HELP?!?? Aggression over Ducklings? How to introduce them to each other properly?

[lilbellalovesducks]

This is Patch! I started raising her about a year ago, she is a black swedish. We bought two of them at that time and one passed away right as they where getting there feathers. In the rural community I live in, no one was selling ducks at the time when the one passed. We cant even get ducks delivered out her because everything goes thru the post office. We dont even have fedex or ups because our house addresses are not valid. So Patch was raised by herself (i thought she was a Drake for so long until 2 weeks ago when she started laying eggs). Her only companions where the cats and dogs! Who she loves so much. The cats where kittens when we got her and they grew together. On hot summer days they would lay by her pull and she would curl up with them. They have a lasting friendship. I knew though that she needed some of her own kind to be the best duck she could be. She loves her treats and loves to dive to get them in her pool. Shes not to happy that winter hit so hard that it froze her pool! So being the good mama i am, i started bring her inside to swim in the bathtub, and of course she loves it. I've noticed people saying that ducks don't love to swim but Patch loves it. She cant get enough of the water. She was very unhappy in her little plastic pond so we bought her a large pool eight feet around and three feet deep. She was in heaven and refused to leave lol.
SO now a year later, when the stores are selling ducks and chicks again, I picked some up. Three lovely little blue Swedish to join her. These ducklings are about a week old, they too enjoy there short times in the water (i fill up the kitchen sink or the tub with just enough water to get their little feet wet and they try to jet through it, almost like frogs! Its adorable. Even have videos of it

Anyways I have the ducklings set up in a dog crate inside the house. With food and water all the stuff they need. I've been taking the crate outside so they can get some air and feel the sun. Just as I did with Patch as a duckling. Only now I have to watch out because Patch has been super aggressive! I am sure it has to do with her being alone for so long. I was told by a friend of mine who has ducks to place them next to her enclosure in the crate to maybe see if that would help. It seemed to, until today. I had placed them next to the enclosure like I have for the last couple of days as I did my rounds. Collecting eggs from the chickens, looking in Patches pin for eggs... Oddly she has started to hide them. She is smart as smart can be, she just started laying eggs 2 weeks ago and all the sudden with in the last couple of days she has either A. stopped laying or B. been hiding them so we cant get to them. The ground is frozen sooo the make shift coop (a cat house of all things lol) cant be moved and you cant reach into it to check because it curves. Which makes me think thats where she is laying them.... sorry off topic!
After I checked the Chickens and fed them, I picked up a duckling out of the crate and held it. Was petting it til it wanted down again (as i am doing this Patch is having a fit. quacking up a storm. flapping her wings) I went in for a second and she was pacing where the crate was. Then when I entered her pin today to try and check for eggs... She started puffing her feathers at me and charged... something I've deal with in the chickens but never ever with Patch! Her neck was almost vibrating it looked like and she lunged at my neck (cause i was bent down trying to see if she layed any eggs). I stood up showed her my hands like... hey buddy its ok... she looked at me side ways calmed down to her normal self and rubbed up against my leg... lol i sware she gets the from the cats. Honestly she has never ever shown this behavior before. Is it because she saw me hold a duckling? How do I really need to go about introducing them to her? I don't want to give this idea of her having friends of her own species just yet. Any Thoughts?

 

[Duckhatcher123]

some poultry don't like each other if they weren't introduced to each other young

 

[lilbellalovesducks]

some poultry don't like each other if they weren't introduced to each other young

so she may never like other ducks?

 

[Duckhatcher123]

From what i know of unless she's been introduced to other ducks before

 

[lilbellalovesducks]

From what i know of unless she's been introduced to other ducks before

She had a duck friend when she was younger but it passed away. When she was maybe 2mo

 

[Miss Lydia]

She most likely will accept them but it's going to take time. Keep doing what your doing on nice warm days take the ducklings out where she can see them then when they are older and better able to stay away from her if she act aggressive you can start taking them out and with your supervision let them all be together on neutral ground not in Patches pen. Hopefully once they get to her size she'll have made friends with them and they will have become one flock. She sees the ducklings as outsiders and a threat now.

 

[Quirky Quail]

I brought some duck eggs home from my work experience placement back in 2013 and put them under a broody chicken. Two hatched out but one died shortly after hatching so the one got taken out and put in a brooder. We then bought 2 Cochin chicks to live with him (he turned out to be a drake) and he grew up with chickens. then in 2015 we hatched out 2 more ducklings (a drake and a duck) When we introduced them to the lone drake (who up until then had been our only duck) he was very confused but now he lives with 15 other ducks and still prefers to try and mate with the chickens. From experience I'd say just let them establish a pecking order and intervene if it gets too hairy.

 

[blayt90]

She most likely will accept them but it's going to take time. Keep doing what your doing on nice warm days take the ducklings out where she can see them then when they are older and better able to stay away from her if she act aggressive you can start taking them out and with your supervision let them all be together on neutral ground not in Patches pen. Hopefully once they get to her size she'll have made friends with them and they will have become one flock. She sees the ducklings as outsiders and a threat now.

What she said...