Introducing ducklings to a small, existing flock

[publicradio]

I have a flock of two hens and one drake, and I also have 9 ducklings that are about a month old. First, the ducklings were inside the house, then in the greenhouse. Now, the ducklings stay in the run during the day, and the adults are in the pasture. At night, the ducklings sleep in the coop and the adults sleep in the run. So they're aware of each other.

The couple times I've let the ducklings out in the pasture, the drake has immediately started chasing them. And one time, I had a couple on the opposite side of the fence and it seemed like the drake was trying to get at them. I'm not sure what he would do if he got them, but I don't think I want to find out.

So the question is how to get these ducks to acclimate and get along.

 

[AgnesGray]

I wondered the same thing as we had our first ducklings to integrate to an existing flock this spring. Turns out, with a drake in the flock, the ducklings need to reach full sexual maturity before integration. This was proven to me when my non-flying drake used all of his might to flap those wings and get over the fence and into the kiddie pool with my 2.5 month ducklings and try to get with the new girl. Fortunately I was not far away, grabbed him right out of the pool and put him into the coop before putting up a taller fence between the ducklings and the grownups.

They are feisty and determined and don't care if the littles are underage so we have to look out for them.

 

[Miss Lydia]

I wondered the same thing as we had our first ducklings to integrate to an existing flock this spring. Turns out, with a drake in the flock, the ducklings need to reach full sexual maturity before integration. This was proven to me when my non-flying drake used all of his might to flap those wings and get over the fence and into the kiddie pool with my 2.5 month ducklings and try to get with the new girl. Fortunately I was not far away, grabbed him right out of the pool and put him into the coop before putting up a taller fence between the ducklings and the grownups.

They are feisty and determined and don't care if the littles are underage so we have to look out for them.