What do we take with us?

[lola4795]

We're taking our baby Mallards to a preschool next week. The ducklings will be about 10 days old at the time. Does anyone have any suggestions on how to present them? The currently live in a giant rubbermaid bin with a heat lamp. Should we just take the whole bin? Would it be better to put them in a smaller container for a school situation?

Does anyone have any other ideas for making it fun for kids?

 

[LindsayB]

I would also bring a large clear container to fill up with water. The children could watch them swim and see through the container to watch their little feet kick. I would be entertained by that lol.

 

[chickenlittle32]

Last Easter, we brought a few ducklings to a photographer friend that wanted kids to pose with a duckling. We brought them in a cat crate...Only one duckling liked being held...taken pics with...etc...even stayed a while in a basket wrapped in a blanket...Just be careful because some kids will be terrified!

 

[katharinad]

I would bring the tub as is. It is stressful for ducks to have their settings changed. Even bringing them to another location is stressful. Make sure that you put them on vitamin/electrolyte water the day before, while there, and after. I would also prevent the kids from holding them. They are very young children and can easily drop or hurt them. Not on purpose, but it is better to prevent it in the first place. You may have the children one at a time reach in and touch with a finger, if really needed. It is very stressful on the ducklings to be touched by strangers. Best is to avoid it all together and just have them look. Most children will love just to look and ask questions.
Katharina

 

[kitkatbahr]

My 3 week old Pekin duckling, Sunny, has been to school 5 times now! She was hatched in a 2nd grade classroom and was the only one hatched. She has been back 3 times to see those kids, and also to a kindergarten class, and then a preschool. There is another preschool requesting her too.

When I took her in, I found the easiest way was to put her in a plastic airline cat carrier type crate for traveling. I lined it with paper towels and put her beanie baby stuffed animal in with her. It was easier to seat belt into the car (seatbelt through the handle on top of crate, then snapped into place) than a tote would be.

I also took a tote. It was fairly clear so kids could see through. I put a screen over the top and used bunjie cords to secure it around edges so little hands couldn't just reach in and grab her. Once I got to school, I carried her in in the cat carrier, also took the tote, then transferred her when I got there. They could see through the screen and also through sides of tote. The tote isn't huge. It is about 1 foot or so wide and maybe 2 feet long and 2 feet deep. approx. Don't know the gallon size of it. I also DID NOT take the brooder light at any time. It's hot here and I didn't have her swimming, so no need to worry about the light. I did keep a cover over the cat crate in the car though, to block the a/c from chilling her. Oh, she rode in the front seat, with the door facing the driver's seat so she could see me the whole time. She rides GREAT in the car.

I took a small chick waterer with me, and a bit of food, cause the kids liked watching her eat and drink (plus, she got really thirsty - I live in Florida and it is hot already). Speaking of that, when we are asked to go in, I always tell them mornings only cause it is easier on her to travel when it is cooler, even though I do have a/ci in my car. I also don't want her chilled in the car so I put a towel over the carrier for travel. Oh, I also carried my own water bottle to give her water, as I didn't know how the layout of the classroom was or if they had water in the classroom. That worked well. I also took an extra roll of paper towels just for clean up, etc.

The first time to school, I tried to carry her and the tote in and it was a pain! My husband suggested I buy a wagon, so I did. A radio flyer path finder wagon. The tote fits in it, as well as her crate and all her supplies.


I didn't let the kids hold her, as they could hurt her by accident. What I did was take her out of the tote/crate whatever she was in at the time, and held her and let the kids come up one or two at a time to pet her. I also answered any questions they had while we were doing that. Then I put her back in the tote. She has never (knock on wood) pooped on me, the kids, the floor or anything like that. But, giving her time in the tote does give her time to poo, so i usually put her in there for awhile after they pet her and while they are asking questions. Then they can observe her while we talk. And, it gives her a break from the stress of little fingers poking her. Not all ducks have the personality to do this. It doesn't seen to bother Sunny at all. She is imprinted on people, as she was an incubator baby. So, she thinks she is one of us anyway and likes being around people.

Average time per class has been about 15 minutes to 1/2 hour depending on age of kids. The little ones don't have a very long attention span, so 15-20 minutes seemed like plenty of time. Once we were done, I put Sunny back in her traveling crate with her beanie baby, and then threw everything else in the tote to carry home. It was rather simple, especially once I got the wagon.

It is a lot of fun. I didn't try to take enough water for her to swim in or anything like that. I didn't want her to get chilled, as the classrooms are air conditioned. They seemed happy enough to watch her eat and drink, pet her, ask questions, etc. You can also take some treats if you want, like smushed up peas or bits of romaine lettuce. I didn't even worry about that. Just her crumbles and water dish/with a water bottle. The simpler the better.

Have a good time. Sunny is a Pekin, by the way. I don't know how many baby mallards you want to take, but I only had just Sunny, and it was not a problem at all. I am not sure if I could personally handle keeping track of more than one at a time when doing that! LOL

If you have any questions, let me know.

Thanks.
Kathy