Keeping Backyard Ducks in Australia

Khaki Campbell, Indian Runner, Pekin, Muscovy, Welsh Harlequin and Call ducks compared for eggs, temperament and noise.

Water without a swamp, predator-proof housing, the right feed, and managing the mud.

• Ducks do not scratch. Unlike chickens, they will not destroy garden beds, so they can free-range a productive yard far more safely.
• They need a friend. Keep at least two; ducks are intensely social and miserable alone.
• Drakes can be loud or amorous. You do not need a drake for eggs. A small all-female group is quietest and most productive.
• Council rules apply, usually the same poultry rules as chickens (no roosters/drakes in some areas, setbacks from boundaries). Check before you buy.

Neither is better, they are different. Ducks lay more reliably through winter, are hardier, gentler and brilliant slug and snail hunters, but they need water to dip their heads and turn the yard muddy. Chickens are tidier and need less water. Many keepers run both.

No pond required, but they must have water deep enough to submerge their whole head and clean their eyes and nostrils, refreshed daily. A tub, trug or kiddie pool is plenty. They will make a mess of it, so site it where drainage is easy.

Good laying breeds like Khaki Campbells and Indian Runners lay 250-300 eggs a year, often more than a chicken, and keep going through winter when hens slow down. Duck eggs are larger and richer, prized for baking.

Female ducks (especially Call ducks) can be loud quackers, which matters on a small block. Males are quiet. If noise is a concern, Muscovies are near-silent, and most quiet-breed drakes make only soft sounds.