Enrichment for farmed ducks goes beyond regulatory minimums to address the species-specific needs for water access, foraging, and social behavior that are central to duck welfare.
Duck enrichment must address the species-specific behavioral repertoire that conventional production denies. Beyond water access — the most critical need — ducks benefit from foraging opportunities on deep litter, space for locomotion, and social management that reduces competition stress. Research on duck welfare consistently finds that water provision is the highest priority intervention, but that additional enrichment further improves behavioral welfare. The economic case for enrichment is also being made: producers who have introduced shower systems and deep litter report reductions in feather pecking and mortality that partially offset additional costs. The welfare argument and the business case are aligned in duck production in ways that make the transition to enriched systems more tractable than in some other farm animal sectors.