How to integrate late hatched ducklings with others.

[The_spice_girls]

Hello all,

We let our 2 Khaki Campbells incubate their eggs. 15 hatched last weekend 5/31, but 2 of the eggs must have been rolled in from our other ducks late, since they didn’t hatch. I put them in a homemade incubator since the mothers abandoned the nest. They just hatched yesterday and today.

My question is, how should I go about giving the two ducklings back to the mothers. Should I wait a few days for the ducklings to regain some strength? I’m mostly worried that they are a week behind the other 15 and smaller, and maybe the mothers won’t look out for them. We live in Southern Michigan, so day time temps are in the 70s and lows are in the 50s.

Thank you for any help!

 

[Sc_chickengirl]

You can try to give them to the mothers but broody babies are tough so they may have a tough time being so much smaller.
If I were you I would probably just set up a brooder for them.

 

[The_spice_girls]

We ended up setting up a brooder. We tried to integrate them in but the mothers kept pushing one of them down and pecking, so they’re both together in the brooder now.

 

[Luv Ducks]

We ended up setting up a brooder. We tried to integrate them in but the mothers kept pushing one of them down and pecking, so they’re both together in the brooder now.

I am glad that you made that decision. I had two born in my house from my incubator 9 days apart and it took 5 days of separation and watching them constantly to put them together. They are best friends now and 2 months old. I wasn't sure at first if I was ever going to be able to do it.

 

[The_spice_girls]

I am glad that you made that decision. I had two born in my house from my incubator 9 days apart and it took 5 days of separation and watching them constantly to put them together. They are best friends now and 2 months old. I wasn't sure at first if I was ever going to be able to do it.

Hopefully we’ll get to a point where the moms won’t care as much. We’ve tried a couple times now, and the moms are extremely aggressive. They honestly seem like they want to kill them. We will likely have to find a home for them if it doesn’t change once they’re fully grown.

 

[Luv Ducks]

Hopefully we’ll get to a point where the moms won’t care as much. We’ve tried a couple times now, and the moms are extremely aggressive. They honestly seem like they want to kill them. We will likely have to find a home for them if it doesn’t change once they’re fully grown.

Once they are fully grown and you have lots of room for them all I think they will get along fine. Right now they probably feel like they are invaders going to hurt their babies since they don't recognize them as their own.