Hi everyone! Glad to have found this forum by Google searching about ducks. There is so much very helpful & important info here that every time I searched something about ducks, this forum came up so I thought it wise to join the flock. 
I kind of did this backwards because I replied to thread to ask some questions before introducing myself. If anyone is able to provide answer to my questions I'd appreciate it. That post is here: https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/niacin-deficiency-in-waterfowl.1367557/post-24814301
I'm new to being caregiver to ducks. It's a long story how I got into this role but I'll try to make it short. My neighbor across busy street has ducks, chickens & geese. She had trio that was raised together, 1 male Muscovy, 1 male White Crested, 1 female Muscovy. For some reason they decided they liked my yard & modified bird fountain with kiddie pool under it. They would cross the street daily, spend all day here & then go home for the night. They also liked foraging under my bird feeders where there was lots of worms, bugs & seeds & cover from hawks. I got to where I loved watching them & called them the 3 amigos. I got so attached to them, I became the duck crossing guard & would make sure they got back across the busy road safely by standing in road & stopping traffic if needed. They crossed right over the crest of a small hill so cars couldn't see them quick enough to stop. Very dangerous spot to cross. They almost had a schedule I could count on. lol
The female started sitting on eggs so she stopped coming over with the other 2 who stopped staying very here very long. They got off schedule & she decided to cross the road at rush hour around 530pm. Sorry to have to report I didn't see her crossing & she got run over & killed.
After that the other 2 stopped coming over which is actually a good thing. But I missed watching those ducks so much I decided to get some of my own. And that's how I got into being a duck caregiver.
I now have 6 drake Muscovy's. Another long story I'll skip this time, but plan on trying to have all male flock. I kinda feel bad they won't get to mate not only because it's amazing, fun & scary to watch but feel like they're missing out on part of life. Their ages are unknown but they're all at least 8-10, maybe 12 weeks old, maybe. They came from different broods so are different ages.
Now instead of being a duck crossing guard I'm a hawk watcher. It's a smaller hawk, possibly Coopers Hawk. She/he likes sitting on the high transmission tall power pole across the side street. When it's not there is when I worry. I put them into protected house at night but want them to be able to free range during day. I have a day "run" under my 30' x 8' deck where I can pen them in when needed, if the hawk is on the prowl or for place to chill and they'll be protected. They're almost big enough & stay grouped up that I'm feeling better about letting them out when I'm not outside to hawk watch or so I hope. I just fear that when they get done swimming they preen right where it's easy for the hawk to get them. I keep telling them they're in the hawk danger zone & try to get them to preen elsewhere. They don't seem to want to listen to me though.
So I sit there hawk watching until they're done preening.
So that's my story & I apologize for the length of my post but you'll find I'm pretty wordy.
If you have any questions, advice or comments, I welcome them and I'll do my best to keep my answers as short as I'm able. lol
I kind of did this backwards because I replied to thread to ask some questions before introducing myself. If anyone is able to provide answer to my questions I'd appreciate it. That post is here: https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/niacin-deficiency-in-waterfowl.1367557/post-24814301
I'm new to being caregiver to ducks. It's a long story how I got into this role but I'll try to make it short. My neighbor across busy street has ducks, chickens & geese. She had trio that was raised together, 1 male Muscovy, 1 male White Crested, 1 female Muscovy. For some reason they decided they liked my yard & modified bird fountain with kiddie pool under it. They would cross the street daily, spend all day here & then go home for the night. They also liked foraging under my bird feeders where there was lots of worms, bugs & seeds & cover from hawks. I got to where I loved watching them & called them the 3 amigos. I got so attached to them, I became the duck crossing guard & would make sure they got back across the busy road safely by standing in road & stopping traffic if needed. They crossed right over the crest of a small hill so cars couldn't see them quick enough to stop. Very dangerous spot to cross. They almost had a schedule I could count on. lol
The female started sitting on eggs so she stopped coming over with the other 2 who stopped staying very here very long. They got off schedule & she decided to cross the road at rush hour around 530pm. Sorry to have to report I didn't see her crossing & she got run over & killed.
After that the other 2 stopped coming over which is actually a good thing. But I missed watching those ducks so much I decided to get some of my own. And that's how I got into being a duck caregiver.I now have 6 drake Muscovy's. Another long story I'll skip this time, but plan on trying to have all male flock. I kinda feel bad they won't get to mate not only because it's amazing, fun & scary to watch but feel like they're missing out on part of life. Their ages are unknown but they're all at least 8-10, maybe 12 weeks old, maybe. They came from different broods so are different ages.
Now instead of being a duck crossing guard I'm a hawk watcher. It's a smaller hawk, possibly Coopers Hawk. She/he likes sitting on the high transmission tall power pole across the side street. When it's not there is when I worry. I put them into protected house at night but want them to be able to free range during day. I have a day "run" under my 30' x 8' deck where I can pen them in when needed, if the hawk is on the prowl or for place to chill and they'll be protected. They're almost big enough & stay grouped up that I'm feeling better about letting them out when I'm not outside to hawk watch or so I hope. I just fear that when they get done swimming they preen right where it's easy for the hawk to get them. I keep telling them they're in the hawk danger zone & try to get them to preen elsewhere. They don't seem to want to listen to me though.
So I sit there hawk watching until they're done preening.So that's my story & I apologize for the length of my post but you'll find I'm pretty wordy.
If you have any questions, advice or comments, I welcome them and I'll do my best to keep my answers as short as I'm able. lol
Glad you joined.
Hello and welcome to BYC, You found an Amazing Poultry Community to be a part of with many great knowledgeable members, who are more then willing to jump in and help you along your journey with any questions you may have. 
