Mandarin Ducks

[Chickorita]

Hello, this is my first post as a newbie to this forum

Today we picked up my pair of Mandarin Ducks. The previous owner hatched them late 2012 so they are a little over a year old.
He seemed a very nice/genuine guy however he mentioned that they were a bit scatty but that they would calm down once they were settled.
Having spent some time watching them this afternoon they do seem very panicked and very flappy/jumpy. I get the impression that they aren't very tame and will require a lot of time in this respect. This isn't a problem for us as they are very much a pet and I am happy to put the work in but I'm wondering how would be best to go about it and whether it will be more difficult due to the fact that they are already over a year old?

Thanks in advance

 

[Tuhmu]

Just sitting by their enclosure and talking to them or reading to them is a good start, once they settle down, start offering treats. Hope this helps.

 

[Tuhmu]

Welcome to byc too

 

[Chickorita]

Thank you. This is what we do with our new hens although these ducks seem a lot more skittish than any new hen we have had.
This afternoon if you got within a few feet of their enclosure they would make a noise, flap frantically and jump up against the netting on the roof of their enclosure in a bid to escape! I'm pretty sure that if they got out they would be an absolute nightmare to catch or possibly even escape from our garden completely. I dont intend to keep them penned in long term so im hoping we can help to calm them down quite quickly.

 

[Tuhmu]

Hope it works out for you, they are such a beautiful breed and would be amazing having some around your property that enjoy your company! So jealous

 

[Chickorita]

I will try and get a picture of them tomorrow. If they stop flapping for long enough. I've read some conflicting past threads on here regarding the same issue so I guess I will have to persevere and hope I can tame them a little.

 

[laughingdog]

From what I've read on more exotics like mandarins, is they don't do good to tame at all unless they were raised with/by you. you could try tossing bait store night crawlers rinsed and cleansed/purged of excrement (if don't your feeding disease pathagens parisites pesticides chemicals ect,that your ducks may react bad to), closer and closer until eating out of lap as drop, then they may take from hand. Or good cover in naturalistic large pen, may get them comfy to breed, then take clutch and brood under foster scovy so the young will grow up knowing your flock member and not predator by their instincts. then eat sell or just breed from parent flock. lol

 

[CrazyDuckFarms]

Mandarins are a wild non native duck that is from China. These kind of wild ducks do not tame well like you say a domestic duck. I have had both woodies ( cousins of mandarins ) and mandarins and they are a breed that will take a lot of time to calm. Mine took 6 months. They do not like to be held they like to be left alone and love to hide and fly into trees and lay their eggs in small enclosures off the ground. If pinned they will not be able to do this so a small box hidden away will do. Raising them from young makes it easier for them to acclimate to you and your routine. It takes time. They are more for looks than for cuddling. Not that it cant be done- but keep in mind they are not domesticated.just do research and apply it! Anyways good luck!

 

[CrazyDuckFarms]

They also do well with other fowl ( ducks ) as long as they are not aggressive. But i would keep them around other ducks according to size and not have them room with a Egyptian goose or something! Lol