Very complex duck situation, I NEED HELP/ADVICE!

[nettie]

Hi all my fellow bycers, I'm just looking for avdice, opinions, and maybe just some moral support.....

I have been posed with a very sticky situation concerning ducks... I have two indoor house ducks, who are my loves. My boyfriend Joe has been wanting to get his own ducks who'll imprint on him and make our little flock go from 2 to 4. We drew up new duck pen plans, and ordered the babies (and are giving 5 of the extras away to another bycer since it was the same price whether we got 2 or 7). Taking on two new ducks is no problem, as long as my contractor cousin gets the pen done before the babies hit 4 months old.

But here's where it gets tricky... My old roommate David has two runners named Vinny and Ollie. They are about 8 months old and are currently living with him in his townhouse down in alabama. David is a law student and is apparently getting very busy with school/work. He is concerned about their happiness since they spend pretty much all day in their 4x6 pen, with a daily excursion diapered out of the pen and a daily bath in the tub. But they don't get to spend much time with him, and he's concerned about their well being. The ducks love him very much, well vinny loves everyone, but ollie is not so indiscriminate. They are not like my ducks, in being how pampered they are. His ducks live a simpler life than mine.

I can not possibly take in 6 indoor ducks in my townhouse in chicago... I don't have a yard, and i only got one tub. Four ducks can be walked by joe and myself, but between us we only got 4 hands... Ducks can be rotated in the tub splitting bath time, but splitting it three ways is even more insane. I have enough room to build a pen almost 56sq ft in my extra bedroom, to give each duck 4sqft of coop space and 10 sqft of run. It's a tight fit. 6 ducks will not fit in the new pen design. If i build it bigger, there is no room for anything else in that room at all. (it's only 10x12.)

I personally love Vinny, i actually raised him and intended him to be a part of my mini flock, but he bonded to ollie so i gave david vinny to keep ollie company. I'd love to take him in a heart beat but 5 ducks is just as bad as 6.... If we were to take vinny we could only keep one duckling, rather than two. bringing us to 4, but that leaves ollie up in the air. Ollie i believe could live outside with other ducks, as she's very tough and doesn't really like people in general. Vinny living outside is more of a concern because well, he's um, special... not too bright and kinda well, dumb... he trips over his own feet and falls off tables... very sweet but not smart. lol. I would be concerned about him living oudoors, unless he was really secure and tended to often. I;m sure he'll get along great with other ducks, just as well with people...
vinny really is the sweetest duck known to man i believe....

So here are my options....

Tell david i can not take the ducks... (I have a feeling he will miss them a lot if he gives them up). They could go to a potential new home with someone i know down in AL, maybe on a trail basis to see how things play out. They may take to it, they may not... But neither david nor myself will have the ducks anymore. the ducks will also have a higher risk of something going wrong and them dying... being outside they are more likely to run into predator problems, neighborhood dogs, illness, weather, etc... if something were to happen to them, i feel like i'd be responsible...

Take just one duck and change my duckling plans slightly... Give just ollie to the new potential home and see how she does with other ducks without vinny. I'd have to hope vinny will fit in my my ducks, and hope he bonds with the new duckling as it grows. I'd risk them being unhappy still by being separated.

Take both ducks and cancel my duckling order... their would be one very very disappointed bycer, who'd i feel really bad letting down. They didn't buy the ducks or split the order, but rather i offered to get a few extra and give them away for free since it didn't impact my order and makes shipping a little easier on the babies. I'd feel really bad about that. I know vinny loves me, but ollie is a whole other story... She's very feisty and has a bigger attitude problem than ming mei (but minus ming mei's love for her momma). Ollie could squawk and squawk endlessly in my house and get me in trouble with my neighbors. She is really loud and never really calmed down like ming mei did. Joe will also be very sad that he's not getting ducklings... We were planning on taking advantage of their growing for our website. to get pictures and have them model baby items we will be selling. Getting babies is not just an exciting new pet situation, but it's also a business decision... Joe was also told by his doctor that he needs a pet of his own to help him with his stress. His job can drive him bonkers and is very high stress, and my ducks seem to help a bit with his nerves, but his doctor recommends that he get his own... to me this seems to be the least desirable option...

It seems no option is ideal... In any of them, someone gets to be upset or disappointed... I don't know how david would feel about them going to a brand new home outdoors, or being split... I just got a message form him tonight, but it was too late to call him about it. I've sent a pm to the person i was thinking might be able to take them in, explaining that it's all up in the air right now.

I'm very anxious about this, as is joe... i'm feeling all jittery and upset... any replies would at least make me feel a little better...

