My neighbor and ger son just came over with a duckling in their hands, he said it was "lost". I persuaded them to leave it with me (these are the type of people who seem to kill a dog every year). They brought it to me because I'm an RVT and have raised orphaned kittens, puppies,squirrels and song birds. Ducks are a little new to me though. I'm going to try to find a rescue for him, but until then, I want him to be comfy. He was hot and thirsty, so a swim in the dogs pool made him very happy! He is about 4-6" tall, pale yellow and has a fluff mohawk. I'll try to get a pic of him once he destresses a little bit. I have a pen built for squirrels that is empty right now with floor space of about 6'x4' and can rig up some water for him. It's completely escape and predator proof so it should suffice. What about bedding? I have plenty of bird seed, both small and large seed, anything else he might care to eat??
Thanks so much
Joey
Orphan Duck help please
Here he/she is. Doesnt seem to be too stressed, and seems to enjoy attention LOL
Well he's adorable. Congrats. I used to have a duck years ago. I am thinking they enjoy oatmeal.
Karen
JoJo can you get ahold of some non medicated chick starter? He's not really geared to eat seeds. Also he would probably enjoy some lettuce, spinach or other leafy greens. My ducks are 1 month old tomorrow and that's what they eat. They also enjoy earthworms. Lots and lots of water to drink, dunk their heads in and swim in! Ducks need to have their food close to their water dish cause they take a mouthful of food and dash to dunk it in water before the swallow it.
Also keep him out of drafts. I understand it's really hot in Texas now but baby ducks need to be at about 85 degrees till they get older. He looks pretty young. I sure hope he was really lost and not waiting for his parents to get back with a meal for him!
MollyD
Thanks so much. I cant get a hold of any starter until tomorrow. How about broccoli? I have lots of that, and I can go get some lettuce and spinach as soon as traffic dies down. It's about 97 outside right now, and about 85 inside (just got my AC fixed) I have set him up in the squirrel pen with the top of a bird bath full of water. He's a bold little thing. The kid who found him said he was in a drain pipe at one of the many man made ponds in our planned community. There is usually a mix of domestic and wild ducks that inhabit these ponds, so i don't know if he was lost or just waiting for mom.
What about nesting? I know wood ducks like nesting boxes, but this little guy looks domestic? I really am at a loss when it comes to ducks. Where do they sleep? LOL
When I first got mine they went into a brooder. Basically a plastic tote bin . I lined the bottom with shelf liner. That kept it from being slippery (they can get splayed legs permanently if they don't have a firm surface to walk on). It was cold here at the time so I had an 85 watt red spotlight on them all the time to keep them warm. That was it. I had a small bowl of water (about 3" diameter) and had to refill it several times a day. I had another small bowl for the food.
Try chopping the broccoli on the fine side and offer a little to see if he'll take it. If you can dig up some earthworms those were very popular with my bunch! Sounds like the little guy wasn't lost. Mom probably left him there to wait for her (poor thing).
MollyD
Are his eyes pink or is it just the reflection? If they are not, he's definately domestic. Most wilds have coloration to help them hide. His legs and bill seem awfully light even for a domestic.
If you have an area where you can let him graze and bug in the grass for a few hours each day, he will love it. otherwise the unmedicated chick starter is good when supplimented with greens.
straw is good for the floor as he will throw water all over and it drains better than shavings. I give my babies a low pan with water for them to splash around all the time. It gets gross quickly though from the food.
I have a wonderful Rouen that has raised a couple of batches of orphans for me. They all fly away in the fall and leaveher behind, but she doesn't seem to mind.
No his eyes aren't pink, its just the light. There is something odd about his head and neck shape too. Not completely ducky in my novice eye, but of course that doesn't mean anything. He has settled down in a large dog kennel for the night with water, lettuce and broccoli. He was out in the squirrel pen and he get some 6 leged protein, so I will put him back out for a while tomorrow while I can keep an eye on him. I'll make a trip to the feed store in the AM and get some supplies. I am still trying to find a home for him though
How far are you from Fitch, Tx? I bet tf would give him a home LOL
MollyD
no idea LOL cant find Fitch on the mapquest, If anybody near Houston wants a duckling let me know though!
Oh! he's cute! Wish I lived closer.
I have another question for the duck experts. Do you think if I went back to the pond where he was found that I could locate his mom and she would take him back? I feel so bad for him all by himself.
That's a tough call. The mother may not recognise him as hers right away and drive him off. When I intrigate ducklings, I usually grab a couple of the ones that the mother already has and put them together for a day or so and then when I give them back, she doesn't know which is the new ones, even if it is a little diffrent in age or appearance.
If it is a large pond with several ducks (not just one pair), you can always return him when he is older and about full grown. They grow really fast. He should be ready in a couple of months.
Well it looks like he is a crested Peking Duck, maybe not too hard to find others like him.
http://www.feathersite.com/Poultry/Ducks/Crest/BRKCrestedDucks.html
He looks just like the little guys at the bottom
TF is north of Amarillo--which is about as far from Houston as it is possible to be and still be in Texas. (I looked Fritch up on the map a while ago, lived in Texas for a decade and had never heard of it).
