Show off your house ducks!

[Amykins]

Missy just came sauntering in for bed. I guess hubby is out of the dog house...

Awwww...that's too sweet. <3 So she sleeps on the bed with you guys? Where does all the poop go?

 

[LadyHawkeAvry]

You know, I thought WE had a never-ending source of entertainment here with three dogs, three cats, and six ducks. You probably never run out of entertaining things to watch.

I think I'm up to 8 cats, 1 dog, 1 ferret, 1 corn snake, 1 budgie, 5 deer mice, 4 geese, 2 pheasants, 19 ducks, 21 chickens, around 20 - 30 quail (I lost count), and I just set my 150th egg to incubate today.....

 

[LadyHawkeAvry]

Awwww...that's too sweet. <3 So she sleeps on the bed with you guys? Where does all the poop go?

She sleeps at the head of the bed with me in the incubator room on her drop cloths. They are the same ones I had for her as a duckling, but I added a whole lot more. They come up in the morning and go into the washer when she gets up for the day. I usually have 3 on her sleeping spot and another couple on the bed itself, so even if she wanders everything stays clean. My blankets stay nice and poop free under the protective bird bedding. She can lean over from her favorite spot and preen my head, and her blankets also run on either side of me for when I wake up in the middle of the night with her plastered to my face. She is a little more mature now, so she is secure enough not to have to sleep on my head every night... The incubator room bed is essentially a futon, so she never is up on the pillowtop in the bedroom proper. Mom is restless at night, and sleeps at odd hours, so between watching the incubators, the backyard, and her, I am always out here. Hubby watches the back end of the house. Our bedroom is right next to mom's room, so he can watch her on that end. He sleeps with the ferret, who has been in bed with us since he was a kit, but is not safe with the baby birds. The cats all pile on mom now that the kittens are old enough to be on their own (they were dropped off on my back porch at 2 weeks, and were bottle fed and raised by me, in between hatching and raising a dozen pekins.... Like my imprint birds, they stayed with me 24/7 until they were weaned...) Most of this arrangement would be impossible if I was not watching an alzheimer's patient. What is safest for mom as far as supervision goes is also the most advantageous for imprinting and keeping a house duck.

Missy headed back out again after giving me kisses. I think she is a bit curious about the mystery duck in the bathroom. She has taken up watch just outside the door....

 

[Amykins]

Okay, I got a HUGE problem now...Wobbles is hissing at Bean! I don't know why he's suddenly turned hostile, but this is bad news bears. How do I teach him that Bean = good duck? I've tried treats, but he ignores it and goes straight for her brooder. I don't want her to be terrified of him, either!

 

[Julie Birb]

Yeah, they scaled a 4 foot fence with a pop and fly move. They are little, so they can get lift... My scovies are going to need a fresh trim as soon as they molt too... My drake is too heavy, but The Twins can get lift without a clip.

Pale Girl was up on both legs for much of the day. She started to get a little wiped out after her bath (I think mom was bugging her again), but I gave her her shots and she settled down again (after complaining about the dexamethasone) Later in the afternoon she was back up on both legs having a conversation with her buddies through the wall again. She is insanely loud! They are the second loudest duck behind the call duck. Missy can't hold a candle to the noise she can make!

Missy is mad at my husband for working again. His schedule changed, and she is having none of it. It is way past her bedtime, and she is still asleep in her day spot in the hall.

Keeping an ear out for alerts from the birds, Everyone was sleeping last I looked. Of course, the whole yard was inspected by a mass of cats today, so their scent may be a little unnerving to the skunk. There were 4 half grown kittens and 2 adult queens patrolling today... The only noise so far tonight was Narcissus breaking up a Pekin love fest. He does not like the drakes chasing the hens. If the hen tries to escape, he is there in a heartbeat after the drake. He demands good behavior, and can be brutal if his rules are not followed, but he is an exceptional flock protector in return. The ladies don't get harassed under his watch... I'm exhausted, but I have 2 nests to watch tonight....

Missy just came sauntering in for bed. I guess hubby is out of the dog house...

