How to Safely mark Ducklings for sex identification

[Candida]

i just received 11 cayuga ducklings from McMurray. I am keeping three and selling the rest and I wanted to mark the three that i purchased for myself. The three that were sexed have little bands on their ankles that need to come off in the next few days so i want to mark them. Anyone know of a safe way to do that?

oh and if anyone can tell me how to post a picture on here I would love to show you my babies!

Thanks!

 

[DuckLady]

If you can find them, use zip ties that you can cut off and replace as they grow.
Or maybe some neon green non toxic marker. We had some ducklings I marked with a swipe of a red non toxic marker on the head. You don't want to soak the marker into the down, just a swipe will do the trick and you can reapply as needed.

 

[Candida]

i love the zip tie idea! awesome!!! Thank you so much! I love this forum !

 

[Dances with Ducks]

Oh yes please post some pics!!

Click on uploads in the blue bar at the top of all the BYC pages.
Click the browse button and you can search your computer for pics.
Copy the image text into your message.
Hope that makes sense.

 

[Candida]

right out of the shipping box !

in my homemade brooder

our cat Luna with Nevermore...she is trying to feed him!

Raven in the yard

 

[Dances with Ducks]

How precious! Looks like they have lots of mama lovin!!

 

[FenDruadin]

Zip ties! I wish I'd thought of that. Last year, we tried to keep track of four geese with "permanent" marker. I replaced that stuff three times a day, and STILL eventually lost track because it would wash off with their constant bathing. In the end, I gave away two of them (had always planned to share them with a friend), and she eventually gave them away yet again when they became aggressive with her children, and only later did we discover that the two I kept are both boys. Sigh. Wish I'd thought of zip ties!!

 

[Duck Keeper]

If you're into permanent marking, you can punch a tiny hole in the web of their feet with a special tool designed for birds. It only hurts for about five seconds, and then you dip it in iodine to prevent infections. Best to do it as early as possible to make sure they forget, because it'll just heal over as adults, meaning you'll need to re-punch again some time.



But I just use zip ties.

Clip and remove as needed, make sure to keep them much larger than you would think; ducks don't fold their feet up to slip it off. Just make sure not to have it so loose that they can work their beak under it and get caught. Plus if it's loose, you can use scissors easier.

They're nice because you can buy different colors and color code your babies too.

 

[Sunny Side Up]

If you want to get fancy, you can order bands from hatcheries or other poultry/livestock suppliers. But why would you want to when you can use zip-ties instead?

zip ties

duct tape

 

[Duck Keeper]

It's a nice idea to order leg bands when your birds are adults, so you have an idea of sizes, or to get the kind that you can custom fit as babies, remove easily, enlarge and replace.

Also you could use wing bands? Again with the piercing of the wing skin though... I don't know anything about them, so I don't THINK you can use them on ducks, but I'm sure people have.

I've noticed chick/ens have a larger flap of skin from their body to their 'elbow(?)' than ducklings do.