How to make my duck more friendly

[PippyChicken]

I have raised my duck since he was a baby and given him time and care but he still always runs away from me!! He is a week old. Is there anyway I can make him more friendly?

 

[Amiga]

Aside from making sure he gets good nutrition, a safe warm place, and enough water, you can begin to give him a few - not too many - treats. Check out the sticky about treats. Be careful! Not everything is a good idea for wee little ones.

Spending time with him will help. I mean, like, half an hour three times a day at least. Waiting for him to come to you as you sit next to a treat may help. I would talk to my ducklings, sing to them, lie down on the floor and watch them without reaching for them. They are grown now, and very sweet, sometimes coming up for hugs. But they go through phases when they act terrified of their people. Patience makes a big difference for people and ducks!

Take care of yourself and duckie, too!

 

[katharinad]

That is normal, you just have to keep on working with the duck. BTW they get a major bloody murder phase when they are around 6 weeks old.

 

[DanceswLabs]

Yep....my babies are about 6-7 weeks old, and they think I am the duck equivalent of Colonel Sanders. I hope they grow out of it! I am bribing them with peas.

 

[destinduck]

It takes lots of patience. stay as close to him as you can and spend as much time as you can with him. every ones advice is correct. most of my ducks are considered wild type but by spending lots of time with them when I call them for feeding " hey babies". They litterly fly up in my face and all underfoot. As he gets older he will warm up to you.

 

[FenDruadin]

When you change his food, offer it in the palm of your hand first. The friendliest ducks I ever met were some that were raised in a classroom (the teacher bought the eggs & hatching kit from me, kept the ducklings for a couple weeks in the classroom, and then returned the babies to me). They were handled all day long and the children were constantly offering them their food in the palms of their little hands.

Good luck.