Mean drake

[Nana of the ducks]

I have 4 mallards. 3 girls 1 boy. They have been together from the beginning. Oldest 3 years. Lately Harry has been picking on one of the girls. Does not seem like he is trying to mate. He will grab her by the tail and pull out feathers. If she comes around the group he chases her away.this is a new happening.
Any thoughts on this

 

[Jenbirdee]

breeding season they go insane. you’d have to separate him from the group for a while ( drake jail) his own space where he can see but not touch. many drakes are sent to freezer camp for bad behavior
@Miss Lydia

 

[nao57]

breeding season they go insane. you’d have to separate him from the group for a while ( drake jail) his own space where he can see but not touch. many drakes are sent to freezer camp for bad behavior
@Miss Lydia

Freezer camp ... LOL. That's an interesting way to put it.

 

[nao57]

I've had my troubles with bad drakes also. You can keep them separate. Signs you can watch for in the future are if they are grieving certain hens too much. AN example; 1 drake I had kept trying to mate too much with 1 hen, even though there were other hens and it kept injuring her. I separated him first to try that and then gradually let them mix again. He kept repeating it, so he went to 'freezer camp'.

But you can try stuff before sending them to freezer camp. But its not worth losing a hen over a bad drake. People give away male drakes all the time, but don't usually give away the hens. For that reason you can try to just get a replacement drake. I also would not have very many drakes. I tried to only have 1 or 2 drakes per like 8+ hens. If I had 5 hens or less you can have 1 drake only. But a problem with only 1 drake is that if something happens to him then there's a chance in the future you might not be able to get other ducks if the economy continues to destabilize.

 

[Nana of the ducks]

He is not trying to mate her. He separates her from the group then goes back with the other 2. Freezer camp is not a option. He is a pet but I feel bad for Katie who he is chasing away

 

[Awaytome]

I think it isn't unusual for a drake to pick favorites and protect resources for them. The favored ducks, in my experience, enjoy being at the top of the pecking order and make the most of it. I have nine ducks to one drake now and even if he favors a few, the underlings have each other. I have two feeders, two pools and multiple water buckets so he can't hoard all the resources for his favorites. The drake I have now is actually very nice and I've never seen him being mean to any of the ducks. Maybe he has a hard time telling them all apart!

 

[Miss Lydia]

Sorry, I am just getting here I have been working on separating my group 3 Runner drakes and their females .

I would separate him from the group, you may have to clip one wing to keep him in drake jail but you don't want him to be able to fly in with the girls. Keep them separated for at least a week then reintroduce them back to him starting with the one he has been picking on first let them be together for a few days as long [as he isn't pulling her feathers out] then introduce him and that female back to the other 2. Sometimes just shaking things up a bit can settle things down.

@Nana of the ducks you sure she is healthy? Sometimes when one is sick or injured they will do this trying to chase off that one to keep predators at bay. That is just instinct.

 

[Nana of the ducks]

Sounds good. She seams healthy. Eating, drinking and swimming

 

[Miss Lydia]

At this point all you can do is try and hopefully, it will work. I can understand not sending him to freezer camp that is how I ended up with 3 Runner drakes. I let them come into this world they are my responsibility.
Wouldn't it be nice if you could sit down with your drake and get him to tell you why all of a sudden he has it in for one of his girls? I would like to know why after being together for 3 yrs he has something agin her lol