Fluffy_Butt
Songster
Hello everyone!
Situation: I need some advice from you duck-lovers out there. A friend of mine tends to jump into things without really thinking things through, and so has 8 ducks that he doesn't want anymore. He says they're too much work and he doesn't want to deal with them through the winter. He has offered them to me, otherwise he will "process" (kill) them this weekend.
The Ducks: There are 8, (4 males and 4 females), which seems like a unhealthy ratio? I don't even know what breed, except that they're a heavy non-flying duck. The few times I've been to his place, they just run around and don't seem to trust people at all (but maybe that's normal for ducks?)
Me: Now I'm a huge fan for saving the unwanted, but I don't know the first thing about ducks and doubt I have any sort of decent set up for them. I'm moving to a larger place (15+ acres) in a few weeks, but it doesn't have a pond or stream, and only 1 outbuilding that I'm going to have to hurry to convert into a temporary coop for my other birds, so I'd be trying to work that out before the snow starts in earnest. I currently have chickens and turkeys galore and am doing well with them, but ducks seem like a whole different situation. I'm also worried about how rape-y the males supposedly can get, especially with smaller chickens (I have some silkies), and it'd be near impossible to separate everyone until spring.
You: What do you all think? Should I take them on? Are ducks something I can adapt to and give a good life with short notice and little-know-how? Or is it more likely that I'll just end up prolonging their suffering? I'm not usually comfortable getting into things unprepared. If I took them and somehow didn't frell it up, is there any chance that they'd grow to trust me a bit (just enough to do examinations without having to trap the poor things) or would they forever be an elusive herd running amok?
I appreciate your time and input!
Situation: I need some advice from you duck-lovers out there. A friend of mine tends to jump into things without really thinking things through, and so has 8 ducks that he doesn't want anymore. He says they're too much work and he doesn't want to deal with them through the winter. He has offered them to me, otherwise he will "process" (kill) them this weekend.
The Ducks: There are 8, (4 males and 4 females), which seems like a unhealthy ratio? I don't even know what breed, except that they're a heavy non-flying duck. The few times I've been to his place, they just run around and don't seem to trust people at all (but maybe that's normal for ducks?)
Me: Now I'm a huge fan for saving the unwanted, but I don't know the first thing about ducks and doubt I have any sort of decent set up for them. I'm moving to a larger place (15+ acres) in a few weeks, but it doesn't have a pond or stream, and only 1 outbuilding that I'm going to have to hurry to convert into a temporary coop for my other birds, so I'd be trying to work that out before the snow starts in earnest. I currently have chickens and turkeys galore and am doing well with them, but ducks seem like a whole different situation. I'm also worried about how rape-y the males supposedly can get, especially with smaller chickens (I have some silkies), and it'd be near impossible to separate everyone until spring.
You: What do you all think? Should I take them on? Are ducks something I can adapt to and give a good life with short notice and little-know-how? Or is it more likely that I'll just end up prolonging their suffering? I'm not usually comfortable getting into things unprepared. If I took them and somehow didn't frell it up, is there any chance that they'd grow to trust me a bit (just enough to do examinations without having to trap the poor things) or would they forever be an elusive herd running amok?
I appreciate your time and input!