Duck farming in the UK largely lacks the welfare infrastructure applied to chicken production, with significant welfare problems including inadequate water access and inappropriate housing conditions.
Ducks deprived of water access for bathing and head immersion experience significant frustration, evidenced by redirected bathing behaviour on dry substrates. The inability to keep eye and nasal passages clean increases disease risk. Ducks forced to live in the wet litter created by any water provision face contact dermatitis and hock burns. The welfare of farmed ducks is poorly served by current UK standards that lag significantly behind other farmed species.