Should I put a heater in my duck house?

[jennasips]

I recently purchased an insulated dog house for my one male Pekin duck and I’m worried that it isn’t keeping him warm enough. The dog house is from the company Dog Palace and they offer an extra feature of a heater that would be safe for my use. I worry about not leaving him water at night but even leaving the little bit of water I do he makes it all wet and cold in there. I recently lost his buddy and the cause of his death was unknown so I’m just really worried about protecting my precious Quackers and making him comfortable for his first New England winter. Should I get the heater feature or just add a fan to help with the ventilation and moisture? Also, if anyone has any small battery operated fans that have worked for them let me know. I was thinking of getting a clip on one that I could somehow secure at the top of the inside of the dog house.

 

[Alaskan]

What are your normal coldest sustained temps? Not windchill.

He does not need water at night.

He does need water when he eats.

Also, it is a difficult thing to figure out.... but once temps are staying under about 10F, you do not want him bathing or splashing water. But.... being a duck.... he still needs to dunk his head. This means you need to find a deep but narrow pot that you then probably have to wedge someplace so he doesn't knock it over.


Once the water, and feed, are only in his pen, his house might be perfectly fine for him. I like bedding with wood shavings since they are soft, fluffy, and the duck can snuggle down into them.

A wind break in the run where the feed and water are will be very welcome.

As long as your temps are above -30F, I do not think he needs heat.

He does need his dog house dry.

If there is zero ventilation in the dog house, make sure you keep the door open at all times, which means that his pen must be secure from predators.

 

[jennasips]

The winter temperatures range from 34 degrees down to 10 degrees. The dog house does have two small windows for ventilation which I forgot to mention. I leave the one on the backside of his house cracked open all the way and the front one gets covered because it is on the door. The windows are two small triangles I was thinking of attaching a clip on fan to ventilate the house.

 

[Alaskan]

The winter temperatures range from 34 degrees down to 10 degrees. The dog house does have two small windows for ventilation which I forgot to mention. I leave the one on the backside of his house cracked open all the way and the front one gets covered because it is on the door. The windows are two small triangles I was thinking of attaching a clip on fan to ventilate the house.

I would have to see photos.

In my mind a dog house isn't that big... so I can't picture how a fan could be put in there without causing some blowing on the duck.

Also, when at all possible I like to avoid electric. (Fire risk and expense)

If you can get enough ventilation in the dog house, and predator proof the run, put some wind blocks in the run... that would be ideal.

 

[teresavigil]

I recently purchased an insulated dog house for my one male Pekin duck and I’m worried that it isn’t keeping him warm enough. The dog house is from the company Dog Palace and they offer an extra feature of a heater that would be safe for my use. I worry about not leaving him water at night but even leaving the little bit of water I do he makes it all wet and cold in there. I recently lost his buddy and the cause of his death was unknown so I’m just really worried about protecting my precious Quackers and making him comfortable for his first New England winter. Should I get the heater feature or just add a fan to help with the ventilation and moisture? Also, if anyone has any small battery operated fans that have worked for them let me know. I was thinking of getting a clip on one that I could somehow secure at the top of the inside of the dog house.

I’m thinking about getting this, do you have any thoughts on it?