Show off your house ducks!

[Amykins]

I need someone loving like you guys to take in these little darlings. They are SO well behaved it's crazy!!!
Question - I haven't had ducklings in a long time. They are starting outside in a big plastic dog crate. I would bet they are only a week or two old, do they need a heat lamp at night? It gets to be about the 60s at night, but it's nice abd warm, 80s abd sunny, during the day.

Do any of you paint your duck's nails? ChaCha and I have been experimenting. She gets the full pedicure!

Oh lord no, Wobbles won't even cooperate when I have to clip his nails, let alone paint them!

As for the ducklings, eh...I honestly wouldn't put them outside at night. If they have been raised indoors thus far (which seems likely given their behavior) I'd just keep them inside in a room where Cha2 can't reach. But at one week they still kinda need a heat lamp, albeit less so at one week and beyond. 60 is very cold for a baby duck.

Also, I LOVE that photo, ha! I miss when Wobbles would go into potato mode like that, just chilling on his back. He isn't too wild about it ever since he learned that's how the vet holds him whenever she needs to give him an exam. Poor guy. He's got PTVVD - Post-traumatic vet visit disorder!

 

[Amiga]

80s should be fine for a two week old, that night temp sounds too chilly, though. So a lamp at night. Do you have or can you borrow one of those ceramic heat lamps that don't make light? They are sold for reptiles. I loved them for brooding.

 

[LadyHawkeAvry]

I need someone loving like you guys to take in these little darlings. They are SO well behaved it's crazy!!!
Question - I haven't had ducklings in a long time. They are starting outside in a big plastic dog crate. I would bet they are only a week or two old, do they need a heat lamp at night? It gets to be about the 60s at night, but it's nice abd warm, 80s abd sunny, during the day.
I agree! That must have been hard. I feel bad knowing I can't give them a forever home. They must have known about ChaCha and all her pampering and thought they would have a good home here. I feel responsible for finding them a really great home.

ChaCha is probably a Pekin. So she's naturally a big fatty lol If I leave anything like a book or my laptop on the bed she always chooses to stand on that instead of the bed. I'm sure it's more comfortable on her feeties!

Do any of you paint your duck's nails? ChaCha and I have been experimenting. She gets the full pedicure!

If their backs have begun to feather in they should be fine outside in weather like that. Pekins are quite hardy. I put mine out when it was maybe 60 tops during the day. Mine don't use their shelters now as adults, even when the temperature drops below -10!

I never thought of doing that! Big girl would have loved the attention! She is a total cuddler!

She always liked to nap on the couch with us as baby! She got too big to sleep on our necks under our hair, so she would just spread out with us on the couch. Even outside, she will slip into your coat and go to sleep! I totally could have done her little toenails!

 

[Amykins]

Haaa lookit dem big feets! <3 Lucky me, Wobbles is tiny. Sometimes I wish he was a larger breed, just for the convenience of diaper changing and the ability to get up and down the stairs without us having to carry him. But it's worth it to have a duck that can sleep on your shoulder!

 

[kukupecpec]

Oh lord no, Wobbles won't even cooperate when I have to clip his nails, let alone paint them! As for the ducklings, eh...I honestly wouldn't put them outside at night. If they have been raised indoors thus far (which seems likely given their behavior) I'd just keep them inside in a room where Cha[SUP]2 [/SUP]can't reach. But at one week they still kinda need a heat lamp, albeit less so at one week and beyond. 60 is very cold for a baby duck. Also, I LOVE that photo, ha! I miss when Wobbles would go into potato mode like that, just chilling on his back. He isn't too wild about it ever since he learned that's how the vet holds him whenever she needs to give him an exam. Poor guy. He's got PTVVD - Post-traumatic vet visit disorder!

LOL poor Wobbles!!! ChaCha hasn't had a vet visit for herself yet - she's picked up the bunnies after their spay/neuter surgeries, but hasn't had to go in herself. I can't find a "duck" vet around here so in a pinch my Trina (goose) went to our avian specialist. they weren't super knowledgable about waterfowl, but at the very least they were familiar with birds and were able to make her feel pretty at ease. If we ever need to, we will for sure return. It helps that I'm a vet tech. I can do just about anything that needs to be done on a duck at home once Ifind out WHAT needs to be done. The school Iwent to for vet tech LOVES ChaCha so they are always willing to run any tests that I need or help me get my hands on any needed supplies. A lot of vet clinics will sell you supplies if you need them too. I've got a couple bottles of sterile saline that has come in really handy! We live with my MIL and besides my sewing corner, our only space is our bedroom. They are safe outside as long as Iam keeping them warm enough. They are inside a dog crate in the completely enclosed chicken run. I've even thouoght about putting their (solid sided)crate inside the empty rabbit cage inside the chicken run so that there's virtually NOway for a predator to get to them. Trixi and Duke lived outside from 1 week old just the two of them in an open puppy pen their entire lives and nothing ever happened to them so our yard is pretty safe. But Icertainly wouldn't ever risk that again. Icant BELIEVE nothing ever flew off with those little guys...

80s should be fine for a two week old, that night temp sounds too chilly, though. So a lamp at night. Do you have or can you borrow one of those ceramic heat lamps that don't make light? They are sold for reptiles. I loved them for brooding.

