Blue Swedish ducklings!

[DurhamDuck]

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My 10 Blue Swedish ducklings are here!! They were hatched on Easter day!

I am so excited!!

 

[mandelyn]

So cute! That's a big pile of babies! My brooder looks empty compared to yours. LOL

I ended up moving my food as far away from the water as I could get it, and setting a plate under the water. I'm bound and determined to find a way to brood ducklings in a cleaner, less smelly way! Now they get a lot more exercise, since they still take 3 bites and run to the water and back again. Trailing wet food along the way. Someone had said they used goodwill towels and changed them out, that is starting to sound like a fabulous idea as I approach week two of brooding.

 

[DurhamDuck]

I am just totally in love with my little ducklings! They are so cute I don't know how I am ever going to get any work done when all I want to do is just sit and watch them all day!!

 

[mandelyn]

Just wait until they're old enough to go outside! You won't even want to be in the house!

 

[Gulfstream]

Congrats! We have 5 Blues. They are absolutely lovely birds. Friendly and funny, yet very elegant. They go gaga for water right away. I used to take a dog ex-pen set it up over a lower area in my yard and flood it. They used to quack at me until there was enough water there for them to rip around. Now they are all grown at nearly 5 months. I just completed their own bigger house with a pool in it, but they yell at me every morning to open the door and let them out to their very own pond in the horses pasture. They march up like clockwork every night around 6:30 and demand I turn the hose on a spray so they can clean up the yard. I am secretly kicking around getting some more but its breeding season and I figured since they are very amorous at the moment I would wait. Plus I am raising 5 silver laced Wyandottes at the moment. You are gonna have a blast.

This is my daughter duck herding in the pond. They all enjoy it!

 

[DurhamDuck]

Quote:
What a great photo!
We have a spring fed pond in the backyard that we are almost done fencing in. When our ducks are older, they will enjoy our pond.
I am glad you shared about coming and going out on a schedule, that is the plan for our ducks too.

 

[Gulfstream]

The schedule was theirs not mine

Demanding they are!

When I started them on the pond I used to take out 2 ex-pens set it up half in half out of the water. Let them out there every day for like maybe 3 weeks. Brought them in every night. I remember the first night I let them loose they were crazy! Then I realized how am I gonna get them in at night? My DD had this great idea for a long rope one of us on either side of the pond kind of shooing them in. That lasted for maybe 3 more weeks then they sorted it out and we never go get them anymore. I think they are smarter than they would like you to think.

 

[DurhamDuck]

Quote:
LOL!!

I was planning on always feeding them inside the duck barn and training them with a 'treat bucket'. I read that you can get them trained that way by ALWAYS giving treats from the same bucket right from the time they are ducklings so whenever they see that bucket they come running for their treats. So that's the plan! We'll see how it goes as they grow older.
Now I am waiting for our 2 Buff goslings to get here next week and our waterfowl family will be complete (for this season anyway!)

 

[DurhamDuck]

I can't believe how much these little ducklings are eating!! I ordered a 5lb bag of food from Metzer Farms where I got the ducklings from and I mix some it with a bit of water and they just are going nuts - ALL DAY! lol They are peeping like crazy, flinging food and water everywhere. What a mess, but boy are they have a good time!

 

[~*MissouriSweetpea*~]

Ahhh!! Blue Swedish!! I just go gaga over them.

Can't wait to get my enclosure done and get my babies here.

ETA: Forgot to say - I AM SO JEALOUS!! LOL