YellowTulip22

In the Brooder
Jun 3, 2020
5
15
21
Hi!

I have four 6-7 day old ducklings, mallards. I live in an apartment (I am aware ducks aren’t great in apartments, I’ll address this in a sec). With all the stuff going on in the world ive been researching and wanting to get ducklings for the past 3 months, I tried incubation but failed, so I ordered some from a local farm. They came to me May 29 🥰. I’m raising them here until they are old enough to be alone outside, then, they will go to my mom, sister and moms boyfriends house with a huge pond, some sheep, a bunch of room, and a 14 year old who loves animals and takes care of them.Everyone told me ducks are messy, but I’ve had and have several animals myself. They make a mess but it’s nothing I can’t clean a few times a day in under ten minutes! (I made it easier by using puppy pads topped with news paper, and a cookie sheet under the food and water, PLUS a vinyl table cloth under all that! I’m not using a heat lamp as the enclosure is too small and babies were panting. They do have a heating pad which they lay on, and off of once they’re too warm. I let them out in the morning, when I get home from work in early afternoon, and then again at night (for cleaning). During the afternoon when there’s shade outside we all sit on the grass for a bit And learn how to forage and eat bugs and that white fuzzy dandelions are great! And don’t forget the duckling zoomies! Once a day I let them wade in a shallow lukewarm “pool” in a little tub, they hop to the side to try to get out which then I take them out and dry them off. It’s a great way to keep them clean and let them enjoy water! I have two cats, one who doesn’t care and the other one who thinks they’re cool but also doesn’t care much. I have MANY videos of them following me (and my cat comes too) outside and them playing outside, plus so many photos! I know an apartment isn’t ideal but I am prepared for them as they grow, and will take them to my moms house a few times before I release them there! (I’m planning to make a duck house, they have predators there). Enjoy the photos :)
 

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Here’s a photo update ! I tried to start where I left off last time with photos, some are recent and some are not, I’m sure you can tell! They’re three weeks and two days! :)
 

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They are precious ❤
Thank you! I agree! They’re so adorable.


I love being able to watch them grow and see all their changes every day! Watching their feathers come in is so cool and one of them is quacking. 🥰 I’m lucky my neighbors don’t care about them haha. They love to follow me to the kitchen when I’m cleaning their water and food dishes. Btw I put a cookie sheet down, put a lasagna aluminum throw away thing ontop of that, and then I put the water container in there. Helps cut down on the water mess. I still put water in their food, and mix it all together lol. They get flock raiser crumbles plus brewers yeast plus oatmeal now to lower the protein. They also get lettuce, peas, watermelon and whatever they eat outside. Dirt. Bugs. Birdseed. They try to eat the insulation by the basement window well outside my building. 😒 Naughty. They’ll be 4 weeks on Thursday. Still cleaning their enclosure 2-3x a day, outside time/swim time in an under bed tub. They get the zoomies too which is fun to see. I’m waiting for more juvie feathers to come in so I can take them to the pond to swim in there a bit. They’ve been getting teenager ish though, not listening as much 😂. If you could potty train ducks that would make everything much easier, for cleaning, then they could be in my apartment when I’m home instead of their enclosure. In the morning,when I greet them they get all excited and vocal and wait by the door of their puppy pen and when I open it they run out and get zoomies lol.
 
Man the male vs females coloring is getting much more noticeable, he is a lot darker (and the ring of course, which he’s had for like weeks lol). We haven’t been able to go outside as much lately because it’s been ungodly hot for the upper Midwest, and none of us can stand to be out in it! My friend will be taking the babies in a couple weeks, she lives up the road from me but in the country, has a bunch of space, some chickens, well water, etc, much more equipped to handle big ducks! I’ll miss them, but not their mess! Ha ha! Then once I move myself out to the country in the next few years, I’ll either take these guys back or get some of their eggs to hatch. Hopefully they’re not too attached to me, don’t want them to be sad, but that is why I got four and not just one, so they can have a duck family! :)
 

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