Are you Peking kidding me?

[TJAnonymous]

They may feel there duck house isn't safe to sleep in is there pond big enough to make it a floating house and anchor it in the middle of the pond

This is their duck house. It is missing a few shingles from Hurricane Laura but they have never been willing to go inside it from the moment we brought them outside at 10 weeks old. They've never slept in it... Preferring to sleep on the bank.

 

[Kat_withducks]

The drake is the one in the back of the photo you posted, you can see the tail feather that curls up.

What kind of feeder do you use? I wonder if they might be part of the issue.

I’m new to ducks, but I can say that I’m really surprised how skittish they are and how skeptical they are of anything new. I tried to give them watermelon on the rind and you would have thought I tossed them a duck killing machine. I had to take it out in the end. I do enjoy them, but it’s certainly not yet the experience I had played out in my mind. We don't intend to get rid of ours, but I get your point of view.

 

[Flockincrazy]

How do I tell which one is the drake? When I tried to look up how to sex them, the only info I could find was based upon their quack.

I would love to entice them into the chicken yard and leave them locked up there for a few days, but I'm concerned with the way they try to "attack" their targets (the 2 chickens).

I had no way of knowing that allowing the ducks to spend their time happily down at the pond all day & night was going to cause them to attack the chickens. Considering they were raised together, I'm still stunned by this development. Remember that they do not attack ALL the chickens....just two specific ones. The question now is whether it can be reversed. If it can't, I don't have many options other than to rehome them or make them dinner.

To get them to stop you would need to entice them into the coop in the day when you are able to spend the day with them if they go to attack the 2 chickens do the same way you would if they were chickens attacking another chicken you hold them down chest to the ground and not let them up till they stop squirming about a minute or so and do it every time they try to get the 2 chickens it will stop they will soon figure out that you are the boss and they are not aloud to be mean to to chickens

 

[reluctant farmer]

I hate to invade, but my ducks wing had blood on it then the next day it was gone but now it looks like little things sticking out of the wing, I’m still on the new side to owning ducks and not really sure what it is or what to do

Fighting? Sometimes they'll fight. Maybe what's left of the feathers.

 

[Flockincrazy]

This is their duck house. It is missing a few shingles from Hurricane Laura but they have never been willing to go inside it from the moment we brought them outside at 10 weeks old. They've never slept in it... Preferring to sleep on the bank.




View attachment 2338179

Did you ever put them in it and is it an old dog house if so they will not go in it if it smells like a dog

 

[TJAnonymous]

OK... So I'm guessing the bigger fella here is the male?

And the smaller one (who is typically the instigator) is female?

Pardon the rocks and mess... I'm in the middle of building a new, bigger chicken coop....

 

[TJAnonymous]

Did you ever put them in it and is it an old dog house if so they will not go in it if it smells like a dog

Yes, we tried to pen them in with it in the beginning. Didn't work. It has never been used for a dog. My chickens used to use it as a nesting box about 2 years ago but it has been cleaned out and empty for nearly a year and a half.

 

[Flockincrazy]

so if you ever get more ducklings in the future keep them in with your chickens and hold them a lot and when ever you feed them call to them either there names or just say duck over and over till you are done feeding them or giving them a treat mine are brats i say duck duck they come running at me i can walk over to mine and can pick them up and hold them and love on them my 6yo son can pick-up any of our 8ducks put your hands on them as much as possible ours like there heads and necks stroked my female rouen will push her head up under my chin we call it her hugs

 

[TJAnonymous]

I just tried to give them some fresh zucchini and watermelon in a pie pan (with water). They won't go anywhere near it... I've been watching them from inside the house for about 5 minutes. They take a wide path around it like it's going to eat them.... *sigh*

 

[TJAnonymous]

so if you ever get more ducklings in the future keep them in with your chickens and hold them a lot and when ever you feed them call to them either there names or just say duck over and over till you are done feeding them or giving them a treat mine are brats i say duck duck they come running at me i can walk over to mine and can pick them up and hold them and love on them my 6yo son can pick-up any of our 8ducks put your hands on them as much as possible ours like there heads and necks stroked my female rouen will push her head up under my chin we call it her hugs

I have pet chickens who are very tame and used to being held. We did try to socialize the ducks when they were little and did hold them often but not every day. I guess that changed when we let them out on the pond because then we lost any ability to actually catch them and enforce our will (such as being held).