What does he want?

[jami3lynn]

I rescued one duckling yesterday. I'm getting a brooding lamp and pine shaving bedding and a large dog kennel. For now, he either snuggles with me or on a heating pad in a large cardboard box to sleep. I put some feed at the bottom of the water bowl he plays and drinks in, and he seemed to eat it but not nearly as much as I'm reading. We just went for a walk around the neighborhood and he tweeted the whole way, then walked through our front gate to the front door. I picked him up and he immediately fell asleep in my hand. I'm just worried he's not eating enough.

 

[Welshies]

Well, ducklings may not seem to eat a lot, but he will.
Is he happy, active, and healthy? If so, I wouldn't worry. If you want him to eat more, make sure it's in a good container and watch him. He may not know it's food, or it may be too big to comfortably eat. What is he eating now?

 

[jami3lynn]

Well, ducklings may not seem to eat a lot, but he will.
Is he happy, active, and healthy? If so, I wouldn't worry. If you want him to eat more, make sure it's in a good container and watch him. He may not know it's food, or it may be too big to comfortably eat. What is he eating now?

He is very happy and seems very healthy. He is eating a chicken scratch that the feed store recommended and I'm mixing in a tiny bit of Brewers yeast to supplement niacin. I had to put his food in his water dish as he was drinking and he pecked at the food as he walked in circles. He's loud and active and sweet. How do I let him know it's food? He still has the point on his beak. Not sure how old he is.

 

[Jacob Duckman]

try feeding him crushed canned or boiled corn. you can always powder it with some feed. Make sure the corn is cooked and well-mushed, small ducklings can choke on whole kernels

 

[BabyandCotton]

If he's got the egg tooth, he is one or two days old, which would explain why he's not eating ( he still has the yolk sac) Just keep plenty of food and water in his cage.
-Liv

 

[Welshies]

If he's got the egg tooth, he is one or two days old, which would explain why he's not eating ( he still has the yolk sac) Just keep plenty of food and water in his cage.
-Liv

x2
Butthere is something called the "bean" or "nail" all ducks have. It's at the end of the bill (beak) and points downward, different from an egg tooth.
Bean: you can see the dark bean at the bottom of the bill.