What ducks aren't -or- yes your expectations can be too high

[duckyfromoz]

I guess my ducklings are weird, they love sitting on my lap! If I sit in front of their cage and open the door they come running out and climbing up on me. They like to sit and watch TV. I don't know if they "like" being held, but they don't try to run away when I pick them up anymore. One really likes it when I rub her belly!

DUCKLINGS ... thats the key word here- babies of any species are different in behaviour to adults. Right now your ducklings still think you are mom and are going to want to be near you- but wait a few weeks and they will adopt a very different attitude as they get to be " independent teenagers"

I think it is also important to mention about the fact while the idea of a house duck may be cute- it is not in their best interests to be keeping them as an inside diapered pet.
There are always exceptions to the rule- but in essence- ducks just dont have it in their genetic makeup to be considered a good " lap pet" They are an outside flock animal and keeping them in others ways can actually be cruel. I have had inside ducks before- disabled ducks that could not walk and therefor would die quickly if left outside- but any healthy and functioning duck - if you truely care for the welfare of your animals should have outside on the grass time every day that the weather allows. Fine if they sleep inside- for protection against predators and the weather, but ducks are at their happiest when outside on the grass/ ground in a flock.
Nothing brings a smile to my face as fast as seeing my flock do laps of the yard flapping their wings and heading for a morning swim when they are let out each morning. No duckie diapers here....- yes they area a cute idea- but its just not natural. How many adults do you know of that wear diapers " just for the convenience"

 

[nickie]

I guess my ducklings are weird, they love sitting on my lap! If I sit in front of their cage and open the door they come running out and climbing up on me. They like to sit and watch TV. I don't know if they "like" being held, but they don't try to run away when I pick them up anymore. One really likes it when I rub her belly!

Mine too, I have to wait for them to come to me but they do come and love to sit close to me, they fall asleep on me given half the chance! They are both just over 12 weeks now and one is super confident and doesn't mind me picking her up, the other doesn't like being picked up but loves to sit on me and does a weird thing were she pushes her neck and head along side my neck/ head whilst vibrating slightly, havn't a clue what this is but I have taken it as a sign of affection as she wags her tail after and looks very pleased with herself.

I generally see the extended neck and "vibrating" thing from my head duck right before she body slams and wing flaps someone who got out of line. I've seen it in my other female when she met the yungins, again with a charging cheat bump. I'm pretty sure that is not a sign of affection. My ducks are 3 years, 1 year, and 2 months, I have seen the behavior enough to be comfortable in telling you that.

 

[wildpeas]

I agree that the neck shaking thing is not affection. My ducks do it to show dominance and when they are unsure about something new. My geese do it right before they attack the dog and I can tell you without a doubt they do not "love" the dog.

My geese are very affectionate toward me and my daughter who handle them regularly but they think my husband is a terrorist and needs to be watched closely. My ducks will follow me around in their pen and herd fairly reliably but not because they love me but because I feed them. When they are in a new situation they do tend to be more tame when being handled. For example: This morning around 6:00 I heard a lot of wing flapping and a thump coming from the tv room where the brooder is, followed by a cat running down the hallway. I went out to see what was what and found one of my khaki campbells, Lizzie, in the kitchen checking things out. She let me pick her up and carry her back to the brooder without fuss but if I were to go out and try to catch her right now when she is in the yard I would have to chase her.

I know some ducks can adjust to living in a house as a house pet but I could never do that to my ducks. They belong outside where they can forage for bugs, eat grass, and be with other ducks. I have a very affectionate pony who would without a doubt come inside our house if we allowed it but she doesn't belong inside so we dont let her.

 

[zooweemama]

I think this is an important thread to discuss. What I have seen a lot of is people sharing their adorable cute duck stories of Homer the duck that loves cuddles, watching tv, wears diapers etc...often that duck is very young and has not been given the opportunity to imprint on other ducks. That's a REALLY important point to remember. I think it 's really good for people to know that these ducks are exceptions, not the rule and definitely far from the norm. As with ANY pet every now and then you come upon one that is just exceptional and amazing and that is perfectly wonderful. But again it is NOT the norm. The norm is that your ducklings may adore you as ducklings...snuggles, pets, lap pet for a time but generally speaking ducks love to be around other ducks, getting wet in a pool or pond, dabbling in muddy water for tidbits, eating up slugs and bugs, flapping their wings and take 2 second leaps that result in the feeling of almost flying...they talk to one other.

We become something they may more than tolerate with patience and hard work but we are eventually not seen as part of the flock. Anything that is not part of the flock is always going to be met with some sort of caution. Sometimes only slight caution - sometimes more extreme.

So for those of you reading that have the typical duck...the kind that gets to run around the yard or run, dabbles in dirt and water, gets too bathe daily and chatter amongst other ducks and your ducks do not want you to hold them and they do not want to watch tv on your lap and wear a diaper...there is absolutely nothing wrong with your duck. There is absolutely everything right with your duck. The 'cute' stories you read about ducks are exceptions, not rules and cannot be expected of every duck or every living situation.

So when reading these 'cute' stories - look at the entire picture of the exceptional ducks life. Likely they have been giving a lot of one on one by the caregiver, are often not part of a flock (sometimes purchased as single ducks with no duck buddy), are often kept mostly inside...so if you want to replicate that 'ideal' cute duck story you would also need to replicate the living situation and even then that is not a guarantee.

I love that everyone is discussing this. I think it's important that people have realistic expectations of ducks. And if you happen to get an 'exceptional' duck then you can know ever more so how 'special' that duck is.

 

[Laura6544]

I generally see the extended neck and "vibrating" thing from my head duck right before she body slams and wing flaps someone who got out of line. I've seen it in my other female when she met the yungins, again with a charging cheat bump. I'm pretty sure that is not a sign of affection. My ducks are 3 years, 1 year, and 2 months, I have seen the behavior enough to be comfortable in telling you that.

Thats interesting, i'm obviously fairly new to ducks, had one as a child but too young to appreciate their behaviour and what it meant. The duck that does this is actually the more timid of the two, the other regularly pushes her out of the way for food and she is always the follower not the leader. Perhaps they see me as the underdog? She is so gentle with me compared to the other one who can sometimes be over zealous in the pecking department. Its odd because she does this vibrating thing then settles down on my lap and starts to nod off, doesn't come across at all as a dominant or aggressive behaviour. Will keep my eye on it all the same in case I get a wing slap too!

 

[destinduck]

The only time I ever had a duck like a cat or dog was when I was young. It was just the one. If it never sees another duck it will bond to you bigtime. I have even seen on TV where a drake mallard would fly with the girls car to be with her. A single duck can do alot of cool stuff with you. Once you make it two ducks though most definitely dont like to be held and whatnot but still can be very friendly.