 

[BirdMom]

I would go with your original plan of getting the new ducklings and just having your flock of four. It sounds like Ollie and Vinny won't be a good match for your situation, as much as you love Vinnie. Integrating two grown ducks with your own two grown ducks may not be easy, either, but ducklings will adapt a lot easier.

Helping David find a good home for his ducks is a nice thing for you to do. I'm sure there is a good home for them out there, and maybe you can even keep in touch with whoever takes them to see how they're doing. I understand your conflicted feelings, but I think in the long run, taking in his ducks is going to cause all kinds of issues for you that you really don't need to deal with.

Just my opinion.

Hope things work out. We love our ducks too, and my kids would love to have them in diapers in the house, but that's a bit too much work for me.

 

[nettie]

the person i asked is someone i keep in contact with and have given ducks to before... so we'll see if vinny and ollie can fit into her flock...

I know my two knuckleheads will not be keen on any other ducks living with us, but they will have to get over it... I'm thinking the new babies will probably end up in the bottom of the pecking order, since they already have a mini one established (it's called, victor is dominate and in charge, and he decides to do whatever ming mei wants to do. lol)

I'm keeping my fingers crossed

that everything turns out well. I love his ducks and want to see them happy!

 

[Shadowhills Farm]

Did anyone take them? We may be able to take them, just don't know how Squirt the Pekin Drake would like it...

 

[Goat_Walker]

Thanks Nettie! Im more than happy to help , just let me know what David says

 

[eggybritches]

Being an animal lover is an extremely hard thing to do, because there are just so many animals out there that NEED you.

I think you should get your babies. I think your boyfriend needs them and I think they'd get along better with Victor and Ming Mei than two established ducks. Also, you don't really want a prissy Ollie added to the mix, and splitting them up if they are bonded sounds like torture. My three are lost if one of them disappears for even a minute. The best you can do is try and help your friend find them a new home. You're a sweety for doing so.

 

[duckluck]

The ducklings have my vote...help your friend if you can but not at the expense of everyone else in your household: boyfriend, neighbors, other ducks, and you. There are too many what-ifs involved in taking the older ducks, and way too many chances of everyone being really unhappy if everything doesn't work out, well, just ducky.

 

[DuckMamaorBust]

I agree with everyone else. Go with your original plan because you've already given it great thought and considered what is best for your family. If you had wanted to adopt adult birds you could have considered that as an option before ordering your chicks. You're heart is big and I'd want to help the birds too but it is better for everyone if they found a home that was fit for them rather than trying to make your town house situation work.

Once you've made your decision and David's birds have a place to live you'll feel a LOT better and the confusion will clear. Helping the babies find a home is the best you can do. You're going to have 2 more babies?! WOW! That's awesome. I joined this forum after Ming Mei and Victor were grown. I hope you post regular pictures of your two new babies. Or will Joe be posting the baby pictures?

 

[AHappychick]

would the byc'er make a good home for the pair? then you could just sell your extra ducklings, or rather order 2 ducklings for yourself and some chicks and find the chicks homes. (I got packing peanut chicks with a small duck order once so they can all travel together)

 

[nettie]

We ordered from metzer farms, we got our two female runners, and five assorted runners for another bycer who lives in IL. Metzer sends as few as two and are really good about not sending extras. They put heat packs and gro gel in the box with them and they do well. Metzer charhes a 30 dollar minimum so whether we buy 2 ducks or 7 ducks, it's about the same price, so we offered free ducklings to the first who asked. Might as well share the ducky love! If we didn't get any takers, we were only going to order two. I know Chickenlover54 is very super excited to get ducks!

So far i've talked to Goat_walker, who lives near david, and she can take them in if need be. We gave goat_walker three ducks from an order last winter, so we've met before. I asked her since she was looking to build her flock back up after that horrible dog attack. She often takes rescues and lost her poor runner. I thought david's runners would find a good home with her!

I'm still waiting to talk to david, I guess he has a big test tomorrow and was busy studying all day so we didn't get to discuss much about the ducks. I'll be calling him tomorrow to see what he thinks... they way i figure, if he really can't take care of them anymore, he'll give them to a good home... And since he's only across town, he could visit them at their new home if he misses them. They could also do a trial run to see how the ducks do at a new place, and see how david does without his pets. Maybe knowing that i can't take them in will either convince him to get them a new home, or to maybe switch his life around to include them (if he can). either way, I hope it turns out for the best!

Our new additions come in on the 14th, and we're excited. Joe more so than me, since i've done the baby duck thing several times now... but i am still looking forward to the peeps. I've got a bunch of stuff ready for them, and am making their brooders/toys/waterers... lots to do to get ready for them!