Hi.
I have three 1 week old Cayuga ducklings, 2 of them are very hyper and upright. Meaning they are stretching their necks up high and curious about everything. I have one that isn’t doing that, she still moves around a lot but isn’t as erect as the other 2. She’s also a little smaller than them. Any ideas on why this could be? I’m new to the duck world, used to chickens.
Well...
Seeing more pictures of your ducklings could help to see if there actually is a problem with your girl...
• Are your sure that ALL of your three ducklings are really 1-week-old?
(Have you bought them? Or are they born in your home...?)
• Are you also sure that the three of them are purebred Cayuga?
• What are you feeding them, exactly?
And do you give them treats? Vitamins? Niacin? Calcium...?
• Do they have an unlimited access to their food - including at night?
(It is important that they do, AT LEAST during their growth!)
► If they are indeed purebred AND born on the same day,
I would NOT worry for now.
I, myself, have had ducklings that looked smaller and less-developed than their siblings
at first... but that have
always ended up catching with their brothers and sisters!
(Apart for this one runt that was unlucky enough to be born stargazing, and that I was not able to save in spite of all my efforts...)
Still, it would be good for you to monitor
carefully your ducklings
during their first weeks.
Watch over your smallest one,
specifically,
to see if she is, in fact :
• actually growing bigger,
• eating the same amount of food as her siblings,
• not being bullied by her siblings.
► Also,
just in case (if ever your duckling is, in fact, not growing bigger),
you could want to read this article : https://saltinmycoffee.com/runt-ducklings/
...Good luck!
