Studies of the Character and
Treatment of Wastes from Duck Farms
WALLACE   W.   SANDERSON
Associate Sanitary Chemist
Division of Laboratories and Research
New York State Department of Health
Albany, New York
Approximately eight million ducks per year, equal to 60 percent
of the commercial duck production of the United States, are grown
on 68 farms in Suffolk County at the eastern end of Long Island. These
farms have a total assessed valuation of about $2,500,000 and the
value of the ducks produced is about $20,000,000.
The growing of ducks must be considered an art and not a science.
Each farmer has a different idea of the methods to be used, but certain
general principles prevail. The duck grown is the White Pekin variety
and the feathers constitute an appreciable proportion of the profits. The
farmers claim the ducks must have access to water to produce satisfactory feathers. However, the length of time the ducks are on water
varies at individual farms from the final five weeks of growth to two
weeks. Various prepared feeds are used, and normally a duck is ready
for slaughter eight weeks after hatching. The growing season extends
from the middle of March to the middle of September, reaching a
peak in June and July, although a breeding flock is kept throughout
the year.
The farms are located on the banks of estuaries and streams. Originally the ducks had access to the open water although confined by
wire fences. This lead to the easy transmission of duck diseases from
upstream farms to lower farms and after a disastrous epizootic, most,
although not all, of the farms were separated from the open water
by bulkheads. This left a run at the lowest elevation of the pens ranging from 20 to 30 feet in width and about 5 inches deep. The shallow
depth has the advantage that the ducks can not swim and thus lose
weight by exercise. A continuous flow of water through the duck runs
is obtained either by pumping from wells or by digging the runs below
groundwater level and depending on infiltration for the supply. In
either case the effluent is discharged to the natural waterways. On
most farms all surface water drainage from the duck pens, and in some
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