Good to know about the KCs. I will mention it to my friend. His fence may be high enough for her to get up and over it once she's fully feathered. Shudder…..

I am happy to hear about Pale Girl. So cool you have the means and expertise to treat your birds.

Missy sure has to have things her way. It is quite cute I think. She is funny.

 

[Julie Birb]

Okay, I got a HUGE problem now...Wobbles is hissing at Bean! I don't know why he's suddenly turned hostile, but this is bad news bears. How do I teach him that Bean = good duck? I've tried treats, but he ignores it and goes straight for her brooder. I don't want her to be terrified of him, either!

OH, NO. What do you do? I feel sorry for little Bean. I don't want her to be scared. Is it hormonal, resentment, territorial?

 

[Julie Birb]

I do, too. Her blueberry feets are even blueberry feetier now! And I swear, she is getting visibly bigger each day. Two days ago she was the size of a lemon, now she's more like a mango!

Eeeeee, a little fruit girl.

 

[LadyHawkeAvry]

Okay, I got a HUGE problem now...Wobbles is hissing at Bean! I don't know why he's suddenly turned hostile, but this is bad news bears. How do I teach him that Bean = good duck? I've tried treats, but he ignores it and goes straight for her brooder. I don't want her to be terrified of him, either!

He sounds very territorial! His tune will change next spring for sure, but in the meantime he may be a problem until she feathers out and can hold her own. Missy has no tolerance for me imprinting other birds, so I have to keep them separate from her. She also claimed the bed as hers today, along with half the incubator room, and has been driving the cats out aggressively. My outdoor ducks all get along, and are OK with young birds entering the flock. (Narcissus is the flock gatekeeper, so if he accepts them, everybody does). I wonder if it is related to space. Outside, the birds have over an acre of field and woods to forage in. They stick together in small family groups by breed and age. The only aggression happens between drakes over hens, and when narcissus lays down the law.
Inside, Missy has no interest in seeing who is quacking in the bathroom. She may vocalize from the hall or the kitchen, but is unconcerned about another adult hen. She is, however, defending her room and her bed. It may come down to space. Wobbles is tiny and cute, but your whole house is his territory, and as far as he is concerned, belongs to him. A "stray" duckling would indicate another breeding pair in the area to him, which may increase his aggression, plus, some drakes just don't do kids, and kill ducklings, including their own.
I'd say just keep them separate until Bean grows up a bit more. I'm sure a ripe blueberry will be much more interesting to Wobbles than an unripe one. They have plenty of time to get to know each other before the next breeding season!

 

[LadyHawkeAvry]

...and from yesterday's conversation on the acceptance of house ducks...

What people think my bathroom is like when I tell them I had a pair of heavy ducks nesting in it all winter long:

What my bathroom actually looks like. In the winter Mama was in her nest box in the corner by the tub. There is a duck in this room in this picture (Pale Girl)

Pale Girl was having a soak in the tub with the curtain drawn so she had privacy... Obviously, having two semi-tame, un diapered heavy ducks in there for months created a breeding ground for disease, and a mountain of duck poop.... Not.

We must spread the word of the joys of housebound waterfowl!! Our joke is that it's like owning a mute parrot without the issues with biting....

 

[Amykins]

He sounds very territorial! His tune will change next spring for sure, but in the meantime he may be a problem until she feathers out and can hold her own. Missy has no tolerance for me imprinting other birds, so I have to keep them separate from her.

I'd say just keep them separate until Bean grows up a bit more. I'm sure a ripe blueberry will be much more interesting to Wobbles than an unripe one. They have plenty of time to get to know each other before the next breeding season!

I sure hope so...it's just weird, 'cuz up until now he was actually quite gentle with her! I keep trying to get my husband to mount him so he can reestablish himself as "my mate" and Wobbles will no longer be the alpha duck, but he's hesitant to do so out of fear of hurting him so it doesn't really work. I was hoping he'd view Bean as our offspring of sorts, as icky as that sounds...but, no dice.

P.S. "ripe blueberry", hehe!