Ducklings being picked on!!!!

[Cornychick]

Yesterday I brought home 8 new ducklings and a gosling. They were all getting along well last night when I went to be. This morning, the two ducks with crested heads are getting picked on on thier heads. What do I do? I really don't want to separate them from the flock if possible.

 

[Goat_Walker]

How old are they? More than likely the other ducklings are bored and see the crest as a weird new play toy - or a reason to make the other's outsiders. Do the ducklings have enough room to explore ? enough feed to keep them busy?

 

[froggie71]

Who is exactly picking on them? the other ducklings or ducks you already have? If they are ducks you already have you do need to seperate them. When we've introduced new ducks, we have seperated them by chicken wire so they can see each other and get used to each other without being able to get to each other. For at least a week. Then let them free-range together with us watching. This definitely worked for us. Hopefully they get this worked out between them. They are definitely getting the "pecking order" established though. Good luck!

 

[Cornychick]

They are all the same age, with the exception of my two that I hatched which are a week or so older. My hatchlings aren't the ones doing the bullying. The store just got them in over the weekend so I assume they are just a few days old. They are mixed varieties and even the smaller brown ones are going for them. I am currently brooding them in one of those large livestock water tanks. Plenty of feed and water availabe at all times. I ended up putting bandaids on thier nubs. The others still bug them but the bandages are slick and they can't pull out thier fuzz and cut the skin. Geez...kids of all species just can't get along.