Can Ducks Eat Melons? Melons 101 – Duck Treat

Melons are the fruity treat that poultry birds like ducks are crazy about. These fruits offer a perfect blend of exquisite taste and exceptional nutrition. A rare combination indeed!

Can ducks eat melons? Of course, ducks can. In fact, they love having melons and can go crazy when you give it to them. But do not consider it a regular diet. Because some melons, like watermelon, might have a toxic substance called erythrosine, which can affect your feathered friends overall. Keep the quantity balanced, and your duck health will be in a steady condition.

This article will elaborate on the compatibility of melons in ducks’ diets. The benefits and risks that melons can provide to ducks, the outstanding nutritional composition, and all other associated news will also take place here. So, keep on going!

Can Ducks Eat Melons? An Ideal Elaboration 

The response in general will be yes. But, from one melon to another, the answer may vary. So, it’s better to illustrate the answer based on some segments.

Are Melons Safe for Ducks?

Yes, melons are safe. Almost every melon has high water content.  So, it helps them to stay hydrated. In addition, melons in general have all the other essential nutrients ducks need, like carbohydrates, beneficial fats, protein, and all that.

The only problem is sugar here. Since melons are sweet, they contain sugar. Ducks do not need any sugar in their regular diet. According to stats, melons can have around 10% sugar in them. A food content that they do not require, is around 10% of a fruit sounds crazy to me!

So, melons are safe until it is not given in moderation. 

What About Melons in Everyday Diet?

Melons can’t be in a duck’s everyday diet. Why? Because most of the melons have a high amount of sugar in them. We know overconsumption of sugar won’t bring any good, no matter whether it’s a human or a bird. 

Your ducks may get lazy, obese, apathetic, and can get overweight as well. Furthermore, maximum melons are tagged as high-carb fruit. Excessive carbohydrate consumption will also affect the health of ducks. It will cause nutritional imbalance and gastronomical problems. 

Before leaving the section let’s have a look at the sugar ratio in some well representatives of the melon family.

See, they’re mighty high in sugar content in them. These things will surely bother your duck’s health if you aren’t careful about an ideal quantity. 

Can Baby Ducks Eat Melons?

If I answer it straight, it would be like this – feed only the flesh of melons to your baby ducks. No seeds, or skins, only feed them the flesh portion so that they will have all the nutrients that melons provide highly.

But, please be cautious about quantity. And feed them melons less frequently than the adult ducks. 

For example, if a duck weighs around 4 pounds and gets melon twice a week, for baby ducks, it should have once a week. 

Can Ducks Eat All Portions of the Melon? Almost

In general, the answer is negative. Not all the portion is good for ducks. Let’s have a look at all the portions one by one. 

Seeds

I won’t recommend you feed melon seeds to your feathered friends. This is because seeds can cause them choking troubles. Although, melon seeds come with a great nutritional value. Containing minerals, potassium, magnesium, copper and zinc is not a bad deal, is it?

However, which melon seeds can be given to ducks? Based on my research here’s my list of melon seeds that have low risk factors.

• Watermelon
• Cantaloupes
• Casaba melon
• Canary melons

On the other hand, my list of unsafe melon seeds would be:

• Honeydew
• Persian melons
• Snap melons

That is not the end of the list definitely. But I hope now you can guess feeding seeds of melons is never a wise idea. Even the safe options I have mentioned earlier can cause problems like diarrhea or gastronomical problems. 

Rinds

There are problems with melon skins actually. Even if the rind is properly chopped and is in bite-size (1/32 quarter). Although, melon rinds are high in antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals. Melon skins are a bit hard and can cause choking hazards for ducks.  

Therefore, I would recommend you boil it at a mild temperature for a couple of minutes. Then it will get softer than usual and ducks won’t have digestion difficulties.

Safe Melons in Duck’s Diet: Our Top Picks

So far, we have known, whether or not melons are safe, how well it is fitted on a duck’s everyday diet, and whether baby ducks can, or can’t eat melons. 

Now is the time, to talk about some melons specifically to make things more clearer. We will take a couple of melons and compare how well these melons produce good food contents and how much is the sugar ratio here. 

