What in Ducky Heck is this!?

[DuckyDoodles]

To get mine to clean their faces after the evening mash (the game bird starter I had them on a first was dusty so mash was my way of using all the food) I put peas in clear water and let them go bobbing for peas, it gives me entertainment and gets everyone's face clean.


... I think the ducks may have me trained.

I love that idea!! Did you just watch for when thy were eating and then toss the peas in there? And for 7 day old Cayuga ducklings, should I halve the peas so they’re not a choking hazard?

And I suppose more important than a clean face, is a good working crop, with her doing an open mouth thing that hubs observed and with the implementation of peas, should I provide a grit dish?

I haven’t implemented anything to the quartet yet so I’ve not bothered with grit or whatnot. But these two, as we’re noting, care should be taken.

 

[DuckyDoodles]

:: OG UPDATE::

This girl is gonna drag this healing process out the longest she can... I think the car rides have spoilt her. She flat out enjoyed it today (with the exception of having to sit backseat to a lowly knuckle dragging male hooman). She never attempted to Free Bird herself again (that’s two rides in a row) and that’s even with hubs inside a building and me stepping outside to smoke a cancer stick!

But, to the meat and potatoes:

Doc went ahead and pulled off the rest of that scab that had been working it’s way off. She agreed with me that pulling it isn’t ever recommended but she wants to see what tissue was underneath. She, again, confirmed that this incision hole/wound is directly above her keel bone and is not healed yet. She said she sees (I hunk the term was filamentous) tissue and that is *IS* healing but just <ridiculously> slow. There’s no infection, and no signs of anything to be worried about. It’s just, presumably, the location making it super hard to heal ((being that it’s trying to cover a bone in an area where it was previously necrotic and therefore has even less mass to produce good healthy tissue)).

So her prognosis is she can be reintroduced to Patty so long as Patty’s “affections” don’t irritate the wound or cause it to open/get cruddy. Doc is optimistic that since 95+% of her feathers in the area have regrown that it’s fairly protected but with duck love, it can get a little rough and tumble.

Still no baths or swimming until it’s compleyely healed.

I’m to continue the “wipe and swipe” I’d been doing but she says I can roll it back to just once a day if everything looks good.

No follow up appointment on the books for now because she said she wants me to monitor it and watch it and see when I think it’s healed, then call for an appt for the vet’s sign off on her being able to get wet and wild again. She says otherwise I’ll keep doing what I’ve BEEN doing which is driving 1.75 hours (each way) for her to tell me “not yet”.

All in all, I’m ‘okay’ with the outcome of today. I didn’t expect a full clearance but I was hoping for a little bit of water play in her future. But as it is, if the weather cooperates, I could conceivably have them BOTH outdoors for some sun and fun soon.

Attached are some pics of the coop in progress and of OG’s wound (taken 5 minutes prior to posting this).

 

[Blue Crow]

Yup, just tossed them in when everyone seemed pretty well done with the mash, - I squished the peas until a few days ago because I was worried they would be too big. From what I understand yes they need the grit if they are getting anything besides processed feed.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Her wound sure looks a lot better than before you started looks like more meat needs to fill in I can see where that would take some time. Looks good though and your coop looks awesome.

I need to ask though how do you plan on getting them off the pond and inside each evening? will you be putting some fencing around the coop so you can close them up before bed and make it easier to get them inside?

 

[DuckyDoodles]

Her wound sure looks a lot better than before you started looks like more meat needs to fill in I can see where that would take some time. Looks good though and your coop looks awesome.

I need to ask though how do you plan on getting them off the pond and inside each evening? will you be putting some fencing around the coop so you can close them up before bed and make it easier to get them inside?

I’m thinking it looks a lot better too! Bummer it’s not all the way healed but I’ll take what I can get.

I have a 10foot by 10foot run that I had been putting the two Pekin girls in during the day there for a short bit. That was before OG’s limitations and this $)-“&;$@/?!-@ weather (‘scuse me... I’m cranky).

The run will be attached to the front of the coop when coop is finished. The door on the coop will be two doors (a duck door<which is also a ramp> which folds down from the main <people> door. The ramp will allow them to go straight into the run. I’m going to construct a second door at the back of the run/closest to the pond.

When I wanted them to come in to the back porch from the run I would open the entry gate/door and shake their feed. They’d follow me to the back porch.

The {GOAL} will be to let them in run daily and allow pond time as appropriate/can be supervised. I figure it won’t be too infrequent as it’s in vicinity of what will be (if the deity forsaken weather ever &:&;!4?:83@3!4! Permits!!) where our garden is. So they can be in pond while I’m there gardening/let them come gobble some garden bugs, etc.

When I am ready for them to come back in to their run, I’ll shake a little bit of their feed. Give them dinner and play time then get them in the coop when it’s evening time/wrap up time/safety time. If I have to train (bribe) them with treats to get into coop from run, I’m at peace with that (LOL).

I’d read that feed training the youngin’s Towards the last week or two (before integration process starts) will also help with training them for coop time. If I intend to draw the flock in with kibbles then I should start their kibble feeding routine shortly before hand so their internal clock/routine-o-meter gets set.

Sounds like it could work, in theory, but with ducks... I’m learning patience !HA!

 

[DuckyDoodles]

Oh! And forgot to add, I picked the smaller pond out front for safety/ease of access/human frequency purposes. Pond is smaller and overabudnantly filled with koi/goldfish/whatever. And this pond doesn’t have the muskrats in it that my back pond does. Plus, hoping, no potential repeat injury of whatever happened to OG since this is not the pond she stayed at.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Mine will do just about anything for food lol but they don't have a nice big pond out there either. I hope it all comes together be sure to keep us up on it all.

I think your plan can work real well with training.

 

[DuckyDoodles]

Yup, just tossed them in when everyone seemed pretty well done with the mash, - I squished the peas until a few days ago because I was worried they would be too big. From what I understand yes they need the grit if they are getting anything besides processed feed.

I don’t know why I envisioned halving these peas instead of just a little squish.

Talk about trying to make more work than is necessary!

 

[Miss Lydia]

I can see you now at your counter cutting lil peas in half poor duckies would be starved to death before you got through.

 

[DuckyDoodles]

Mine will do just about anything for food lol but they don't have a nice big pond out there either. I hope it all comes together be sure to keep us up on it all.

I think your plan can work real well with training.

Yeah well that pond can also turn out to be a curse in disguise. I’m leery to find out but also, admittedly, thankful I have it to offer. But worry not! I bought THREE kiddie pools and intend to use them as an alternative if the pond proves to be too much of a hassle or a safety issue.

Kiddie pools for everyone!