Tips for raising a single duckling?

[AmandaVirginia]

My momma duck's second brood last summer only one duckling hatched (I suspect the dog but anyway). Unlike previous broods Singlet (it's a quantum mechanics joke) hung around momma duck all the time. Whereas a group of duckling were happy to separate from momma and hang out or sleep together she stayed real close. When she was about 2 months and momma had a third hatch (of 9!) she had been sitting with momma right on the eggs and was happy to take over and play momma duck herself. When I found a home for the 9 (2 months old) ducklings I sent Singlet with them as they used to follow her everywhere anyway. So my advice is: get her some companions asap. They don't have to be the same age but you will see when she meets them that she takes as naturally to flocking as a duck to water. [In the photo that is singlet (brown) with her parents and their next brood. She was a great older sister]

What a CUTE little family you have! I bet you really miss Singlet! Why did you decide to rehome her with her younger siblings?

 

[StBob]

By the time they left I had 11 quacking, eating, pooping almost grown ducks in my backyard (it backs onto a farm so it feels bigger than it is). I would have kept Singlet with her parents Wendi (Pekin) and Bob (Cayuga) but her little siblings followed her everywhere so I figured when they went together to a farm with a dam and duck enclosure that they would find it easier if she went too. The afternoon they left the silence was blissful. Now it is just Wendi quacking when she wants to be fed.

Here is another photo of the little quackers all singing together

 

[StBob]

I have to say I was skeptical about the OPs ability to look after her lone duck but she seems to have done an excellent job and very responsible finding Peeps a good home when she goes to college. So congratulations. It will be interesting if you go back and visit the petting zoo if she recognises you. Good luck with college!

 

[cheese17]

Aw thank you @StBob!
Oh but @marcelineduckie, Peep's beak seems to have healed completely. Now that I really think about it, it was almost like the duck equivalent of a person getting a small cut. It scabbed over right away, scab fell off (maybe he scraped it off?), and now all that's left is a barely visible red dot.
I really do want to find peeps a friend, in the worst way, but we don't have too many options. House is too small for dogs (we're allergic anyway), and the closest we got to finding farm birds near us was some bantam chicks in an exotic pet store. (however NYS law says we have to buy at least six, that was a deal killer). And if I ordered duck eggs online I'm scared they would hatch too close to me leaving for college.
Still though, I'd like to think that my family and I are his flock, however substantial that may be. If I'm not around to tend to him, whether it be errands or work, usually whichever parent is home will take care of him. (He's a big fan of my dad) Even so, someone's usually outside in the yard anyway, whether it be my dad weeding or my brother on the trampoline. That's usually enough to soothe Peeps. We give him baths in his kiddie pool to try and give him some more quality time with us. I've also noticed that if I walk away from him, he won't panic unless he can't see me, furthermore, if he's sitting then he seems content enough to just wait for me to come back, whenever that may be. (This is pretty useful for when I try and get him to sit quietly in his hutch at night.)
I've been looking out for any sign of plucking, but so far there's nothing. I was a bit worried when he started shedding down like no tomorrow, but then I saw his feathers coming in and I figured it was just normal. One thing I am wondering though, when do pekins reach sexual maturity? I keep looking for signs of this horny duck mode that I've been hearing about, but so far he's content with nibbling on my flip flops and cuddling. He's seven weeks old and quite feathery.

 

[cheese17]

Oh and here's a picture of Peeps! This is from a few days ago while we were on a walk. He's chilling on the bleachers at the baseball fields

 

[Amykins]

PEEEEEEPS! Bleacher Peeps! <3

...Yeah, the feathers never get any easier. Just wait until you accidentally inhale one in your sleep. Not fun.

 

[StBob]

By 7 weeks it might be clear if it's a he or a she. Does Peeps quack loudly? That's often a sign of a girl. Ducks start quacking at 5 or 6 weeks. Males quack but not as loudly. Is the tail feather curled over which is a sign of a boy though not sure if that happens later. My ducks didn't reach sexual maturity till about 6 months so enjoy their care free child hood

 

[cheese17]

Well I can't say I've ever inhaled one, but I know I'm usually covered in those tiny, white things whenever I give peeps a hug.
I thought peeps was a male due to his feathers curling a teeny bit at around 3 weeks, but he's also making some kind of weird honking noise along with the peeping. Not sure if it's a quack or something else. Maybe he's actually a girl? I should probably google what drake feathers look like, something tells me I guessed the poor thing's gender wrong.
By the time peeps has his new home though, I think he'll be three months? Four months at most. I think he'll have some new duck friends by the time he reaches horny duck mode.

Edit: so I google images drake feathers, turns out I underestimated how far the drake feather curls. Peeps' tail feathers are nearly completely grown and hardly curled to that extent, so combine that with the honking noise and I'm guessing peeps is a girl. Whoops D:

 

[marcelineduckie]

yes honking means girl! my baby is a girl she's 9 weeks now and fully feathered I think the drake feather wouldn't even show until about 10 or 11 weeks though. did you Google the sounds of female and male differences they have something on you tube that helps and a site where the girl sounds like a laughing Donald duck and the boy sounds like a frog haha if it's young and honking probably a girl most boys will peep until about 7 to 8 weeks, I have some videos in my thread how to introduce a duckling to a 4 week old duck, maybe it can help to hear the noise? also so.glad to hear the cut healed so.quickly

 

[Amykins]

Fingers crossed it is a girl, they're MUCH easier to handle once they hit puberty! Wobbles was nothing but bite, bite, bite, for months on end. That's why we finally caved and got him a girlfriend - well that, and I kinda miss the ability to leave the house, LOL!