please advise, heartbroken and afraid

[Here come the ducks]

Hello everyone,
Long time since I have been on.. ive had a bunch of heartaches with my ducks..I thought i posted this earlier today, but it didn't go on.. so i will try again.
As many of you know, i got 4 sweet girls last September , 2 pekin, 1 cayuga, 1 buff. Everything was wonderful, except a little leg issue with my one pekin.. not so bad though..then march hit.. my buff ended up sick bc she ate dirt( i thought this is what ducks do..).. they gave her lactulose, caused her an aspiration pneumonia and she was sick, in and out of hospitals, ever since.. they couldn't really figure out what was wrong, despite many many diagnostic tests, etc, but her egg laying and the lung issue became very difficult and she passed away this past Saturday. My pekin in march had some mysterious femur fracture, that they said had an underlying pathology, but she died right after surgery.
My Cayuga, had a mysterious fracture, in april- they said she had a reproductive mass, but took her to surgery to fix the fracture, she died on the table from an arrhythmia.
So 4 ducks, 3 died in the blast 3 months.. besides being devastated.. for me.. my sweet one pekin is now alone..
I am terrified to go through this again.. my heart can't take it.

But i am thinking about getting 2 or 3 ducklings. Will they bond with her? i so dont want her to be alone.. please advise.

 

[fatty and friends]

first of all i am SO sorry for your loss, losing a duck is the worst

if possible bring your pekin girl indoors with you whenever you aren’t outside. also get two ducklings as soon as possible, but she won’t bond with them until they are older so it’s important for you to spend lots of time with her until then so she isn’t lonely. let her spend supervised time with them daily, and by the time the babies are fully feathered you can move them all into the coop together.

*disclaimer - humans are never a replacement for other ducks, my ducks are 100% human imprinted and still need each other. but until she can bond with the ducklings spending time with her will really help her stay happy*

 

[Here come the ducks]

first of all i am SO sorry for your loss, losing a duck is the worst

if possible bring your pekin girl indoors with you whenever you aren’t outside. also get two ducklings as soon as possible, but she won’t bond with them until they are older so it’s important for you to spend lots of time with her until then so she isn’t lonely. let her spend supervised time with them daily, and by the time the babies are fully feathered you can move them all into the coop together.

*disclaimer - humans are never a replacement for other ducks, my ducks are 100% human imprinted and still need each other. but until she can bond with the ducklings spending time with her will really help her stay happy*

yes, i always brought them inside anyway.. haha they had everything . which makes this so so so painful. i loved these ducks so so so so much. My sweet buff , Shiloh, has had me crying for two days straight. Ive let her be with me a lot.. but i know she feels the pain. It was early morning when Shiloh passed away.. Eve was with her.. ugh so sad.. it was in my sunroom in their playpen,. she just died.. five minutes earlier she was there.. i cant believe how much i loved these babies.. like seriously loved them..i will order the ducklings..

 

[Here come the ducks]

yes, i always brought them inside anyway.. haha they had everything . which makes this so so so painful. i loved these ducks so so so so much. My sweet buff , Shiloh, has had me crying for two days straight. Ive let her be with me a lot.. but i know she feels the pain. It was early morning when Shiloh passed away.. Eve was with her.. ugh so sad.. it was in my sunroom in their playpen,. she just died.. five minutes earlier she was there.. i cant believe how much i loved these babies.. like seriously loved them..i will order the ducklings..

should i do 2 or 3? i was thinking 3,so it would be a group.. rather then just the two. and her.. your thoughts?

 

[sewingkitty1170]

I’m so sorry for your heartaches. I wish you well! It will get better and yes, get more ducks!

 

[sewingkitty1170]

should i do 2 or 3? i was thinking 3,so it would be a group.. rather then just the two. and her.. your thoughts?

I think three. Better three in case she picks on them!

 

[fatty and friends]

yes, i always brought them inside anyway.. haha they had everything . which makes this so so so painful. i loved these ducks so so so so much. My sweet buff , Shiloh, has had me crying for two days straight. Ive let her be with me a lot.. but i know she feels the pain. It was early morning when Shiloh passed away.. Eve was with her.. ugh so sad.. it was in my sunroom in their playpen,. she just died.. five minutes earlier she was there.. i cant believe how much i loved these babies.. like seriously loved them..i will order the ducklings..

i completely understand how you feel. my ducks are my babies and i love them so much.

if possible please do not ship ducklings, it’s extremely stressful for them and sometimes they can even die. the best option might be to see if you can find a rescue/sanctuary near you with adult ducks, and adopt a couple of them. she will be able to bond with them much quicker

 

[Miss Lydia]

should i do 2 or 3? i was thinking 3,so it would be a group.. rather then just the two. and her.. your thoughts?

3 is a good number.
So very sorry for the heartache you have been through.


Please keep us updated on when your ducklings are to be delivered. Keep in mind the temps when you chose the dates for shipping. Heat can be devastating for shipped duckling the same as cold temps.

 

[Miss Lydia]

i completely understand how you feel. my ducks are my babies and i love them so much.

if possible please do not ship ducklings, it’s extremely stressful for them and sometimes they can even die. the best option might be to see if you can find a rescue/sanctuary near you with adult ducks, and adopt a couple of them. she will be able to bond with them much quicker

 

[KaleIAm]

Oh no, I'm so sorry for the loss of your sweethearts. I remember when you got them, your wonderful nursery set up. How your dog dressed up. I know how much you love your ducks - just like I love mine. I know how special they are and how much it hurts to say goodbye. 3 in such a short time is too much.

If you get ducklings you might have more fun and bond with them better, but your pekin would probably prefer an adult duck or two. She'll have to wait a few months for ducklings to grow up to really be companions.

I have adopted adult ducks twice. The first time my existing 2 ducks accepted the 3 incoming ducks like they had always belonged. The second time my existing 5 ducks rejected the incoming 1 duck. The incoming duck longed to be accepted, and after several weeks my existing flock stopped pecking at her but they never welcomed her into the flock or loved her. Since ducks are individuals they don't always get along. That doesn't mean you shouldn't try. I just want to give you realistic expectations.

I would like to share that I got a virus and parasites in my flock by adopted adult ducks. They had been abandoned on a pond and we're swimming with wild mallards. I don't regret adopting them as they would have likely not had medical care without me. But I feel like you might want to consider this and only adopt from a private home with good biosecurity practices or ducklings from a hatchery.