Finally rounded up!

[Imquackingup]

Can you separate Dot along with the other girls, maybe just split up the girls and boys? Do you have a dog kennel or crate so she could stay with the other ducks, but separated from them?

I have a hard time getting them separated but will continue to try. I'm going to try and reconstruct their housing so I may have an easier time separating them .

 

[Imquackingup]

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/1076837/drake-really-rough-with-new-female

I found the thread I mentioned! About the panty hose/tube sock trick.

I may try the top of a knee high panty hose. thanks

 

[Adalida]

How are your duckies doing? Is everyone behaving?

 

[Imquackingup]

How are your duckies doing? Is everyone behaving?

They are happier now, I moved the pen over to the water and fenced off part of the pond for them to swim in.They love it.The boys are scaring me with dunking the girls so I've been trying to only let them in the water when I'm around.I have a question though, if I do rehome 2 of them, will they all be really traumatized? and what if I separate the wrong ones? Like I'm not sure but I think Dot likes Charlie more than Bing but am not sure which on is more rough since Bing has acquired the same amount of curls in his tail as Charlie so I can't tell them apart. Then Bopper may like Charlie better than Bing. Oh heck I can't figure it out.I may have a woman at work that might want two of them but don't know which ones to get rid of. I know I definitely want Dot .And Georgette is just a quiet sweet girl, Bopper has the biggest personality but is also by far the loudest which I don't like worrying about the neighbors having to hear her. On another note, I cut the toes out of some knee highs so I could put the knee high around Dot'd neck but is there a chance that she could get choked by it?
We found out today that my hubby has cancer in his voice box. Friday they removed the tumors off his vocal cords which went very well but now he'll be starting radiation soon.I'm exhausted, I gotta get some sleep , I will try to get back here in a day or two.

 

[Miss Lydia]

They are happier now, I moved the pen over to the water and fenced off part of the pond for them to swim in.They love it.The boys are scaring me with dunking the girls so I've been trying to only let them in the water when I'm around.I have a question though, if I do rehome 2 of them, will they all be really traumatized? and what if I separate the wrong ones? Like I'm not sure but I think Dot likes Charlie more than Bing but am not sure which on is more rough since Bing has acquired the same amount of curls in his tail as Charlie so I can't tell them apart. Then Bopper may like Charlie better than Bing. Oh heck I can't figure it out.I may have a woman at work that might want two of them but don't know which ones to get rid of. I know I definitely want Dot .And Georgette is just a quiet sweet girl, Bopper has the biggest personality but is also by far the loudest which I don't like worrying about the neighbors having to hear her. On another note, I cut the toes out of some knee highs so I could put the knee high around Dot'd neck but is there a chance that she could get choked by it?
We found out today that my hubby has cancer in his voice box. Friday they removed the tumors off his vocal cords which went very well but now he'll be starting radiation soon.I'm exhausted, I gotta get some sleep , I will try to get back here in a day or two.

@Imquackingup Glad to hear the surgery went well. I hope he has a good road to recovery now. I went through 6 weeks of radiation for breast cancer and believe me it's a piece of cake compared to chemo. My only side effect was being tired all the time. So hopefully he'll go through it with out much trouble.

As for the ducks I don't think it will matter to the flock left behind if a few are missing as long as they have each other. But your females will appreciate not being over bred with not having so many drakes after them. I'd not put anything around the neck if they are going in water anything could happen even a scratch where a nail gets stuck and causes drowning. You'll just have to decide which ones you think would work out best for you. The females will adapt to which drake you keep. Actually I find my flock make excellent therapy so once you get the drakes down to a manageable number you may find they really help to relieve the stress your going through right now. I hope so.

And as your husband is recovering he may even enjoying watching their antics.

 

[Adalida]

I totally agree with Miss Lydia about your little flock being good therapy once you've sorted out who to keep. When everyone is getting along peaceably, it's so nice to just sit and watch them. I'm doing that right now, my ducks are happily eating snow right outside the window and I like just watching them be happy.

