Emergency - Orphaned Mallard duckling

[wordgirl]

My friend just called to tell me she has an orphaned Mallard that got abandoned by the mother today after she was likely scared away by some work being done on the house. The eggs hatched today - one duckling has been left, and has been sitting near the house (under a bay window) all afternoon. I told her to put it in a box with a lamp to 90 degrees, with paper towels. I'm getting it tomorrow if it survives, so she's not going to try to feed it yet. Should it have water if it's not eating yet? Will this help with the stress of the chill and everything or will it cause more stress? Please let me know ASAP so I can tell her!

Thank you so much!

 

[Chriswardens52]

It can have water but make sure to put a small dish in with rocks or marbles to make sure the baby doesn't drown. It doesn't need food because it has nutrients from absorbing the yolk before hatching. I hope this helped a little. But since it is wild it would be smart to call a waterfowl rehab center or your local fish and game. Just so you don't get in trouble for taking in a wild duckling.

 

[jessiduck]

My friend just called to tell me she has an orphaned Mallard that got abandoned by the mother today after she was likely scared away by some work being done on the house. The eggs hatched today - one duckling has been left, and has been sitting near the house (under a bay window) all afternoon. I told her to put it in a box with a lamp to 90 degrees, with paper towels. I'm getting it tomorrow if it survives, so she's not going to try to feed it yet. Should it have water if it's not eating yet? Will this help with the stress of the chill and everything or will it cause more stress? Please let me know ASAP so I can tell her!

Thank you so much!

Okay, so for the temporary housing you should have your box//tub filled with hay and a doggy training pad underneath of it. This will help the keep the odor under control and help with the mess.
To keep her feeling secure and warm you can put an old stuffed toy and a mirror so she doesn't feel alone. You're probably going to have to get another duck so she can have a companion since ducks are very social creatures.
Your duckling will definitely need water! Just fill it enough so her beak can get too it, but not too much because she can drown -- that's why it is suggested to put stones in the tray. Just be gentle and calm while handling her as not to add to her stress. Keep your heat lamp on for the next couple of weeks I'd say atleast about 6. If you have anymore questions don't ever be shy to post them! Everyone on here is willing to help answer them!
Wishing you the best,
-Jess

 

[wordgirl]

Thank you, both of you! We just realized about the DNR thing - she said she'd call tomorrow and see what they want to do. I'm hoping they'll let me take it, but they probably won't....

I also told her not to worry about water until at least tomorrow. I know shipped ducklings don't have access to food or water for up to a few days, so hopefully she'll be fine.

I'm actually getting duck eggs next week and got extremely excited when I found out I might get to take care of a duckling early!

Don't know if that'll happen, but if it does, I'll definitely be on here asking for advice. If I get the duckling, will it be any danger to the other duckling if I can find a friend for her (seeing as the one is wild and the other is domesticated)? If it's fine, maybe I'll have to go find a TSC....

 

[jessiduck]

No if you get another duckling it shouldn't be a problem! It won't endanger the one you have now in any way. Good luck with them!!

 

[wordgirl]

No if you get another duckling it shouldn't be a problem! It won't endanger the one you have now in any way. Good luck with them!!

Well, it turns out that the duckling wasn't actually a duckling. It was a Mourning Dove fledgling that somehow ended up right near the duck nest, and my friend didn't realize that was what it was since the duck eggs hatched that day and everything. I'm a bit disappointed that I don't get to take care of an orphaned Mallard, but oh well....

Thank you guys so much for helping! I'll definitely be back for advice when I've got my own Anconas pretty soon!

 

[desertdarlene]

So, what happened to the baby dove?

 

[jessiduck]

Well, it turns out that the duckling wasn't actually a duckling. It was a Mourning Dove fledgling that somehow ended up right near the duck nest, and my friend didn't realize that was what it was since the duck eggs hatched that day and everything. I'm a bit disappointed that I don't get to take care of an orphaned Mallard, but oh well....

Thank you guys so much for helping! I'll definitely be back for advice when I've got my own Anconas pretty soon!

Oh wow! That's a really cute mix up! Post and let us know when you get your ducks!

 

[Mum]

So, what happened to the baby dove?

Ditto

 

[wordgirl]

So, what happened to the baby dove?


She called the DNR and they connected her with a lady who does bird rehabilitation/care and she told her that it was probably a mourning dove who wasn't able to fly yet, and that doves have ground nests and the mother feeds the babies twice a day until they are able to fly. So my friend put the bird back outside, and hopefully the mother was able to find it again.

I think the duck who was setting eggs under her window did successfully hatch the ducklings and was able to leave with her babies, but my friend never saw them so she didn't know what she was looking for. But good news at least that the mama duck has her babies!

Quote:
Originally Posted by jessiduck



Oh wow! That's a really cute mix up! Post and let us know when you get your ducks!

I will definitely post and let you know! I'm getting a bit anxious trying to set up my brooder. It was looking pretty good with the two bulb thermometers I had in there, but when I got a digital indoor/outdoor one to test the humidity, the outside sensor (which I had in the incubator) was telling me the temperature was all over the place. I've now got that thermometer in the incubator without the outside sensor and it's holding steady mostly but it's usually about two degrees off of the two bulb thermometers.

I just added a third bulb thermometer to see which thermometer(s) it will agree with to make sure I've got the temperature right. My eggs ship tomorrow, so I'm really hoping I can get everything figured out! I want to have a successful hatch!