However, here are our top picks:

• Watermelon
• Cantaloupes
• Honeydew
• Winter melon
• Snap melon
• Casaba melon

See, the key nutrients melons mostly contain are protein, carbohydrates, lipids, and water. Now, we will dive into the fruits and their ratio of providing key nutrients. 

See, the water amount in melons is almost the same, it is 90% more or less. So, from a general perspective, melons provide 9% waters of your ducks’ daily requirement. That’s great!

Watermelon

When we provide melon fruits to birds like chickens or ducks, watermelon always comes first, always. This melon is incredibly nutritious, less likely to cause any trouble, and every portion of watermelon is edible to ducks. In fact, you can give frozen watermelons or watermelon juice to your ducks as a tasty snack on hot summer days. 

Anyway, do not give the seeds and rinds of watermelon to your baby ducks although they are nutritious. Baby ducks have a sensitive digestive system and can face digestive problems or choking trouble if they are fed watermelon rinds or seeds. 

According to the USDA data, the key nutrients watermelon provides are water, carbohydrates, sugar, fiber, and protein. We will discuss later how these key food contents contribute to your duck’s well-being, be it mental, or physical. 

Maintain a timely manner and ideal quantity when giving it to your ducks. Otherwise, a high sugar ratio can affect their health.

Here is a full article on can ducks eat watermelon. 

Cantaloupes

Cantaloupes are high in water, carbohydrates, sugar, glucose, fructose, and sucrose.  It potentially contributes to the duck’s hydration and muscle well-being. But, it should not be in the everyday diet of a duck. But since it has sugars, do not give it every day. 

For baby ducks, only keep the flesh part. Avoid the rinds and skin. However, boiled cantaloupe rinds are preferred for adult ducks, and the seeds are not bad for them. I mean they can eat but, seeds-portions are quite hard, so avoid giving them to your ducks, I suggest.

Here is a full article on: can ducks eat cantaloupe. 

Honeydew

Honeydew is full of water, carbohydrate, and sugar. So, please be calculative when giving it to your ducks. 

Around 90% of honeydew is water. Carbohydrates are also rich in honeydew. Claiming another 9%. But you can’t just ignore sugar here. Sugar fights hard with carbohydrates here. Hence, be very careful about honeydew and do not give it to your ducks every day.

Here is a full article on, can ducks eat honeydew.

Casaba Melon

Casaba Melon is particularly a good addition to this list for baby ducks. It is full of water, carbohydrate, and protein. Casaba melon seeds can cause choking troubles. So, only the flesh and the skins are fine for adult ducks. 

For baby ducks, only the flesh portion is safe as well. Casaba melon, like all other melons, is no exception for containing sugar. More than, 5% of a casaba melon is sugar. 

So, give it your duck in moderation, and do not give it to them every day. 

Snap Melon

Snap melons are mainly full of water, with more than 95% concentration. It also contains carbohydrates, protein, and vitamins. Since it has a low sugar ratio, it won’t be a bad choice. 

However, snap melon seeds, as usual, should not be given to your ducks. In fact, if you think you will process it and then give it to your ducks, I won’t suggest it. 

It is because you may use cooking oil to process the seeds, cooking oil is never a good choice for them. Snap melon skins are all good. Ducks can consume it. But it is safe to boil them when giving them to ducks. Mash it if you give it to your baby ducks. 

Nutrition in Melon And Their Contribution

We already know, melons are basically full of water. But except for this, they also contain carbohydrates, proteins, lipids, and fiber. 

Let’s see how effectively these nutrients contribute to a duck’s health. 

Hydration

Almost, all the melons have high water content, around 90% to be more particular. So, compared to duck’s water requirement, it is equivalent to fulfilling 9% of their total water needs. It’s huge and can definitely contribute to a duck’s health.

Smoothen Digestion

Fiber plays the game-changing role here. It helps ducks have a smoother digestion process. When ducks can digest comfortably they roam happily. So, partially, fiber help ducks to better their mental well-being as well.

