HELP me please fellow duck owners..

[caitlinms]

This might be a long post, but I really need your input. I just hatched 6 duck eggs in an incubator a week ago today (they are doing great) after their mother got hit in the road a week before their hatching (learned my lesson, no more free ranging ducks) At the same time I had another duck sitting in a plywood type enclosure I thought was secure in the pole barn, she hatched 10 babies on Monday. This morning I woke up to check on the babies and mom in the barn, and there was mom all alone, 4 babies dead and 6 missing. I am DEVESTATED, I have been crying and feel so guilty for not protecting them better. So now I have this momma (shes a pastel call duck) and I have the 6 babies that have been in the house with me...If I put them together (the babies are a week old) will they take to her? Will she take to them? I am getting with someone Sunday who makes duck pens so they have a more secure home, but I am just wondering if anyone has put ducklings with a hen who wasnt their mother and how that worked out. We think it was some kind of weasel possibly that got in the duck cage. I thought it was secure because all sides of it went down into the ground and it was where I had locked up my adult ducks every night for the last year... Guess the babys peeping drew something in. Anyone with any advice I would greatly appreciate... I am just so sad and unsure of what to do.

 

[sourland]

sorry for the circumstances. It is possible that she might accept the ducklings and that they might eventually imprint on her, but if you try monitor the integration carefully. Is there a top on your pen?

 

[Miss Lydia]

This might be a long post, but I really need your input. I just hatched 6 duck eggs in an incubator a week ago today (they are doing great) after their mother got hit in the road a week before their hatching (learned my lesson, no more free ranging ducks) At the same time I had another duck sitting in a plywood type enclosure I thought was secure in the pole barn, she hatched 10 babies on Monday. This morning I woke up to check on the babies and mom in the barn, and there was mom all alone, 4 babies dead and 6 missing. I am DEVESTATED, I have been crying and feel so guilty for not protecting them better. So now I have this momma (shes a pastel call duck) and I have the 6 babies that have been in the house with me...If I put them together (the babies are a week old) will they take to her? Will she take to them? I am getting with someone Sunday who makes duck pens so they have a more secure home, but I am just wondering if anyone has put ducklings with a hen who wasnt their mother and how that worked out. We think it was some kind of weasel possibly that got in the duck cage. I thought it was secure because all sides of it went down into the ground and it was where I had locked up my adult ducks every night for the last year... Guess the babys peeping drew something in. Anyone with any advice I would greatly appreciate... I am just so sad and unsure of what to do.

So sorry for your losses, I just lost 2 ducklings this week one my gander accidently stepped on then my dachshund killed it's sibling. so i can understand exactly what your going through. But now you have to focus on helping the ducklings and mama duck. Glad to hear your getting your run and coop better secured that will help with losses. If you decide to try putting ducklings with this mama, maybe do it at night after all have gone to bed. Put you hand completely over duckling when gently putting under mama duck that way if she peeks she'll get you and not the duckling, then wait awhile and listen to be sure she doesn't attack them. them being 1 week old may not work because imprinting begins at hatch, but you never know.

then if you don't hear anything that makes you suspect she maybe hurting them, wait till dawn the next morning and go out and watch to make sure all is well. Hope it works out for them and her. please let us know. AND

 

[RileyB]

I'm so sorry for your losses...I lost my first duck this week as well. It is very sad. When I expressed how guilty I felt about "allowing" a predator to get my duck (I figured the pen was very secure...but I was wrong) someone posted some great advice to me...we plan the best we can, but things like this are just learning experiences. While it is unfortunate, you are learning from it and already taking steps to make sure they will be more secure in the future.

 

[caitlinms]

Thanks for the support everyone! We worked all day and built a structure that is up off the ground on stilts, with plywood floor and sides, with chicken wire covering the entire top. Also has two sides made of chicken wire for air flow, and a plywood door on hinges. Its about a 5'x8' ish square so should be a good amount of room for my momma and 6 babies. She is already starting to take to them well (we kept them together all day while we built the cage). She stays right with them and got upset when I started picking them up. She definetly is more interested in them then they are in her, but hopefully with time they will all be friends. I put rubber grate type mats down on the floor and covered those in newspaper. I plan on only letting them out of the cage in the evening for about an hour of supervised free-range and swimming time since we dont have any kind of run at this time. Its not a cage youd see in a magazine but we made it with scraps we had and made it as solid and secure as we could, so youre right, we are now doing the best we can, too bad it took such a tragedy to get this to happen. I would have put them together at night but I just couldnt stand the thought of my momma being all alone today So praying they all accept eachother as family! Thanks again for your support...

 

[Miss Lydia]

Thanks for the support everyone! We worked all day and built a structure that is up off the ground on stilts, with plywood floor and sides, with chicken wire covering the entire top. Also has two sides made of chicken wire for air flow, and a plywood door on hinges. Its about a 5'x8' ish square so should be a good amount of room for my momma and 6 babies. She is already starting to take to them well (we kept them together all day while we built the cage). She stays right with them and got upset when I started picking them up. She definetly is more interested in them then they are in her, but hopefully with time they will all be friends. I put rubber grate type mats down on the floor and covered those in newspaper. I plan on only letting them out of the cage in the evening for about an hour of supervised free-range and swimming time since we dont have any kind of run at this time. Its not a cage youd see in a magazine but we made it with scraps we had and made it as solid and secure as we could, so youre right, we are now doing the best we can, too bad it took such a tragedy to get this to happen. I would have put them together at night but I just couldnt stand the thought of my momma being all alone today So praying they all accept eachother as family! Thanks again for your support...

So glad it's working out. now about newspaper, not good for young ducklings, can cause spraddle legs because they can't get a good foot hold and their legs will splay out. I'd go for pine shaving or some other kind of bedding.