First, Thoth. He looks SO different than the day we brought him home. Much better! And he's better at seeing where the water is and stuff like that. I know this should be expected, but he's a very strong swimmer and loves to dive. He couldn't really seem to dive before, but today, he was diving and swimming around all over the tub lol. He was the first one to start diving. He's not as, uh, smart as the others, though. He kind of ambles off of things without really noticing what he's doing, which really worries me, but he seems to see just fine. I think maybe his depth perception is just really bad. But he's good at eating from my hands, so that's good.
Nyx is A LOT more calm than she used to be. Like Thoth, she doesn't mind just sitting back and watching the world go by. However, if food's involved, Nyx is one of the first up to eat from my hands(Pyrrhos is consistently the first). She doesn't scream like a banshee anymore when she's picked up, and sometimes she'll calm right down and nestle in. She still prefers her duck siblings over me, though, lol.
Eris has become my little screecher. She's usually last to get picked up(only because she's better at avoiding my hands) and when she realizes this, she throws a fit. She's very healthy, as well. As my largest of the WH ducklings, I expected her to be a bit of bully, but really, she's quite content to let others be first. Even with food, she doesn't mind squeezing in somewhere without pushing anyone else out. Eris is also my little swimmer baby, and she too loves to dive and swim around.
Erebus is still the smallest of the WH ducklings, but he's growing bigger with each day. He's also fast, which I guess should be expected. He's also quite healthy despite his little size, and he doesn't get pushed around at all. Erebus, like Eris, tends to throw fits and hates to be picked up, but he doesn't mind taking food out of hands. He has a healthy appetite and drinks and preens and acts like any duck lol.
Overall, all my WH babies are maturing and their "defects" are improving and making me one happy duck mom.
I know this is supposed to be a Welsh Harlequin update, but I'm going to give a Pyrrhos update too.
She's surprisingly gentle with the little ones. I was completely blown away, since the first hours she was downright mean. I had even been considering separating them, but now, I think she would have a fit if they were separated. She doesn't mind being removed from them(mostly because the only time I remove her is to let her swim around in deeper water or to take her outside), but if I take even one out of her sight, she yells at me, lol. We've all taken to calling her the Mother Duck, since that's really what she acts like. I think the babies have imprinted on her, which is a good thing, in my opinion, since she's imprinted on humans. The little babies do sometimes gang up on her(we all joke that it's payback for the first day when she would pull on their little legs and toes and peck at their faces and eyes), but mostly they just follow her around. They'll sometimes pile on top of her, which she either enjoys or tolerates. All in all, I think if she turns out to be a hen, she'd make an AMAZING mother. If she turns out to be a drake, she(he)'ll make a very protective flock guardian. I'd be happy either way.
Also, once these five are outside permanently, I'm getting three more Welsh Harlequin ducklings, probably from Metzer. I've become addicted! Haha. But after that, no more until next year, when I'm planning on getting one more drake and one or two more hens - probably also from Metzer.
Nyx is A LOT more calm than she used to be. Like Thoth, she doesn't mind just sitting back and watching the world go by. However, if food's involved, Nyx is one of the first up to eat from my hands(Pyrrhos is consistently the first). She doesn't scream like a banshee anymore when she's picked up, and sometimes she'll calm right down and nestle in. She still prefers her duck siblings over me, though, lol.
Eris has become my little screecher. She's usually last to get picked up(only because she's better at avoiding my hands) and when she realizes this, she throws a fit. She's very healthy, as well. As my largest of the WH ducklings, I expected her to be a bit of bully, but really, she's quite content to let others be first. Even with food, she doesn't mind squeezing in somewhere without pushing anyone else out. Eris is also my little swimmer baby, and she too loves to dive and swim around.
Erebus is still the smallest of the WH ducklings, but he's growing bigger with each day. He's also fast, which I guess should be expected. He's also quite healthy despite his little size, and he doesn't get pushed around at all. Erebus, like Eris, tends to throw fits and hates to be picked up, but he doesn't mind taking food out of hands. He has a healthy appetite and drinks and preens and acts like any duck lol.
Overall, all my WH babies are maturing and their "defects" are improving and making me one happy duck mom.
I know this is supposed to be a Welsh Harlequin update, but I'm going to give a Pyrrhos update too.
She's surprisingly gentle with the little ones. I was completely blown away, since the first hours she was downright mean. I had even been considering separating them, but now, I think she would have a fit if they were separated. She doesn't mind being removed from them(mostly because the only time I remove her is to let her swim around in deeper water or to take her outside), but if I take even one out of her sight, she yells at me, lol. We've all taken to calling her the Mother Duck, since that's really what she acts like. I think the babies have imprinted on her, which is a good thing, in my opinion, since she's imprinted on humans. The little babies do sometimes gang up on her(we all joke that it's payback for the first day when she would pull on their little legs and toes and peck at their faces and eyes), but mostly they just follow her around. They'll sometimes pile on top of her, which she either enjoys or tolerates. All in all, I think if she turns out to be a hen, she'd make an AMAZING mother. If she turns out to be a drake, she(he)'ll make a very protective flock guardian. I'd be happy either way.
Also, once these five are outside permanently, I'm getting three more Welsh Harlequin ducklings, probably from Metzer. I've become addicted! Haha. But after that, no more until next year, when I'm planning on getting one more drake and one or two more hens - probably also from Metzer.
