ness, and foot and plum- age condition.
Currently there are sev- eral ways in which water can be provided to ducks on farm, including nipple drinkers, bell drinkers, narrow or wide troughs, showers, pools and baths.
The provision of open water sources for farmed ducks can pose challeng- es for litter or bedding management and a risk of water contamination.
A water-related behav- iour such as preening is important to maintain feather condition for cleanliness, water-proof- ing and thermoregulation – maintaining normal body temperature, and for footpad health and re- moving parasites.
Open water also plays an important role in ther- moregulation for ducks, meaning where ducks do not have access to open water, they are at an in- creased risk of heat stress, especially in hotter cli- mates.
Ducks show a prefer- ence for water sources that allow full-body im- mersion.
using shallower water of 10-30cm deep for these bathing behaviours, the most important factor being that birds can ad- equately immerse their heads for preening.
Water contamination from litter, feed or faecal matter may also increase the risk of infectious dis- eases in duck flocks.
When not provided water access other than drinking water, ducks are unable to perform essential water-related activities and behaviours.
They have been shown to prefer showers for
With head-only immer- sion, birds are limited by the amount of water they are able to toss over their body for preening, and they are unable to perform full-body behav- iours such as swimming.
Ducks prefer drinking clean water from showers, troughs or baths where they can scoop and shovel water into their bills, in comparison to bell or nip- ple drinkers.
Water sources that pro- vide the opportunity for full-body immersion such as deep troughs, showers, pools or baths, promote bird activity and effective preening behaviours.
When not provided water access other than drinking water, they are unable to perform es- sential water-related ac- tivities, which can lead to frustration.
Different water sources should be provided such as a mixture of show- ers, troughs and baths, so they may have the op- portunity to perform all their motivated behav- iours in their preferred sources.
Ducks appear to use dif- ferent water sources and water depths to perform different water-related be- haviours.
Birds experiencing frus- tration are at an increased risk of developing abnor- mal behaviours such as head shaking, stereotypic repetitive feather preening and self-mutilation through feather pecking indicating compromised welfare.
swimming.
Ducks seem to prefer
Poor litter management from spoiled or moist litter – especially when relative humidity is in- creased – can increase the risk of ducks devel- oping footpad problems and disease.
Animal welfare issues when farmed ducks are not given water access
Ducks have an innate need to perform these highly motivated bath- ing activities and should have open-water access to ensure their health and welfare.
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Page 6 – National Poultry Newspaper, May 2022
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