I can look into one of those ceramic ones, but I have half a dozen of the regular red ones. We's got an outlet right out there by the babies that Iused to use when Ihad a big chicken brooder set up out there.

If their backs have begun to feather in they should be fine outside in weather like that. Pekins are quite hardy. I put mine out when it was maybe 60 tops during the day. Mine don't use their shelters now as adults, even when the temperature drops below -10! I never thought of doing that! Big girl would have loved the attention! She is a total cuddler! She always liked to nap on the couch with us as baby! She got too big to sleep on our necks under our hair, so she would just spread out with us on the couch. Even outside, she will slip into your coat and go to sleep! I totally could have done her little toenails!

No feathers on their backs yet, still 100% fuzz. I think one might be a pekin because she's yellow and quite large compared to the other one, but Ihave no idea what the other one is. She's brown. I'll take pictures of the pair tomorrow! I'm going to make them my new baby diaper models =) ChaCha wasn't with us as a baby, but she STILL tries to sleep on my shouolder. And it is most definitely NOT cute lol. She tries to claw her way up my chest onto my shoulder and then bites my hair to use as a rope to pull her fat body up the rest of the way. Thankfully if I'm laying down she will just sleep NEAR my head rather than on top of it. She does prefer to "perch" on my arm or leg if she can get to it though... it's really strange.

Haaa lookit dem big feets! QUOTE] You know IALWAYS wanted a call duck as a house duck! It was just dumb luck that Iended up with ChaCha the monster duck. If ChaCha wasn't such a die hard only child Iwould get a little call duck to live with us too. I think when ChaCha is gone I'll get a little call like Wobs. I'm pretty good at vent sexing ducklings so hopefully I can avoid your manly hormone problems lol But Idon't think chaCha is going anywhere anytime soon! We're stuck with her. But we LOOOOOVE her. Sometimes my husband gets mad at how cute she is lol.

 

[LadyHawkeAvry]

Haaa lookit dem big feets! <3 Lucky me, Wobbles is tiny. Sometimes I wish he was a larger breed, just for the convenience of diaper changing and the ability to get up and down the stairs without us having to carry him. But it's worth it to have a duck that can sleep on your shoulder!

I have my Saxonies in the house. They are as big as the pekins - a few days of cleanup from the big birds and you would wish they were tiny! They are well behaved though - they have certain rooms they are not allowed in, and if they do stroll in I simply ask: "Do you belong in here?" and they walk right back out! Mama Saxony's 12 eggs are due to hatch Monday or Tuesday, then I will have even more ducks running around the house! I will miss them when they go back out, so I ordered some call eggs to throw into my incubator.....

 

[Amykins]

I'm a vet assistant, myself. I want to get certified to become a tech but I haven't had much luck in finding a school that will allow me to take Wobs into class. /headdesk

 

[LadyHawkeAvry]

I can look into one of those ceramic ones, but I have half a dozen of the regular red ones. We's got an outlet right out there by the babies that Iused to use when Ihad a big chicken brooder set up out there.
No feathers on their backs yet, still 100% fuzz. I think one might be a pekin because she's yellow and quite large compared to the other one, but Ihave no idea what the other one is. She's brown. I'll take pictures of the pair tomorrow! I'm going to make them my new baby diaper models =)

The ceramic ones are really nice, and you can get them for cheap on eBay. I just used the standard heat lamp bulbs for my ducks though. You can just put a heat lamp out for them, and they will use it if they feel like it. The earlier they get outside the better. Most breeders by me have them out with just a heat lamp at night at 14 days old. I put mine out at 4 weeks, and they didn't use the supplemental heat at all. They were still fluffy, but you could see the feathers coming in!

 

[kukupecpec]

I'm a vet assistant, myself. I want to get certified to become a tech but I haven't had much luck in finding a school that will allow me to take Wobs into class. /headdesk

Where are you at? Have you checked out Pima Medical Institute? I was there before I had my ChaCha, but Iused to bring Trina in all the time. We had to sign up ahgead of time because some pets didn't get along and everyone had to get a chance to bring their fur babies in with them, but we had someones pet something wandering around teh classroom EVERYday. It was vet tech heaven.
I'm in AZ, we aren't registered or certified here. At the moment we don't have a Vet School so our vet laws aren't as detailed as many other states. If you graduate fromt meh program you can call yoruoself whatever you want lol. Hopefully they will make everything official soon though! Not that it matters for me lol I'm so horribly allergic to fur that Ican't work in a vet office anymore. Iwas miserable in school and on extern. I tried the avian specialist but they still have to do dogs and cats as a regular revenue stream and Ijust couldn't do it. As much as ILOVE animals, it wasn't worth my health. I can snuggle and kiss my feathered friends all I want without any negative side effects =)

 

[Amykins]

As a for-profit school I don't really trust PIMA. Some clinics around here don't even recognize the cert if you get yours from there! The vet I interned at called it "pay to win", heh. 40k for a vet tech cert is a bit ludicrous and they cram so much into just three semesters, I've heard lots of horror stories about it. There are two other schools, but one is at Uni and won't allow animals on campus, and the other is in another county entirely and only accepts forty students a year. So it's been pretty rough.