I am curious--how do you go about training or disciplining your ducks? I have heard of beak tapping as negative reinforcement and treats as positive reinforcement--what else do you do? Are there certain things that you believe are important to train them to do or not do? How do you go about it?
I think training them not to bite is essential. If they get through their "rebellious teenager" phase without correcting bad behavior, it can become ingrained for life. Getting them used to being handled is important, too. If they ever need medical attention it'll be much easier if you can just walk up and grab them than having to chase a sick or injured duck around, it'd be pandemonium! When Wobbles nips or eats my hair, I hold her beak shut and yell "NO". After a week or so, she began to associate the "NO!" with the beak tapping and will respond to just the noise. If she goes for my hair and then stops herself, she gets a treat! (although to be fair carrying around a buncha peas and kibbles may not be practical). If they're outdoor ducks, then training them to go into the pen at night is also important. A lot of ducks will just sort of do it on their own, but not all the time. Rounding them up can be a pain. And then there's THIS guy. You might wanna talk to him about training ducks, he's kind of the master!
