What You need to Know About Ducks: Our Story

Growing up I spent a lot of time with my grandparents on their farm. I have always loved animals which is a trait shared by my oldest daughter. I had a puppy at the age of one and many other pets which have succeeded that first puppy. Needless to say, farm animals ranked high on my animal list.

I remember getting a goose egg in my basket for Easter and many times I played with newly hatched baby geese. This has been a special memory to this day.

As my oldest daughter was growing up we would get her baby ducks for Easter. It was always a delight to watch them grow and we would even have bath time with the ducks. Eventually they were released on the pond behind our house. They were content to swim in the pond and come back to the house for food.

Unfortunately, predators would catch them for a meal and this is part of farm life. Very sad, but after all, they were farm animals.

Its been over 20 years since we had ducks on the pond. I no longer live on a farm and I still have had a yearning for ducks. My husband was hesitant to get them due to what to do with the cute little ducklings when they become adults. Well, there is a lake in our neighborhood. But we didn't want to let them go on the lake, so that wasn't a great idea.

It took some time, but one day, Al came home and told me one of his co-workers had ducks and was giving them away. It didn't take long to convince him to get us the free gift. He was a bit reluctant, but finally gave in to my request.

We received three baby ducks with delight and excitement! They were about a month old and a bit wild. Very excitable, too. Without going into a long dialog about them, I have to explain what we learned. Basically, "don't leave them out at night". It was a hot summer day and instead of closing them up in the house my husband built, we let them stay in the run. BIG Mistake! When I went out the next morning to feed them. They had been killed. I was devastated! In fact, when I told my husband, he was as well.

They were just forming personalities, but we had not named them yet. Naming makes it even more personal. Well, that was that, I thought. I didn't want to go through that heartache again. But my husband was insistent we try again. I couldn't believe he actually was interested in getting more ducks. However, he had found he really enjoyed the little ducklings. So about a month later, we picked out ducks in a catalog and ordered them from California. My oldest daughter even picked one to be her duck. She lives out of state now, but that didn't matter. She wanted to get in on this adventure.

We were given a delivery date and when that faithful day came, the post office called me. I went and was handed a tiny box which contained four tiny ducks, just two days old. I ran by my husband's school and texted him. It was lunch time so he came out to view the new arrivals. They were precious cargo and cute as could be. One of the little fellows was not doing too well, so I wanted to rush home and get them situated.

We had four different varieties, a Black Swiss (Paisley) , Cayuga (Sophie), Buff (Willow) and White Layer (Lilly). We had an old dog pen which was used to house them. They liked hanging out in their delivery box, so I kept it in the pin. One little fellow was struggling (Sophie), though. Three of them drank and ate, but one was very fragile and weak. This concerned me because of what we had gone through the prior month. I tried to contact the farm where we purchased them, but there was no answer, so I went on the internet to try to find out how to help this little duckling.

The articles I read said one thing which was important, keep them warm. So I wrapped her in a towel and put her in the nap of my hoodie to keep her warm. I was wearing the hoodie, and yes, I walked around the remainder of the day with a duck nestled in it.

I called my husband to pick up a special nutrient booster at the Tractor Supply Store on his way home. We gave her the nutrient boost and continued to keep her warm. By around 10:00 p.m., she started to perk up and I felt comfortable placing her back in the box with the others. The next morning, all four were chirping away. They were cute as could be and we made sure to get them out and play with them so they would be tame.

One thing we learned, which we hadn't thought through, was they had to stay in a warm place until they were old enough to go outside. There couldn't be ten degrees difference between the current temperature and the outside temperature. It was late October and we were heading into winter. Oops! So, we ended up having ducks in the house until April of the next year!

Al built them a wooden crate when they outgrew the dog pen and we let them out every day to stretch their legs and wings and to swim in the bath tub. If you have ever been around ducks, they are quite messy and smelly. We had to clean the pen at least once a day. The bath tub was cleaned daily after their bath. We hadn't anticipated having our feathered friends in our house that long, but we adapted. We started allowing them to swim in a bowl, then a plastic container which was bigger, to finally the bath tub as they got bigger, which was quickly!

Every night they got to swim in the bath tub and when bath time was over, we drained the tub and one by one they were towel dried. We would use this time to hold and pet them. It was quite the sight!

Did I mention we also have four cats? One thing I learned in getting new born ducks was, don't leave the lid to their pen open when you have cats. I went out to the garage to get a scoop of their food. It couldn't have taken more than a minute, so I thought it would be okay to leave the lid to the pin open. When I returned, Asher, our black kitty was playing with a toy by the pen. When I looked closer, it was one of the black ducklings. He apparently thought they were new toys for him. I was horrified and grabbed the little duckling. Fortunately, she was ok. I learned NOT to leave the cage open any more.

Beau is intently watching them in the picture below.

We didn't have to worry about that too long. They grew fast and our kitties soon learned to get out of their way. The cats would watch with fascination, but when "The Girls" as we called them were on their way to the bathroom or back into the pen, the cats quickly moved out of the way.

I read they would eat oatmeal, so I tried cooking some and giving it to them. WOW, did they love it! Paisley would actually do a happy dance. It was hilarious to watch. She would eat a little oatmeal, then prance her feet. It was really adorable!

We became quite attached to them. When it came time to put them outside, it was bittersweet, but ducks like to be out and free, so we knew this would be best for them and us. This time, however, Al built a "fortress" so predictors could not get in. Their run has a top and the wire around the run is cemented into the ground. We put them up before dark and let them out mid-morning. Al built them a pond and it is true, ducks really love water!

They are very skittish creatures and are afraid of anything new. It took awhile for them to get in their pond, but once they did, they loved it. When it is raining, I will go out in my yellow raincoat to let them out and between the bright color of the rain jacket and an umbrella, it really freaks them out!

They have the run of the yard, which wasn't a problem the first year. This year was a different story. They developed a taste for my garden.

They ate my green bean plants, strawberries and grapes. All the squash, kale, and cucumber plants and the bottom leaves off my tomatoes. Next growing season we will need to put up a temporary fence if we want to harvest our produce.

One of my greatest joys with them is hand feeding them cherry tomatoes. They line up in a row and I give them turns. Sometimes a couple of them are impatient and grab it out of my hand, preventing the next recipient from her bite. Sometime when I have them eating from my hand, I will reach down and pick one up. They are so tame, they come right to us. When we first put them outside, they followed me around the yard and seemed lost when I would go inside. They thought I was their mother, I guess.

After two years, we have adjusted to them being outside. They have heated water and a heat lamp in the winter. I still give them oatmeal from time to time and I hand feed them cherry tomatoes.

When they see me they come running. It is quite precious! We started gathering their eggs in January of that first year and they have been faithful layers. The eggs are very rich and tasty. We never buy eggs any more and have been fortunate to bless others with fresh eggs.

We have learned some heart wrenching lessons, but the joy of "Our Girls" has been worth it. Each one has their own special personality just like each one of us. God made us all unique and individuals and he made his creatures unique, too. I am thankful for my feathered pets as well as my furry ones.

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Quack, Quack,

Melanie