Although, fibers are not that high in watermelons. Still, it at least can play a role in the betterment of ducks. 

Strengthen Muscle Movement

Melons stand out as carb-rich champs after water. These carbs are like power packs for ducks, fueling their strength and even influencing their ability to reproduce with greater vigor. 

It’s all connected – strong ducks mean happy ducks, leading to a boost in their reproduction mojo.

Protein and Lipid Play a Minor Role in Growth

Protein and lipids are very low in melons. Still mentioning it because some melons may have more than 1 gram of protein, like Casaba melon. These melons are particularly good for baby ducks. Because it comes with protein and calcium which help your ducklings to have better growth and bone health. 

Which are Unsafe for Ducks?

Actually, there is no such melon found that is proven toxic. Melons are a wise pick for giving treats to your ducks because of their high water content. But, the skin and the seeds might be a problem in that case. 

Anyway, not all melons of course, but sometimes, melons may contain harmful chemical components like Erythrosine. This component can affect the nervous system and some other health problems like diarrhea, and abdominal pain.

Popular melons like Watermelons and Cantaloupes are reported to have harmful chemical components. So be careful when feeding melon to your poultry friends.

So, what will be the suggestion now? How can your ducks be safe from contaminated melons? Well, here are some tips to identify contaminated, or toxic melons:

• Avoid bruised melons. melons that are damaged through bruises and harder rind skin, can cause problems because of the presence of bacteria. 
• Do not just cut the melons and give them to your ducks. Keep it in the refrigerator for a couple of minutes. 
• Thoroughly wash the outer part of the watermelon with soap or any other anti-bacterial liquid. 
• Do not keep the melon refrigerated for more than 15 days. 
• Make sure to give ripe melons to your ducks.

How to Feed Melons to Your Ducks?

There are so many types of melons you will find in the market. Interestingly, these are all required kinda same feeding approach. Although, the quantity may vary from one to another. 

We will try to know how much can be considered as an ideal quantity, and an appropriate feeding approach that is almost common for all melons.

How Much is the Ideal Quantity of Melons?

See, this thing varies depending on size, nutrition inside, and some other considerations. However, I will suggest you follow one simple rule. Consider the melons high in sugar not to give them if not urgent. If you give them melons that are high in sugar like honeydews and cantaloupes, consider the weight there. 

How much will be the weight? It can be 10 to 15 grams in total as ducks can eat 170 grams, or more at a day. Considering 10% fruits every day, this sounds just perfect. 

For instance, consider watermelons, known for their substantial size and weight. To handle them conveniently, start by dividing the fruit into either 10 or 15 manageable pieces. 

Next, proceed to chop these smaller sections into bite-sized chunks, ensuring they pose no choking hazards.

How to Serve Melons to Ducks?

The serving method for melons is pretty simple. Have a look at the step below: 

• Step 1: Buy fresh melons from the nearest market. Be cautious about bruises and bad smells. It’s best to buy from an authorized seller.
• Step 2: Wash it properly. Use soap, or any other anti-germ stuff to wash it properly and make it germ-free. 
• Step 3: Now cut the melons into bite-sized pieces. Which quarter is best? It depends on the ducks and their habits too.
• Step 4: Serve it on a plate, or a bowl. Add water if you want. 

While feeding melons, carefully notice their reaction. If they show any sign of uncomfortability, stop feeding them. Consider melons as a tasty snack, give it once, or twice a week, and give it twice a day is preferred – morning and the evening. 

Recommended Reading: Fruits Diet For Ducks

Summary of the Study

So, the summary that stands till now is ducks can definitely eat melons. Some of the safe considerations can be watermelons, casaba melons, and cantaloupes. Be cautious about the sugar quantity and do not consider it given to them every day.

Balance the amount by weight, or try different tactics. But why rush to feed ducks melons? It’s wiser to avoid high-sugar melons as plenty of cheaper and safer choices are available to offer them.

Sources & references:

• https://www.researchgate.net/publication/338210770_Toxic_Effects_of_Food_Colorants_Erythrosine_and_Tartrazine_on_Zebrafish_Embryo_Development