Raising ducks to be friendly- how to?

[Birdcrazy]

Quote:
Sorry, but I do not at all agree.
If you put effort and love in, you get the best results - and a ducks personality amazes me.. they don't just 'eat, sleep, poop' ect.

I got two 3-4 week old muscovy ducklings (my very first ducks) from a pet store and they came from a group of about 20 ducklings. I spent hours sitting, cuddling, taking them for walks and they've grown up to be the best pets I could ever hope for - I can touch, hold, play, cuddle and simply spend time in any way with them, they are THE most friendly ducks. I even take them on tractor rides to get them to the dam. When my muscovy goes broody she never bites, gets angry or anything with me, but very sour to everyone else. She's ok with me hanging around with her and her babies, removing bad eggs ect from under her.

When ever she has ducklings I spend time with her and her babies to make them atleast people friendly for the homes they go to. I help them find bugs and such under rocks and bricks - they love it when you spend a little time free-ranging with them

even though its best to make friendly ducks with the least amount at ducklings, all mine have grown up to be very friendly.

The ones I have now I'm hand raising (almost a week old

) I'm not around for most the day, but I come home and take them outside to eat bugs and play in the garden, fill them up a bucket of water/bath to splash in and read a book while they cuddle up and sleep - they so far live in my room, something that I'll be forced to change when they get bigger... *cry*

I think if your too busy to put lots of time in, make the time you do spend with them something to look forward to for them. Just giving them attention in their brooder will be no different

taking them outside ect will be fun and they'll treat you more like their mum rather than someone just to be friendly too. Talk lots to your ducklings so they become used to the sound of your voice, its handy to learn to call them over

you'll have to post some pics!!

Good luck with your ducklings, its great you got some and they're awesome fun. They prove to have a huge personality

 

[Amiga]

I think I forgot to mention I have eleven runners. Four of them run up to me for hugs, all but one will eat from my hand. Funf will eat from my hand but "oh, mercy don't pick me up!!!" The one who won't eat from my hand enjoys hugs. Go figure. So we are all over the map, except no one is afraid of me now. When I mess around in the garden, they all come over to see if I have unearthed anything good to eat. They nibble at my pockets and buttons, curl up at my feet. And all eleven were raised together.

 

[tomingreeneco]

My Pekins are very friendly. They all come running over when my wife or I come outside. They let us pet them and will stick around to "talk" to us. They even chase me around when I am on the riding mower. Crazy ducks! Try bribing them with cherry tomatoes cut in half.

 

[rangersilme]

I think the easiest way is to make them think you're part of their flock. They are prey animals so they don't like being chased/picked up/handled unless they are really close to you. You have to let them come to you to handle them, don't chase them too much. As for picking up ducklings without them going crazy I found that laying your hand palm up in their brooder works well: they'll either climb onto it or you can slide it under them and lift them up that way. They'll distress peep and kick at you if you just grab them. Let them sit on your hand/lap.

Just being around them and setting a routine to follow works best. When they were young, I came home from work around 4, and if I wasn't there within minutes to be around them and feed them stuff/change their water they would go crazy. I took them inside at night at a set time. Teach them to forage and find bugs/worms and they'll soon be begging you to come along with them to find eats. I was taking them out to forage maybe after a week or two (I don't really remember). Now going out to forage with them is as much a social thing for them (maybe more) as eating. Just holding them all the time won't really work when they grow up. The woman I'm co-owning my ducks with said that a long time ago when she had geese, one of them would eat grass from her hand one strand at a time since it was her social thing with that goose. The others wouldn't though.

Oh, and talk to them as much as possible as soon as possible for them to bond to your voice. When they start peeping call out to them and let them know you're around. Whenever I talked to someone in the shop and they were inside they would start peeping excitedly. Be around them a lot to bond to your face.

 

[GMT]

Yeah . . . handling them extensively from the time they're little baby ducklings seems to be the key to raising people-friendly ducks. Mine settle right down when I pick them up, and let me hang out in the pen with them. The rest of them even go right back to what they were doing before when I'm getting one-on-one time with one of them. They're still a bit wary . . . they won't quite come running up to me (running over me on the way to a freshly-cleaned pool of water though, that's another story); but I think I've done okay, in spite of having to work half the day, and there being just one of me and six of them.

So, to get friendly ducks, spend lots of time with them from the time they're ducklings.

 

[stumble_n_mumble]

i normally raise my ducklings by themselves or with a chick lol and they turn out awesome

 

[Waddlemyway]

I actually have a question myself. I recently purchased 2 female buff ducks who are already 10 weeks old. We were unable to get 2 of this breed ducklings elsewhere around us because they were selling them only by increments between 4 or 6. Plus, we knew one by itself would most likely not do well. Therefore, once we found some they are already 10 weeks. They are awfully skittish and we are trying to get them used to us, which we might eventually want to make them pet ducks. We go into their enclosure to clean and try holding them to get them accustomed, but they are very scared. Any ideas how to get them use to human contact and for them to trust us? We also have chickens, but since we raised them from babies they let us pet and hold them.

 

[buff goose guy]

just take it easy let them check u out dont go pick them up let them come to u eventually they will. this works just by sitting with them and letting them figure u out . also u can give them treats like peas and such just to know that u are where food comes from

 

[seashoreduck]

My first batch of ducks, 2 years ago, were 3.5 weeks when I got them, while they remained pretty standoffish, the one I had to get back on track health-wise would climb all over me for food for the rest of his life. Mallard's aren't known for their cuddles.

Handling them helps, being a source of food helps. One on one's help My hubby says they only want the food, but he also says that about my dog. My new ducks are now 10 days old and showing signs of personality. Some just do not like to be handled. Some don't mind it. None really love it but the buff settles down nicely.

No matter how calm the breed (or how nervous) ducks all have a mind of their own. I have welsh harlequins that go balistic when held and my creasted (considered a nervous duck) will give a few squaks and settle down for a bit. I do pick them up and hold them. If they are obviously in distress they go back in the brooder. If they are just curious (not screeching) I let them use me as a jungle gym.

 

[buff goose guy]

My first batch of ducks, 2 years ago, were 3.5 weeks when I got them, while they remained pretty standoffish, the one I had to get back on track health-wise would climb all over me for food for the rest of his life. Mallard's aren't known for their cuddles.

Handling them helps, being a source of food helps. One on one's help My hubby says they only want the food, but he also says that about my dog. My new ducks are now 10 days old and showing signs of personality. Some just do not like to be handled. Some don't mind it. None really love it but the buff settles down nicely.

No matter how calm the breed (or how nervous) ducks all have a mind of their own. I have welsh harlequins that go balistic when held and my creasted (considered a nervous duck) will give a few squaks and settle down for a bit. I do pick them up and hold them. If they are obviously in distress they go back in the brooder. If they are just curious (not screeching) I let them use me as a jungle gym.

i have to diagree

if you have hand raised mallards from birth they end up being pretty needy, in my experience,

but x2 on the rest