The duckling is adorable--
The duckling looks like a white ... maybe buff but probably white Pekin or mostly Pekin w/ some Runner as a potential %. It can only get cuter as time passes ... a funny-cute looking duck for sure. I have several Swedish Blue ... and they also come in Buff ... great layers too.
jojoringer,
You said something about him looking odd to you for a duck. I wondered if he was a swan. Here is a web page with swan baby pictures for you to check out.
http://www.sygnetswans.com/cygnets1.html
MollyD
I'm pretty sure he's a duck, I'm just not real familiar with them. He looks just like those crested ducklings in that pic. Here's another of him being Ducky
Definately not a swan or goose, the neck is too short. He does have the sloped face and wide bill of a runner. Does he hold himself erect like a bowling pin or more horizontal?
I would have to say more upright, but its rally kind of in between. LOL I dunno but he is sure growing on me, wish I could keep him and keep him happy.
Mr or Miss personality this one!
The very last pic on this page resembles him the most. He is a very pale yellow, but has a slight brownish cast on parts of him. His posture is a lot like the ducklings in that last pic as well
http://www.feathersite.com/Poultry/Ducks/Crest/BRKCrestedDucks.html
Gosh, he's a funny looking little thing! I think that's what makes him so cute. He definately looks like there will be a crest, but he doesn't have the bowling pin carriage. Maybe he's some sort of a cross. It's that platypuss bill that I love.
Why can't you keep him? I had my Quackers for over a year before I got any other ducks. He has always been happy with a kiddy pool, a yard to roam and some corn. He was actually a rescue. A landlord found him abandoned in an apartment bathroom. We figure he had been there for at least a week or more. He's fat and happy now though with two females. (and about 25 babies so far).
I have 2 dogs that I'm not sure I could trust around him, as well as a lot of marauding cats (my neighbor has a 'cat ranch'). We also have a lot of hawks and owls, I mean a lot! I just don't think it would be fair to keep him penned all the time, and thats the only way I would feel safe for him around here.
That's too bad. Ducks are so funny to have around.
Two months would go by fast and then you could return him to where he came from. My opinion.
Wish I could have him, but I am so far away. Plus, it would be better if he went back to his own people. :)
Karen
Oh I would love to keep him, he is incredibly charming and downright entertaining, but I know in the long run he will be happier with his own people. I left word at the feedstore to have the duck lady to call me, she raises Swedish Blues and some other ornamental ducks, so she might be interested in him. I really want to find him a nice ducky place, he is such a little charmer!
Good luck with your duck. We have had to raise a few of the wild ones from our back yard a few times and the longer they have been with the hen, they harder they seem to be to raise. We have a clutch of 8 right now that are doing great. They got too big for the bathtub so now they are at the barn in an empty stall with a feed tub for a pool.
Here they are now with Spike, the rooster we nursed back from the edge. He is crowing now. So funny.
NEVER HEARD OF FRITCH!!!???
OK< we have a poultry member here that lives in conroe, let me think, maggiemooo or charlenesplants???
cute pics, and yep, right away i thought it was a crested something, just adorable! hold on and i'll look up that other member
OK, not CP o rMoodene, still checking./ if you go to this page, and use your edit button on every page, you can do a find on Conroe...
http://davesgarden.com/community/memberlist/viewby.php?area=state&arg1=tx
this page you can enter a name and go to their page to see where they are form...
http://davesgarden.com/community/memberlist/
i dmailed maggiemoo with a link to this thread. if she doesn't take the duckling, use the links above to find another DGer. another idea is to post in the regional thread... for Texas it is here:
http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/f/region_tx/all/
tf
bless you jojoringer for helping the little guy!
Oh thats a good idea. Isnt there a way to find who lives near you? I saw that somewhere, but dont remember where LOL
yes, it's here.
http://davesgarden.com/extras.php
click on findother dgers in your are,a it searches by your zip code...
meanwhile, smedgekles also lives in conroe, i knew there were two!
tf
Are they duck people? (that just sounds odd LOL attack of the duck people!!!)
they both frequent this forum, so they COULD be duck people, i know they have chickens...
;-)
Thanks to TF I found this thread. Yes I am in Conroe but we dont have ducks just chickens. We do have a pond though :)
My daughter saw the duck pics and said "I want a duck"
We had ducks when I was a kid and we had one that didn't hatch as fast as the others and the mother left it. We put it in a seperate pen and took care of it but one day when we were gone the mother or father duck got into the pen somehow and killed the little duckling. I was so upset.
I showed the pics to my husband and he said sure we'll take it. So if you still have it ,and want it to have a home it will be spoiled rotten in, then let me know where we can meet. We live southeast of Conroe close to Grangerland. Though at the moment we don't have any other ducks, it won't be lonely and would be over loved. We have more than 50 chickens and they are spoiled rotten thanks to my kids, so the duck would get spoiled as well.
Oh are you sure? I would love to find him a good home. He's still pretty young and has to be kept warm but I guess if you have chicks you ahve brooders and stuff. He's been outside during he day, but I keep him inside at night. I gave him meal worms this morning and he had a blast LOL! I live off 1488 the southwest corner of Conroe almost to Magnolia. I am going to be in and out all day today. Maybe we could arrange something tomorrw?
Joey
Keep us all posted!