Need some advice on a lone duckling

[gvntofly05]

I have 2 Rouen ducklings that are 4 weeks old. My neighbor got her 10 year old son 2 Rouen ducklings for Easter (only after she talked with me and I told her I would take them after 3 weeks). Well today her 3 year old daughter got down in the basement and killed one of the ducks

So she wants me to take the other duckling now so that her daughter doesn't accidentally hurt that one also.

Now here is the question. Can I put the 1 week old in with the 4 week olds? I don't want this duckling to be alone but I would hate for it to get picked on.

 

[lovesduckies]

from what i've read and seen here, it will get picked on because it's smaller. i am no expert. i am sure someone smarter will come along and answer for you. if it has to be alone, you can try giving it a stuffed animal or a mirror for company, along with lots and lots of TLC

 

[bock]

Just another example of the fate of poor Easter animals.

I would give it a mirror and a stuffed animal. If you can try to buy 2 ducklings that are about the same age................People and their impulses!!

 

[nissa_loves_cats]

It is possible to raise different ages in the same brooder and have them all do OK. I've also heard that you can put a divider in your brooder (out of hardware cloth or something similar) so they can see each other but not pick on the new guy.

 

[duckyfromoz]

I rigged this up for my lone little Silkie chick...Just sitting in the corner his ostrich friend was a bit boring.- But standing up- well little chicken had a friend to play with. He often stands between the legs or runs around them. He is a lot happier with his friend hanging up.

I now have the ostrich tied on to the wire coat hanger- as the little chick grew since this photo he can now knock down his mate and gets very upset when this happens.

 

[xke4]

I use a feather duster taped to the side of the Rubbermaid tote that I house my ducklings in at that age. They love to hide under the feathers as tho it was their momma and the feather dusters are easy to clean.

 

[gvntofly05]

Quote:
The thing is this wasn't an impulse buy. She talked this over with me 3 weeks prior to Easter and if I had told her that I would not take them once they got bigger, she would not have bought them. She did the responsible thing by finding them a home before buying. The fact that her 3 year old killed one of them was an accident. I have seen plenty of people post on here about their children harming a chick accidentally. It happens.

I may just go to TSC and get another duckling, my cousin is the store manager and I know he will let me buy just one. I hope they still have Rouens, since I have a hen and a drake, I was hoping to add 2 more hens. I had gone with my neighbor to buy the ducklings to insure 2 more hens. I just think a 1:3 ratio would be better than 1:2.

 

[Wifezilla]

Mirror and a feather duster until the little guy is almost as big as the others. I have done this twice for solo hatches. It works great.


But I have to admit the ostrich is pretty cool too! LOL

 

[veronicasmom]

Just adding my two cents.
IMO it STILL was an irresponsible purchase. Why would you give animals as Easter gifts that you only want when they are small? I think it sends the wrong message to a child, one that says we'll keep them when they are cute and small, but when they get bigger, oh well, let someone else have them. It reinforces the thought that animals are disposable.
Personally, I find it disgusting. Reading that post made me very angry.
Unless I misunderstood or there is some more to the story, but the way I read it, it is just wrong.

 

[duckluck]

You're not far that from me, I have several ages of Call ducklings available for sale and would allow you to buy only one seeing as you have one duckling already. One of my older ducklings might be good to have with a larger breed of duckling like this. You'd have to see what size would fit the bill. PM or email me if interested. All ducklings' parents have been blood tested and certified NPIP.