Muscovy duck trying to attack me?

[Bc-Ducks]

I try to gather the eggs as soon as I can, but sometimes I'm unable to get them until later. Sometimes some of the eggs aren't under her, though there is usually at least one. I also would not gather them if she refused to move off them, however as soon as she sees me starting to get close, she leaves them in a huff. She is then watching me all hissy and huffing and when I check on everything she tries to avoid me, often hitting me with her wing in her bid for escape. The main issue is that when I stop moving or am about to leave, she runs at me with her wings flapping, hissing and acting like she is about to bite me. She has come quite close and that does make me warry as when I first got her I was badly scratched with a lot of blood coming from my arm. I don't do well with pain as I have a medical issue that amplifies it, hence why I am sometimes nervous around animals that have hurt me in the past.

It isn't my goal to pet or hold her, though that would be great if she let me, I just want her to not panic so much and that we are able to trust each other not to do anything. My previous duck was a pretty bitey duckling, and when she became an adult she would occasionally get huffy and nibble on me (though the nibbles usually meant she was looking for mealworms), she usually loved being petted and cuddled. I don't think this duck will ever get to that stage though and I don't want to force her to.

I don't think I would be able to get fertilized eggs for her to sit on as I also have 2 chickens that live with her and I'm not sure that I would currently have the space for when the babies have grown. I have considered getting another adult to have as a friend, however it is hard to find any where I live for sale, and I would not be able to travel very far just to get one. It took me months to even find her as if someone is willing to sell a single adult it is usually a male. I would also consider getting a duckling to raise, but I would only be able to get one and that wouldn't be fair to the duckling. It has been suggested to me irl to give her fake eggs to sit on, but I am not sure if this would help in this situation.

 

[Miss Lydia]

She is going to freak out if she feels cornered. About all you can do is come to a mutual understanding, your going to be around her to feed and water her and the chickens and that means picking up eggs. If you can spend time with her just sitting and reading or on you phone etc so she gets use to your presence that will be a start. also if you garden having her out with you she’ll be begging for ant earth worms or other critters you might in cover. I can bring out the shovel and I have a captive audience. She may not ever be a duck you can pet but she should eventually get use to you being around. Yep their nails are very sharp it’s something we all need to take into consideration when handling them.

 

[Bc-Ducks]

I guess I'll just have to try then. The annoying thing is that she made her nest right next to the food, so she will probably feel cornered for a long time. Hopefully with time though she will settle. I don't have a garden yet, but I had plans to make one. Perhaps I will have to speed that along. Thank you for the help

 

[Miss Lydia]

Can you move the food and water? If she isn’t sitting on fertile eggs remove the nest.

 

[Bc-Ducks]

I can't really remove the food and water as they are in set locations. And I'm also not sure how I would go about removing the nest as she just makes them on the ground out of hay. She has also made them in different locations, though always within a meter of the food. This current nest is right next to it that she's probably able to reach over and eat without moving.