Mother duck attacking newly hatched ducklings

[kaumlauf]

Our mother duck (Blue Swede), brooded a large nest of eggs (12) and now they are hatching. She has been good with the first one, but is now attacking the others, that are only a couple of hours old. ..pecking at them very forcefully. Now what? It's her first batch (and, she kept re-arranging her eggs and nest, for weeks- taking some eggs out, then putting them back in, and then moving the entire nest around the pen (10 x 10'). Help!

 

[Silkies~Polishes]

She sounds stressed to me, especially if she is moving her nest, which a mother will do if she does not feel safe, many animals will get to the point where they just eat their babies even though they know are theirs. Is there anything outside the pen that could be stressing her? Dogs, predators? What about in the pen? Is she with any other birds?

 

[Sparrow]

Personally, if she is that agitated, I'd just take the babies and raise them myself.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Our mother duck (Blue Swede), brooded a large nest of eggs (12) and now they are hatching. She has been good with the first one, but is now attacking the others, that are only a couple of hours old. ..pecking at them very forcefully. Now what? It's her first batch (and, she kept re-arranging her eggs and nest, for weeks- taking some eggs out, then putting them back in, and then moving the entire nest around the pen (10 x 10'). Help!

How are things this morning? has she settled down at all, sometimes the best broodies in the world just don't have a clue when it comes to hatching ducklings, they freak out and start attacking, I happened here. I ended up having to take the only duckling that survived, but I have heard that sometimes after they get settled they will care for their ducklings, it's usually first time mamas that seem to have the problems. That's why I only give my first times 4 eggs to sit on so they aren't so over whelmed. Hope things are quieted down now.

.

 

[HollyDuckFarmer]

If your gut is telling you that your duck mom really isn't doing a good job, then I would take them away, myself. I have seen a very good mom sort of peck at her babies, but aggressive pecking is a totally different thing. I'd take the ducklings.

 

[jeri l]

My Swedish hen pushed every single newly hatched baby out of the nest. Every morning when I came out to check things, I found a few newly hatched babies, dead, outside the nest. Five in all! It was very sad. I took all remaining eggs away from her and placed them under a different hen. She obviously was not ready to be a mother.

 

[Miss Lydia]

My Swedish hen pushed every single newly hatched baby out of the nest. Every morning when I came out to check things, I found a few newly hatched babies, dead, outside the nest. Five in all! It was very sad. I took all remaining eggs away from her and placed them under a different hen. She obviously was not ready to be a mother.

Had the same thing happen but thank goodness we were able to save one, she was determined to kill him though. Next year she was a wonderful mama.

 

[seaneduck]

I had a duck do that this year. The last two years she has raised 8-9 babies just fine, but this year she had one hatch and she drug it out of the next to the edge of the pen and left it to die (which it did). Then two more babies hatched and she kept them under her dry, warm and safe. The fourth one hatched and she drug it out to the edge of the pen and left it to die, but I found it in time and brought it back from the brink. Since I didn't want it to be alone, I kidnapped the other two she "liked" and am not raising all three indoors. Don't really know what happened this year that was different from her two previous hatches in years prior.

 

[Miss Lydia]

I had a duck do that this year. The last two years she has raised 8-9 babies just fine, but this year she had one hatch and she drug it out of the next to the edge of the pen and left it to die (which it did). Then two more babies hatched and she kept them under her dry, warm and safe. The fourth one hatched and she drug it out to the edge of the pen and left it to die, but I found it in time and brought it back from the brink. Since I didn't want it to be alone, I kidnapped the other two she "liked" and am not raising all three indoors. Don't really know what happened this year that was different from her two previous hatches in years prior.

Hard to figure them out sometimes.