Please urgently help with new ducklings where mama won't come back

[JadeComputerGal]

Mama sat on the nest for five weeks. Now that all the eggs are hatched, mama seems to be wanting to be her old self and hanging out with our other grown ducks.

All the 1-3 day old peeplings are huddled in the nest. Do we hang out a while to see if she comes back, or do we bring them in so they have some warmth? It will be in the low 60's tonight, so we're worried about them staying out there alone all night if the hen doesn't come back to keep them warm.

 

[MeepBeep]

Keep an eye on them at sunset, if she goes and settles down for the night away from them, then I would suggest bringing them in... If she returns to them then let her be the mom... If she sat broody the entire time chances are she has some motherly instincts and might just be taking a long needed break... But then again they are birds and sometimes don't exhibit much common sense or intelligence...

 

[lightchick]

Keep an eye on them at sunset, if she goes and settles down for the night away from them, then I would suggest bringing them in... If she returns to them then let her be the mom... If she sat broody the entire time chances are she has some motherly instincts and might just be taking a long needed break... But then again they are birds and sometimes don't exhibit much common sense or intelligence...

x2

 

[JadeComputerGal]

Thanks to both of you, and Meep, sorry for the PM. We just don't know what to do. Waiting for sunset isn't an option. It's 10 pm here, and all the ducks went to their pen long ago as they do on their own every night. Mama is doing what she did before five weeks of sitting on the nest, and all the peeplings are left alone.

My husband covered them with straw until we could decide what to do, but I'm not sure we can leave them out there all night if the hen isn't going to come back. What do you think?

 

[lightchick]

I'd bring them in and put a heat lamp over them.

 

[JadeComputerGal]

Yes, we have the food. We bought that a week ago to be ready. Same crumbles we gave our adults.

I'm sorry if it seemed like I was ignoring you. I wasn't, and I would never intentionally do that to any of the helpful people here. I'm just worried about leaving the peeplings outside overnight if the hen won't go back, which she hasn't yet.

 

[MeepBeep]

Well since you are in PA and it's now plenty dark here in IL, if she has not returned by now I would scoop them up and bring them inside...

 

[JadeComputerGal]

She's been in a very bad temper while she was broody, especially in the past week. Now she's left the house and was just in and out today, and she's not going back when they need her there to be warm.

The peeplings are peeping and peeping, so we're setting up the same thing with heat lamps in the house that we did with our now grown ducks, and we're going to bring them in, at least for tonight.

Can anyone tell me if there's a way to get the (once) extremely broody hen to go back to the house/nest? I suppose it's okay if not since we can hand raise them like the others, but we wanted to let nature take its course for these and I really want to know if it's something we did wrong. Sophia (broody mom) was vicious until they hatched. Now she seems to have lost interest in looking after them post-hatching.

I'm so sorry for all these dumb questions, and I so much appreciate the help. I'm an IT person, so please let me know if I can reciprocate by helping you with computer problems.

 

[MeepBeep]

If she gave up being a mom, I wouldn't even try or waste my trying trying to convince her otherwise...

 

[JadeComputerGal]

I hate this, but we're going to do it.

Thank you, Meep.