DUCKS GEESE “AND GUINEAS. 117 
The ducklings, however, are very greedy, but their 
rapid growth may be considered sufficient justifica- 
tion for their astonishing appetites. No food 
should be given for the first 36 hours, although 
water should be provided and in a dish which the 
_ youngsters cannot climb into. The activity of a 
day-old duckling is surprising to people who are ac- 
customed only to chickens. 
Bread soaked in milk or water and sprinkled with 
coarse sand or chick grit may be fed four times a 
day for three or four days and then a soft mash 
gradually substituted. A good mash is made of 
four parts bran, one part ground oats, one part corn 
meal, two parts of green stuff and one part of 
beef scraps. A little chick grit and charcoal may 
be added. Some breeders put the grit in the water 
dish, as the ducklings will usually pick it out. The 
green stuff may be dandelions, lettuce, clover or 
alfalfa. The mash should be crumbly and not wet. 
It is well not to include the beef scraps until the 
ducklings are a week old and to begin with some- 
what less than one full part. 
When the ducklings are eight weeks old, cracked 
corn and wheat may be fed at night. Whole corn 
may be substituted when they grow old enough to 
