A story , A few questions, and a problem.

[Goat_Walker]

Well I went out to the pen this morning to collect my three eggs and let the adults out to free range. I noticed in the line up that I was missing one of my buff cross girls. So I went to the other pen and noticed she was in with my 3 Juvenile ducks. At first I was mad , but then I saw something in the igloo that she had come out of - AN EGG!

She was exactly 18 weeks yesterday. SO I was all happy, woo hoo, I get four eggs instead of three...... -
But I went to collect my other three eggs and only got two. My Buff hen's egg and my fake easter egg that I keep in the nest are both gone.


So I have a snake. Again. Yay me. ( note heavy sarcasm)


So Now that Youve gotten the story and the problem its Question time!!!


1) what kind of fake eggs can I put in the nests that will kill snakes when they eat it?



2) When can I place my three 6 week old and one 3 week old ducklings in with the adults?

 

[Dances with Ducks]

I read where someone filled a blown out egg with salt and glued it shut. That would do it. Poor snake.

 

[Mojo Chick'n]

I've had problems with snakes this year too - they seem to be pretty bad this year (well, all the predators do this year - coytoes are out in HUGE numbers, too).

I've heard golf balls - not sure if the fake egg will have the same effect. I need to get some golf balls to put in my nests, actually.

My girls freerange, so if a snake keeps getting in their nest, they lay elsewhere.

I actually caught one guy in there (4 foot rat snake) he was beautiful.


eta - question 2) I would wait until the little ones can get away easily from the bigger ones - the three week old sounds slightly young, yet, the 6 week olds might be ok. I wait until they have at least part of their feathers and aren't all fluff still.

meri

 

[Goat_Walker]

Thanks!
And snakes are really bad here this year. Ive killed a least five and two have gotten away, including a 7fter

Will golf balls kill them? Ive got some but I didnt know they were lethal.

The 6 week olds ( mutts ) barely have any traces of fuzz left, their flight feathers are comming in quiet nicely. The 3 week old is a Scovie and actualy hissed and stretched his neck out , defending the month olds from the wild adult drake scovie that comes around.

 

[Mojo Chick'n]

Quote:
I'd give it a try then, and see how they get along. As long as the adult ducks do the hit and run thing and don't pursue the babies until "take down" then I let them work it out. I only intervene if the older ducks actually put the babies on the ground and start hurting them. It usually only takes a couple of days and they all act like they've been together for years. I actually have a harder time integrating adult ducks to other adult ducks than putting babies into the mix.

One thing I do, however is (since I shut mine in a run at night) I put the babies into a doghouse (the usual "duck house" that is in there) and let them be safe while penned up from being cornered. I usually take a larger transport cage and put it - open door - in front of the doghouse, so they can get "outside", but the big ducks can't get at them (or in my case, the geese). It's hard to explain, but it ends up being a small house/run inside the duck/geese pen. Once they get more bold, I leave it cracked so they can come and go into and out of the house/cage thing, and then I just take the cage out. I only do it at night, when they are stuck in the enclosed space with the others.

It just gives them a place to escape and hide from the bullies.

meri

 

[Goat_Walker]

What Im most worried about with the young ones is when I let the adults out to free range. I want to let the little ones out as well but Im worried they might wander off rather than follow the flock.