Problem Indian Runner Duck

[Backyard ducks-Australia]

Hi, I am after some advice about one of my ducks. I have four ducks and one drake and one of the ducks, an 11 month old Indian Runner, has a bad habit that I'm not sure what to do about. When the drake is mating with one of the other ducks, most of the time she walks around to the back of the duck being mated with and she aggressively pecks at the vent of that duck, often making it bleed. I work from home so I can normally catch it before it is bad but obviously I am concerned about the health of my other ducks and want to stop this behaviour. It isn't all of the time, but if she is within sight of the drake mating with one of the other ducks then she will usually go over and start pecking. Not sure if it is a jealousy thing or more of just a habit. We hand raised the problem Indian Runner and are quite attached to her however the stress of having to listen for one of the other ducks being attacked is difficult to cope with and I would hate it if one of the other ducks got seriously hurt. Has anyone encountered this problem before? Does anyone know if peepers / blinders would be an option in this situation or if they are even suitable for ducks? I fear that the best option would be to remove her from our flock. I have thought about removing the drake from the flock but I have seen the problem Indian Runner also attack when the number one duck (seemingly not her) "mates" with one of the other ducks. So I think that taking the drake out of the equation wouldn't really make much change in the long run. Any advice or insight would be greatly appreciated, thank you.

 

[CrystaBub]

My Runner is the Queen Duck and the first female - was raised with my Drake. If he's mating another girl, she will sometimes peck at them, but nothing like what you're describing. Oh gosh I hope someone can offer some advice... Do they have a pool for swimming? The only thing I can think of is that it would be harder for her to 'attack' if they were mating in water. Could you add a small pool if you don't have one? They would likely mate in that if it were available.

 

[Backyard ducks-Australia]

Thanks for your response. My problem Indian Runner duck was also the first duck and was raised with the drake! Interesting. We do have a little pool for them and the drake does mate with them in there (and she still sometimes tries to peck at them then), but he seems to prefer on land. Thanks for the advice though. I've had someone in the area offer to take her for a little while to let her run with their drakes, thinking it might break her strong attachment to this one...? I really don't know but it is worth a shot I guess!

 

[CrystaBub]

Just be sure they watch her really well so she doesn't get over-mated there. I wish we were close - I"d gladly take her for a while! I love runners! Keep us posted - hopefully this story has a happy ending!

 

[Miss Lydia]

I wonder if you blasted her with the hose she’d eventually get the message? I’ve had to use the hose trick to stop my Muscovy drake from harassing the geese. It works but I still have to be consistent