It’s been a long time since I have written anything because life has definitely thrown me a curve ball. I was given a mallard duckling on Memorial day weekend unexpectedly by a woman at the lake who found it. Long story short, a little girl picked the duckling up and then her mother told her to let it go. By this time the duck was very far from the mother and tried to swim but could not and started drowning. Ducks that are just born do not have the oils built up on their feathers to stay dry, and so they easily soak through and die of hypothermia. So, I was asked if I could take it. Well… I was thinking I would just take it to the Audubon society the next day, seeing as it was a holiday. But to my surprise there was a big banner in bold print on the website that said, “Due to avian flu, we are not accepting abandoned mallards.” Unbelievable!
I tried sanctuaries but they only take domestic birds not wild birds, and fish and wildlife would release it for shooting in the fall, so rather than little Georgie ending up on someone thanksgiving dinner table, I took her in. Anyone reading this post remember to never ever pick up a duckling unless you are absolutely sure it is abandoned. Because they bond with you instantly and you will be stuck for life as is my unexpected surprise. My goal was to rehabilitate her and send her back out once she got her flight status. But it never happened. As I sit around the campfire with my friends, they are telling me I should write this story.
What really happened was this… I trained a duck for the wild that became dependent on me. And I had an incredible bond that I was not sure even existed until I tried to part with her. Whenever a mallard duck comes into your life, consider it a blessing because your life is about to change for the better. Ducks are very happy, and they can bring a lot of joy. They teach you about family, and commitment. They require an extreme amount of attention, so if you are in for the long haul, I will tell you how I raised this beautiful creature. But if you don’t see a life of taking your feathered friend everywhere you go, or cleaning up after their messes, then its best to let nature take its course.
1st. You must keep the duckling warm. I think this was how she survived with me because I am told that most ducklings don’t survive the night. In fact, without a mother, there is only a 10% chance of survival. I had raised one in my younger days, so I know that this is true, because its siblings had died overnight the day we found them. I not only kept this duck warm, I let her sleep with me in a towel to feel my breathing. It was hard at 1st being a newborn mom at 60, but I was determined she wouldn’t die on my watch.
2nd. It won’t seem like they are hungry at 1st because they are so little, but that will change rapidly within days, and you won’t believe how much they will eat! I used a plastic lid with grooves in it off of a storage container, so it made a mini trough. Ducklings need a lot of water and so do adult ducks, so you must start this right away or they will choke on their food. Feed them oats and peas or lettuce and then move on to a non-medicated starter crumble. Purina makes one, and it worked great.
3rd. It is a myth that they should not be allowed to swim before 4 weeks. I taught her right away, and she loved it! Just make sure the water is warm not cold, and thoroughly dry the bird by a heat source like a space heater. They will instinctively preen themselves and distribute oil to their feathers. I would throw some food in the water and teach her to dive also.
4. Buy some plants like wheat grass or marigolds and let them go at it. Ducklings are busy bodies and will get into everything when they are bored. They need to learn to forage and when you have a bond like we have, you can let your duck follow you around the park foraging on its own. They love to eat flowers, dandelions, grass, weeds, bugs, you name it. Just be sure to bring a carrier and a towel to catch the duck if it won’t come back to you.
5. At about 5 -6 weeks you can get them a bigger pool and they will love you for it. You will be shocked how fast they grow, and you can see changes over night! Let them eat as much as they want. You should also know that they will start molting soon, and this will bring in their flight feathers. they will test them out and even levitate off the ground until about the 8th week, when they just take off like mine did. I felt so proud of her.
6. Be prepared to let go if you have to, but if they don’t want to, don’t leave them. As independent as my duck is, she still quacks very loudly if she doesn’t see me in the room. I tried taking her to a nice farm, the people were so friendly, and she had other ducks to play with, but I felt terrible and went back to get her. I always thought it would be better to give her the freedom to decide on her own, so I took her to the lake on my 2nd attempt. She flew around and then swam across the lake and greeted me to go home on the other side. Having failed again, I tried one last time and took her to another lake where I left her overnight. When I came the next day, she had feathers plucked out and she seemed sad. She waddled over and put her head on my shoulder as I was laying on the grass with her. I absolutely melted and swore I wouldn’t give her up again. And I haven’t. And because of this, I have changed my entire life, and I am moving to a farm to give her a protected life. That will be my next story, as I said this has been a blessing and somewhat of a curse. Mallard ducks can live up to 20 years in captivity, and I am already 60. But I made a vow to love her and keep her safe. And so here we are.
A Camper Girls Life. 