My mama duck did so well sitting on her clutch of nine eggs and hatching them and she is being a good mama to her ducklings. The trouble is that I swapped 5 of her babies for some unrelated ducklings that were four days old yesterday and she seems to have caught on to the switch. Two of the ducklings are silverhead, two are bluehead, and one is greenhead so she seems to have been able to join the mama's greenhead ducklings okay. I found a bluehead duckling out of the nest last night (we searched for hours thinking it got out of the pen somehow and it turned up inside the pen between the pen wire and the smaller hardware cloth wire that was supposed to make the pen safe for babies by preventing them from escaping). She had gotten too cold and died but what I don't understand is why she did not seek the warmth of the hen even though she was hatched in an incubator and raised in a brooder. She should have at least stayed with the other ducklings instead of going off by herself.
Tonight I noticed the two silverheads and the remaining bluehead were in a corner instead of in the nest so I pulled the remaining 4 ducklings that are not hers to raise inside. Her own four ducklings were under her just like they should be so I am letting her keep them for now. I may go to my waitlist and offer these ducklings for sale instead of allowing her to raise them but I don't know if I can take them away after all her work. She is being a good mama to them and that is what is important. I can try putting the other ducklings out with her when it is warmer out but I may have to raise them with five blueheads of my own I want to keep. I have not kept any greenheads yet so these four would be the ones to keep, although statistically two will be drakes and I will have to sell them. I know the Australian Spotted ducks are smart but I had thought I could convince the mama to raise the swapped ducklings. I think she must be pushing them away for them to be away from her because they should go to her as a heat source. The four that made it through the night last night managed to snuggle under her in the dark but I think their color gave them away and the hen caught on that they are not hers.
Tonight I noticed the two silverheads and the remaining bluehead were in a corner instead of in the nest so I pulled the remaining 4 ducklings that are not hers to raise inside. Her own four ducklings were under her just like they should be so I am letting her keep them for now. I may go to my waitlist and offer these ducklings for sale instead of allowing her to raise them but I don't know if I can take them away after all her work. She is being a good mama to them and that is what is important. I can try putting the other ducklings out with her when it is warmer out but I may have to raise them with five blueheads of my own I want to keep. I have not kept any greenheads yet so these four would be the ones to keep, although statistically two will be drakes and I will have to sell them. I know the Australian Spotted ducks are smart but I had thought I could convince the mama to raise the swapped ducklings. I think she must be pushing them away for them to be away from her because they should go to her as a heat source. The four that made it through the night last night managed to snuggle under her in the dark but I think their color gave them away and the hen caught on that they are not hers.
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