Girl duck pulling feathers out of another girl

[maccay2k]

Hi Everyone,

I have 4 Khaki Campbell ducks hatched from eggs (3 boys & 1 girl) and 2 girls that I got from a farm to even out the male:female ratio.

The 2 farm girls have been with us for 3 months and were inseparable for a while but recently, it appears that 1 is bullying the other by viciously pulling out her feathers. The one having her feathers pulled does not fight back and she is getting quite the bald spot where this is occurring.

The other ducks all get on fine and I was just wondering if this is a common issue of something that I need to be concerned about. I feel so bad that the duck may be in pain and I'm worried that this could lead to infection or illness.

They have lots of room to eat, play and swim so I don't think enclosure could be the issue.

Any ideas?

Thanks

 

[Amiga]

Ducks can do things that are difficult for us to understand.

I have a duck who used to do this a little bit, to every other duck, but it has all but disappeared from her behavior.

I would check both ducks - any sign of illness or injury. Sometimes ducks will pick on one that does not feel well.

If you had fewer drakes, I would consider separating the picked-on duck for a day or overnight, then the picker for a day or overnight. Just something to mix up the dynamic.

I am concerned that if you did that, the drakes would outnumber the remaining ducks and there could be injuries. Hmmmm.

Do you have any BluKote? Might try putting that on the plucked spot and seeing if it helps.

Being able to split a flock can be useful. If your setup allows for an overnight drake pen, and a little area where one duck can be separated for a short time, that might help.

 

[Janay]

I have the same problem. My ducks keep pulling on each other's necks, backs, pretty much anywhere. I haven't seen any bald spots, but I am nervous that they are hurting each other and not sure why. Thoughts?

 

[Amiga]

Who is in your flock? How many females, males, is it males pulling females feathers, who is pulling on whom? Are they mating? Shoving-sumo wrestling? How old are they? How much space do they have in their pen? Were they all raised together?

 

[Janay]

I have 6 ducks and 2 drakes, but it is the females that are pulling on each other. They are about 5 months old. They have about 130 squared ft of space to move around in. I haven't seen any blood, so I am not as worried...