karencopas Posted July 16, 2012 Share Posted July 16, 2012 hi all, i have 6 ducks all 8 wks old so fully grown? they live together in a WIR witha 1m extension and have a purple cube in there too today one of the biggest ducks who we call mumble was a bit snappy to a few of the nursery children! the ducks were all out swimming and having a lovely time in a big paddling pool, i am worried now i won't be able to trust mumble around the children and the whoe point of keeping them after hatching was for the children to care for the ducks also i've successfully set up a duck rota for the upcoming summer hols and so many parents are keen i don't want it to turn into a bad experience time is running out as the rota comes into effect on saturday!! is this drake behaviour? terratorial? too many ducks not enough space? change in routine? and also today my little call duck cross had a go at flying! shall i clip his wings? all in all it wasn't a great duck day at nursery please help all you very experienced duck peoople i feel very inexperienced and worried! so much to learn x Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
miller30 Posted July 17, 2012 Share Posted July 17, 2012 Hi karen call ducks can fly away if they want to and i have never had any trouble with drakes until breeding season and sometimes they dont want you near their girls the worst i have had is my drake puts his head down charges but i can hear his feet coming so the minute i spin round and confront him he runs off also ducks will never be cuddly like a dog or cat but i wouldnt have thought that a drake could do any damage they are not like cockbirds would you say the children play with them alot maybe they need some chillout time leanne Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
karencopas Posted July 17, 2012 Author Share Posted July 17, 2012 hi leanne, we don't let the children play with them but they do stand round and watch when they're swimming i think maybe mumble thought there was food on offer? today another one of my drakes-jubilee did a little snap as one of the children put their hand out so i've said to the children not to reach out at the ducks unless we are feeding them with a flat hand. the ducks are wary of us and will run away when we go into the run they are not difficult to pick up and are calm when we do i'm not sure how much to feed them daily as i would like them to follow the food so we can move them around easily into different areas of the orchard. at the moment i think they have full tummies all the time! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chortle Chook Posted July 17, 2012 Share Posted July 17, 2012 I would think that you are quite right and Mumble is going for food. Ducks can be very enthusiastic when it comes to hand outs, however I've never found my ducks' nips to be in the least painful. Unlike chickens who have quite sharp beaks, ducks' bills are rounded at the end, and even when they push a bill into my hand it feels rather sweet so I very much doubt that if the children put out flat hands they will come to any harm. Touch wood, although my call ducks don't have clipped wings, they seem quite content to stay where I have them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
miller30 Posted July 17, 2012 Share Posted July 17, 2012 When you want to move them around try a can of sweetcorn they love it makesure its in just water my indian runner has been known to stand on tiptoes in front of you if you are not feeding her fast enough leanne Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
