Flax bedding: Poppy is eating it!

[chickens really]

Alright.....Well I sincerely wish you and the Duckling a great introduction once you decide its ready...I think its ready now if that Drake could be separated during her transition ....
Best wishes!....

 

[cyriuskee]

@kr33cher you're welcome! I hope the wee wee pads work out better for you. Bummer to hear flax bedding is so darned appetizing!

 

[kr33cher]

Sand To the Rescue

For those still interested: If your ducky persistently eats flax bedding, like mine, chances are he or she will eat anything you throw at them bedding wise.

After flax I also tried weewee pads, small wood chips, big wood chips & straw. She prefers ALL of them over her food. With the weewee pad she keeps pulling and pulling at them until she's broken through the top and then starts eating the cotton-stuffs inside of it. So, another nono.

I didn't want to go back to towels, because she is just too big for them and poops too darned much and I wouldn't be able to keep up with the laundry. Let alone the smell.

So... I finally found something that works: white sand mixed in with some river sand. I put her food and water in a plastic tray so the water doesn't run inside on the sand because then she's do nothing but play with the mud and make a muck. I am happy because I can cut up greenz at night and spread them over the sand to let her forage some more to counteract boredom.

Re-integration into our 3duck adult flock is going step by step. We've caged Peppy for the first hour of Poppy's daily walk, so she's just walking with Ping & Pong. Whilst not completely without hick-ups, these two don't try to molest her or hurt her too badly. After which we release Peppy, who will lay down with Ping and Pong for about 10 minutes, since he's tired of pacing the pen and quacking for an hour. After that, he'll just revert to trying to molest Poppy. She is growing steadily though, so not much longer we hope, until she is big and strong enough to fend him of a bit.

 

[cyriuskee]

Thanks for such a detailed account. Sounds like poppy is doing great. Good job!

 

[gilbert2]

kr33cher, it sounds like you have gone much more than the extra mile to provide for Poppy. I was just astounded when you reported that she actually tears into those piddle pads! Yikes! There is one duck with either a curious mind, or a huge oral fixation.
And those feeding preferences could have driven you mad. Wood chips? Straw? Flax? Wow. I couldn't have come up with sand in a hundred years! Way to go. Now that's creative thinking!
Keep up the good work!