khaki campbell ducklings-HELP

[leslie harris]

i will try to make this short as possible- i have a khaki campbell female that decided she was going to brood on her eggs- she had hidden the nest up in a large mint bush, so it was about a week before i found it. i let her stay on it , and 7 ducklings hatched yesterday. all of my ducks live in a 7 acre pasture with a pond. i have 2 other khaki campbell's and 10 pekin (all of which were hatched from eggs). i am totally used to taking care of duckilings, but not ducklings and their mama. i always keep my ducklings separated from the rest of the ducks until they are about 3 months old. then they go out to the pond with the others. from everything i have read, it was best to separate these ducklings from the rest of the ducks (and geese) for their safety. but i didn't want to leave the mama behind. so i gathered them all and took them to the large pen area we use for the other ducklings- we put them up at night in a large cage to keep them safe and they have always done well there. my concern is for the mama- she is used to being down at the pond. with the others ducklings i have had, i would put them in my bathtub a couple times a day till they were a week or two old, then put a pool with a ramp inside their fenced area. they all learned to go in and out of it, is the mama ok being in a fenced area for several months as we wait for these to get their adult feathers? also, i have always hatched eggs in the spring- nights were chili, so i had a lamp on them and didn't put them out to the pond till they were 3 months old. these have their mom to do that (and its hot here now). i just want to make sure she is comfortable too and i do everything i need to do for her. i have always fed my ducks once a day- and they forge the rest of the day. i will keep food and water out there as i have done before. anything else i need to be doing? she had 4 eggs that had not hatched at the same time yesterday as the others- i also took those eggs up to the pen and when i went out there this morning, she was laying on them with the rest of the babies under her. should i leave them with her for a few more days or remove them? i appreciate any advice or knowledge you can share. thanks!

 

[Duckworth]

@Miss Lydia

 

[ValerieJ]

I don't know so much about ducks, but when my broody hen had chicks, I left them with her outside. She defended them from other hens in the beginning, but I did finally separate them all and gave her a peaceful coop and run to raise her chicks. Is there a way to fence off an area for the duck and her ducklings outside, with a coop of her own? Not sure she will like being in a garage for 3 months.

 

[PirateGirl]

I would leave the eggs with her another day or two. Try to candle them. If they are alive, at this stage, you should definitely see movement. If not, take them. My broody cares more about the unhatched eggs that were left than her newly hatched babies. It was better once the dud eggs were gone. I don’t know if this is normal, but sitting on eggs that will never hatch and may be rotten is not good.

Overall it sounds like they have a good setup. Mama will keep them warm enough. Make sure they have a wind block and some shade. I think she will be ok without the pond because she will be preoccupied with her babies. I let mine mingle recently when the ducklings turned about 3.5 weeks. I thought it would be ok, but it was not. Mama fought a big duck (doing her job to protect the babies, but still not good to have a serious fight), then one of the ducklings got caught and dragged around by the drake and it was almost real bad. Just be careful and judge their behavior. Have fun with them!

 

[leslie harris]

I don't know so much about ducks, but when my broody hen had chicks, I left them with her outside. She defended them from other hens in the beginning, but I did finally separate them all and gave her a peaceful coop and run to raise her chicks. Is there a way to fence off an area for the duck and her ducklings outside, with a coop of her own? Not sure she will like being in a garage for 3 months.

they aren't in the garage- they are in an outdoor fenced in area- with 1/3 being shaded-i put them up at night in a small coup to keep them safe. but it is up by the house and nowhere near the pond. but i knew they wouldn't make it with 12 other ducks down there and 12+ large geese. i will just take care of them in that area until i have to move them to larger area when they get bigger. i don't plan to put them back in the pasture/pond until they are around 3 months old and are big enough to defend themselves. i have just never had to do this with a mom included. but from what i am reading she will be fine without the pond for a while, as long as i provide food and water.

 

[leslie harris]

I would leave the eggs with her another day or two. Try to candle them. If they are alive, at this stage, you should definitely see movement. If not, take them. My broody cares more about the unhatched eggs that were left than her newly hatched babies. It was better once the dud eggs were gone. I don’t know if this is normal, but sitting on eggs that will never hatch and may be rotten is not good.

Overall it sounds like they have a good setup. Mama will keep them warm enough. Make sure they have a wind block and some shade. I think she will be ok without the pond because she will be preoccupied with her babies. I let mine mingle recently when the ducklings turned about 3.5 weeks. I thought it would be ok, but it was not. Mama fought a big duck (doing her job to protect the babies, but still not good to have a serious fight), then one of the ducklings got caught and dragged around by the drake and it was almost real bad. Just be careful and judge their behavior. Have fun with them!

i will check the eggs later today- thanks for letting me know. they have plenty of shade and a wind block- there is a shed with an overhang attached to the fenced in area. i will just keep them separated like i did my ducking before and introduce them in 3 months- they were large enough to defend themselves at that age. thanks so much for the feedback

 

[chickens really]

I definitely don't bother with the other eggs if Momma has the babies up and about. I lock my Hen in with her Ducklings and provide feed and water. I feed my Hen and Ducklings starter feed to help momma build back up the weight she lost setting. The Ducklings can swim in a rubber livestock bowl without drowning.

 

[ValerieJ]

they aren't in the garage- they are in an outdoor fenced in area- with 1/3 being shaded-i put them up at night in a small coup to keep them safe. but it is up by the house and nowhere near the pond. but i knew they wouldn't make it with 12 other ducks down there and 12+ large geese. i will just take care of them in that area until i have to move them to larger area when they get bigger. i don't plan to put them back in the pasture/pond until they are around 3 months old and are big enough to defend themselves. i have just never had to do this with a mom included. but from what i am reading she will be fine without the pond for a while, as long as i provide food and water.

Oh that's great. I shouldn't try to catch up with BYC at 4:30 in the morning before I've had coffee. Somehow I misunderstood. I think you have received a bunch of good advice from people who were more awake this morning.