My ducks won't come back - need advice!

[TurboDuck97]

So.
I bought two mallards in the spring. They're brats. Very spoiled. But. They didn't like the lake at first, then they became lake ducks. They came back to eat every day and would hang out then go back.

I bought two Black Cayugas, one was very scrappy and he ended up dying. I felt bad for Pepper (the remaining duck) so I bought a golden 300. And a Muscovy. The mallards hated the others. So there was a divide. Then they all randomly started hanging out in the lake together. Millie (my Muscovy) died, and Daisy flew off with her girlfriend (wild) Peggy.
So. I'll get right to it. My mallard loves my other ducks now. And they WON'T COME HOME. It's about to get cold. And I am out of options. The lakes too big to wrangle them. And my two (Henri and Pepper) can't fly much.

Anyone else experience this? It happened quickly and I wanted them to be happy.

Thinking about just building a house. And setting it by the lake.

They always respond when called (I whistle a certain sound and they call back)

I am a first time duck owner, but they mean the world to me!


I live in Minnesota. Ps. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks y'all!

 

[sourland]

Provide feed only in the pen. It is the only possible way of controlling them. Good luck.

 

[HollowOfWisps]

At this point your only options are:

1. Trap them and put them in a secured coop/run permanently.

2. Keep your coop open at all times with access to food only inside the coop. Ducks have built in survival instincts so if they get too cold they will come back to the coop or find their own shelter. If ducks didn't posess these basic instincts ducks would have become frozen lake ornaments many years ago and gone extinct.

 

[TurboDuck97]

That makes me feel better! I built them a lil house that I'll fill with hay. I can't trap them :/ they're too quick! I can if they're in the yard but on the lake there's no chance. They seem to be pretty dang happy on the lake. And they hang out with a super big canadian goose family.
My idea was to just fill the house with hay, and have a big dish of food in there for them to eat when they're hungry.


It just sucks, I don't want them to freeze to death or something. But they've spent every day out on the lake for nearly three months. And they rarely come in for food anymore. They haven't spent a day in the pen for almost three months because it's IMPOSSIBLE to wrangle the little brats.


So you think it'll be okay if I just have a house set up for them and make it warm? They won't freeze to death and I won't be a bad duck mom ?