Amt. feed for Pekin Ducks/Question re:Chickens

Question
We currently have 4 Pekin Ducks as pets out on our back property.  Nobody has ever told me the exact amt. of pelleted duck food to feed them besides what they eat on their own all over their territory.  We live in Southern Ontario Canada and they eat Purina Pelleted food.  

They begin squawking when they want their 'food'.  The girls are 4 yrs. old and not fat.  They have free roam within a 200ft. fenced in area.  We've tried mixing oats/wheat with their pellets but they somehow leave the oats/wheat.  We now mix barley in and they usually eat that with their pellets.  Any ideas?  They are getting spoiled.

One other question I have is if we decided to get a few chickens, can they live with ducks?  Our ducks live in a 7' x 7' shed overnight to protect them from predators.

Are chickens more prone to diseases and do they peck each other?  We don't want either of that as our ducks are quite healthy and we don't want to see behaviour such as pecking amongst chickens.

Thank you very much!
Paula

Answer
Hello Paula,

Mixing the pellets with barley is fine- I feed my hens barley and cracked corn and pellets in the winter, and pellets in the summer with a daily scattering of barley. You're not spoiling them- give them as much food as they will eat- are you feeding out of proper food hoppers?

Yes, chickens can live with ducks and will be comfortable in your shed.
They're not more prone to diseases, but they do get complications from laying on a daily basis, although some people never have a problem. A good thing to do is get some chicken books and do a lot of research- some good books are Starting with chickens by Katie Thear and the Encyclopedia of Chickens by Esther Verhoef and Aad Rijs.

They will peck each other if they are bored, stressed or scabby. Visible blood will always get pecked so you have to keep an eye on them, in case they have any wounds. Chickens will peck each other to death if they can see blood. If one of my hens is damaged obviously, I spray the area with purple spray (for horses) and this changes the colour, to stop them getting pecked.

Thanks for your question- feel free to ask a follow up if you need any more help :)