It won't matter which two you rehome, I would keep the ones you like best or maybe even give your coworker a choice between two if you really can't decide. I like how you describe Bopper because I have a loudmouth duck and it always makes me laugh, hearing her shout her head off. Anyway, I rescued five Indian Runner ducks when they were a few months old, they'd been together their whole lives. I have other ducks too, but the Indian Runners always stayed together in a little group. After having them for a year, the two drakes started getting too aggressive with the girls, so I had to get rid of one drake. I didn't want him to go alone, so I picked a girl to go with him. Like you, I tried to figure out which girl got along best with him, but in the end, I just picked the most skittish one (they were going to a hobby farmer who enjoyed having ducks on his property, but didn't treat them like pets like I do). The remaining three were fine. They were maybe a bit confused at first because I got rid of the dominant drake who led the flock, but they just decided to join up with the other ducks instead of being their own little separate flock. I felt really bad splitting up the Runners at first, since they'd always been together, but it's so so nice to have a peaceful flock again.

I hope your husband feels better soon, I'll pray for him and you if you don't find that offensive.

 

[Miss Lydia]

I totally agree with Miss Lydia about your little flock being good therapy once you've sorted out who to keep. When everyone is getting along peaceably, it's so nice to just sit and watch them. I'm doing that right now, my ducks are happily eating snow right outside the window and I like just watching them be happy.

It won't matter which two you rehome, I would keep the ones you like best or maybe even give your coworker a choice between two if you really can't decide. I like how you describe Bopper because I have a loudmouth duck and it always makes me laugh, hearing her shout her head off. Anyway, I rescued five Indian Runner ducks when they were a few months old, they'd been together their whole lives. I have other ducks too, but the Indian Runners always stayed together in a little group. After having them for a year, the two drakes started getting too aggressive with the girls, so I had to get rid of one drake. I didn't want him to go alone, so I picked a girl to go with him. Like you, I tried to figure out which girl got along best with him, but in the end, I just picked the most skittish one (they were going to a hobby farmer who enjoyed having ducks on his property, but didn't treat them like pets like I do). The remaining three were fine. They were maybe a bit confused at first because I got rid of the dominant drake who led the flock, but they just decided to join up with the other ducks instead of being their own little separate flock. I felt really bad splitting up the Runners at first, since they'd always been together, but it's so so nice to have a peaceful flock again.

I hope your husband feels better soon, I'll pray for him and you if you don't find that offensive.

I actually did the same thing After all my Runner eggs hatched I ended up with 4 drakes, at 3 months I rehomed 2 then at 5 months I rehomed one drake and one females and that left me with One Runner drake and One Muscovy drake which do fine together and none of the girls are being harassed by too many drakes. My Muscovys stick together and my Runners/Buffs stick together.Very peaceful flock which makes for a happy owner.

 

[Imquackingup]

I actually did the same thing After all my Runner eggs hatched I ended up with 4 drakes, at 3 months I rehomed 2 then at 5 months I rehomed one drake and one females and that left me with One Runner drake and One Muscovy drake which do fine together and none of the girls are being harassed by too many drakes. My Muscovys stick together and my Runners/Buffs stick together.Very peaceful flock which makes for a happy owner.

Thanks for all the help and guidance ladies, you just dont know how much you've helped me out. Since I moved the pen over to the water, the girls necks seems to be healing up. I think its less stressful on them when the drakes get them in the water than it was on land. My husband has been watching them more and he gets a kick out of them too. As for prayers, Miss Lydia, they are very appreciated and never offensive. thank you

 

[Miss Lydia]

Thanks for all the help and guidance ladies, you just dont know how much you've helped me out. Since I moved the pen over to the water, the girls necks seems to be healing up. I think its less stressful on them when the drakes get them in the water than it was on land. My husband has been watching them more and he gets a kick out of them too. As for prayers, Miss Lydia, they are very appreciated and never offensive. thank you

Such good news. !!

 

[Imquackingup]

Sorry I haven't been on in a while. I'ts been a really hard road for my hubby.Charlie is back at it with a vengeance on Dot and Bopper. Their necks are totally bare and red. I've been letting them have the run of the backyard for a few hours everyday but Charlie chases down Dot every time. Today I managed to catch him and put him in a time out which he totally hated,lol
I did get some good news as I think I have a home for 2 of them but not til mid May. I've been feeding them wormsjust about every day, Can they get too much? Just wondering cuz their poop sure is stronger.