Scared Duck

[NanoByte]

How come my pekin duck is scared of me heaps?

 

[Amiga]

Could we have a little background?

Sounds like you may be willing to work on the relationship

And ducks can get very standoffish sometimes.

 

[duckyfromoz]

Hey Nano -

from down in Melbourne...Nice to see another Australian on here.

I have a pair of Pekins as well as Runner ducks- And while they dont tollerate being held at all - they dont run away from me. Mine are between 3- 4 years old so they have been around a while and have learnt that I am the one who brings food.

How old is your duck?? Was it hand raised- or did you buy it as an adult already fully grown?? Its always easier to keep ducks tamer with constant handling from a young age- Of course - sometimes that doesnt work either. Food is one way people use to win over the trust of their ducks.

I have some ducks who will walk up and sit in my lap- and others who I have to corner to catch- all raised the same way- sometimes it comes down to the temperament and personality of the individual duck.

 

[NanoByte]

We bought it when it was 2 weeks old.

I have recently got it to eat out of my hand but if i make any sudden movement, it steps away.

 

[AdamD77]

I'd say just keep working on it! Getting it to eat out of your hand is, in my opinion, one of the main stages of bonding. Keep hand-feeding it and spend lots of time with it. Patience and persistance is what you need to have

Also, I see you said your 'Pekin', do you only have one? If you do, it may be easier for you to bond with it than if you had loads of them

I got my 4 female runners when they were around a month old, I spent lots of time with them, handled them quite a bit and got them to feed from my hand and now at around 10 weeks old they're pretty good! A lot better than when they first came

 

[NanoByte]

Its funny because i dont have any other pekins, but i do have 8 chickens. The duck follows them everywhere...