Drake suddenly attacking other duck

[Fairgroundfarm]

I have a Cayuga drake that lost his runner female partner this summer. I had just introduced two new ducks into the flock, these are Muscovy. This was my attempt to provide my Cayuga with more girls (learning a lot as a first time duck owner.) I am not even sure at this moment if the Muscovy are male or female.
The Cayuga and Muscovy have been living together fine, swim in same pool, share food/water/house/treats without major issue. Until recently, my Muscovy sit on the roof of their house and my Cayuga doesn’t go up there. He is not allowing the grey muscovy on the ground without asserting his dominance. The brown muscovy he allows to be down. So the grey one isn’t eating or drinking as much. Yesterday I held the Cayuga to allow the grey muscovy to eat and eventually flew down from the roof and ate and drank a lot. Please help with ideas. I am not against rehoming if I need to.

 

[Colley12]

I have a Cayuga drake that lost his runner female partner this summer. I had just introduced two new ducks into the flock, these are Muscovy. This was my attempt to provide my Cayuga with more girls (learning a lot as a first time duck owner.) I am not even sure at this moment if the Muscovy are male or female.
The Cayuga and Muscovy have been living together fine, swim in same pool, share food/water/house/treats without major issue. Until recently, my Muscovy sit on the roof of their house and my Cayuga doesn’t go up there. He is not allowing the grey muscovy on the ground without asserting his dominance. The brown muscovy he allows to be down. So the grey one isn’t eating or drinking as much. Yesterday I held the Cayuga to allow the grey muscovy to eat and eventually flew down from the roof and ate and drank a lot. Please help with ideas. I am not against rehoming if I need to.

I wonder if the muscovy he is picking on is a male. I had 2 males and the lead one would definitely assert his dominance. They would have these "conversations" where the male would be blocking the other male from the pool or the girls, until he decided that it was ok for the lower male to join. I rehomed my lead male, and the second has taken on a protective role of the girls, but there is no one to fight. Sometimes I feel like he is giving me the look, but I remind him I'm the one that feeds, so maybe don't try that with me sir!!

Sound like maybe that is happening with yours?

I'm sure others will join in with their expertise...I'm still pretty new at ducks too!

 

[Miss Lydia]

How old are your Muscovy and can you post some pictures?

 

[ruthhope]

I have had issues introducing muscovy to pekins.

Last year, a very sweet female muscovy was bullied incessantly and would not go into the coop at night until dark, and at that time she went right up into a high place out of reach of the pekins on the floor. But also unable to reach the food bowl and water tubs on the floor. She got special feeding and watering treatment every morning, until I rehomed her to my son's flock.

I currently have a problem with pekins bullying a muscovy drake that has had a really big molt for a month now, and has been very out of sorts. [He is just getting his moxy back]. I learned from the experience with the female muscovy and made a raised roost for the muscovy drake [who is so big as well as debilitated by his molt that I have to lift him up there each evening]. He has his own food bowl fixed to the wall and a water tub. He comes to the coop only after the other ducks are inside and lets me pick him up. In the morning, I get him down after letting the meanie pekins out of the coop. [This morning, for the first time, the muscovy had gotten himself down from the raised roost and was asserting himself against the pekin orchestrating the bullying. ]

I also have found that ducks allegiences change with their hormones and the season [and sometimes the day of the week!]

So I would look to providing your muscovy a safe high roost with food and water up there. That ensures the muscovy isn't denied food and water. Then wait and see. Things can change in the next few weeks while hormones are on the wane.

 

[Fairgroundfarm]

How old are your Muscovy and can you post some pictures?

My Muscovy are about 5 months old. And my Cayuga is just over one year.

I have had issues introducing muscovy to pekins.

Last year, a very sweet female muscovy was bullied incessantly and would not go into the coop at night until dark, and at that time she went right up into a high place out of reach of the pekins on the floor. But also unable to reach the food bowl and water tubs on the floor. She got special feeding and watering treatment every morning, until I rehomed her to my son's flock.

I currently have a problem with pekins bullying a muscovy drake that has had a really big molt for a month now, and has been very out of sorts. [He is just getting his moxy back]. I learned from the experience with the female muscovy and made a raised roost for the muscovy drake [who is so big as well as debilitated by his molt that I have to lift him up there each evening]. He has his own food bowl fixed to the wall and a water tub. He comes to the coop only after the other ducks are inside and lets me pick him up. In the morning, I get him down after letting the meanie pekins out of the coop. [This morning, for the first time, the muscovy had gotten himself down from the raised roost and was asserting himself against the pekin orchestrating the bullying. ]

I also have found that ducks allegiences change with their hormones and the season [and sometimes the day of the week!]

So I would look to providing your muscovy a safe high roost with food and water up there. That ensures the muscovy isn't denied food and water. Then wait and see. Things can change in the next few weeks while hormones are on the wane.

Thank you! I have been holding food and water bowls up high for the Muscovy to eat and drink. He has been eating but for whatever reason won’t drink the water. And the bowl is the same type as what was being used on the ground. I am hoping things turn around quickly.

 

[Fairgroundfarm]

The grey one is the one being picked on.

 

[Miss Lydia]

That looks like a female to me. what noise does it make huffing or trilling

 

[Fairgroundfarm]

When eating from the food container I am holding up the grey one huffs. I have heard both the grey and brown one huff. But they will trill at each other.

 

[ruthhope]

I think they are female!

 

[Miss Lydia]

What if you put the one that is being bullied in with the drake without the other female, have you tried that to see how he acts?