Duck food
Ducks need a diet built around proper waterfowl or poultry pellets rather than bread, which fills them up without giving them the nutrition they need and can cause serious problems in local duck populations when fed in large quantities at ponds. Pet and garden-kept ducks have slightly different needs depending on their age and whether they are laying.
Why bread is a genuine problem, not just a myth
Bread is low in the nutrients ducks need and high in the kind of bulk that fills them up without feeding them properly, which is why conservation groups have spent years discouraging it at ponds and lakes. Uneaten bread also rots in the water, encouraging algae and attracting rats, which affects the whole pond rather than just the ducks eating it.
An occasional small piece is unlikely to harm a single duck, but as a regular feed it displaces the proper diet a duck needs and is worth replacing with something more appropriate.
What pellets and grain actually provide
Purpose-made waterfowl or poultry pellets are formulated with the protein, vitamins and minerals ducks need, and are a far better everyday feed than bread, cereal or table scraps. Layer pellets are appropriate for adult ducks laying eggs, while growers' pellets suit younger, non-laying birds — using the wrong one is a common mistake for anyone new to keeping ducks.
Mixed corn and grain can be offered as a treat or scattered feed alongside pellets, but works best as a supplement to a proper diet rather than the main feed itself.
Grit belongs alongside the food, not instead of it
Ducks, like other poultry, need access to grit to grind food in their gizzard since they have no teeth. Without it, even a good-quality pellet diet is not digested properly, so grit is worth keeping available at all times rather than treating it as optional.
Offer grit in its own shallow, separate container rather than mixing it into the pellets, so ducks can take as much or as little as they need. Ducklings do not need grit until they move onto solid food alongside their starter crumb, and adult ducks kept on natural ground with access to grit-sized stones may pick some up themselves, though a supplementary supply is still worth having for birds on a hard-standing run with nothing to forage from. Wild ducks on a pond generally source their own grit from the surrounding shoreline, which is one more reason garden feeding should stay occasional rather than becoming their main food source.
What we stock
Everything below is in stock with us, priced with delivery worked out, and packed and posted by hand in the UK.
Supa Poultry Mixed Grit
A mixed flint and oystershell grit for chickens, combining grinding grit with a calcium source
From£4.75
Johnson's Poultry Corn 'N' Grit Treat
A 270g corn and grit treat for poultry keepers, sold to help digestion
£3.85
Johnson's Poultry Housing Spray
An HSE-approved 250ml aerosol to kill mites, lice and fleas in poultry housing
£6.25
Johnson's Poultry Apple Cider Vinegar Conditioner
Apple cider vinegar water conditioner for chickens, ducks, geese and other poultry
£6.99
Johnson's Poultry Tonic
A 500ml multi-vitamin conditioning tonic for chickens and other poultry
£11.99
Johnson's Poultry Mite & Lice Powder
A 250g diatomaceous earth powder to keep bird housing dry and discourage red mite
£6.79
Supa Anti Perch Chick Trough Feeder
A 30cm trough feeder for young birds with an anti-perch bar to stop fouling
£7.99
Supa Poultry & Bird Feeder
Gravity-fed 6kg feeder for poultry and game birds, stands on the ground or hangs
£14.99
Supa Poultry & Bird Drinker
A 6 litre gravity drinker for poultry, with a dome top birds cannot perch on
£9.99
Supa Poultry Aviary Bird Feeder
Supa gravity-fed poultry and aviary bird feeders in two capacity options
From£5.99
Supa Poultry & Avian Bird Drinker
Supa red and white 3-litre gravity bird drinker for ground or hanging use, made in the UK
£6.99
Mr Johnson's Poultry Grit
A 1kg bag of insoluble grit to help hens grind food down for better digestion
£2.06
Common questions
- Is it OK to feed ducks bread at all?
- An occasional small amount is unlikely to cause immediate harm to one duck, but as a regular feed it is low in nutrition, fills ducks up in place of a proper diet, and rotting leftover bread damages the pond environment. Waterfowl pellets or grain are a much better everyday choice.
- What should I feed pet ducks instead of bread?
- A proper waterfowl or poultry pellet suited to their age — layer pellets for adult laying ducks, growers' pellets for younger birds — should make up the bulk of their diet, with mixed corn or grain offered as an occasional extra rather than the main feed.
- Do ducks need grit?
- Yes — ducks have no teeth and rely on grit in their gizzard to grind up food, so it should be available alongside their regular feed at all times. Without grit, even a well-formulated pellet diet is not digested properly.
- Can I feed the same pellets to ducklings and adult ducks?
- Not ideally — ducklings and growing ducks generally need a grower-formulated feed rather than adult layer pellets, which are higher in calcium suited to egg-laying adults. Check the pellet is labelled for the right life stage before feeding it.
Related
Written by Matt Garnett, who runs Giddy Pets and is a lifelong pet owner — not a vet. This is general information, not veterinary advice, and it cannot replace an examination by the vet who knows your animal. How we write these guides.