Hens attacking my new ducklings!

[arpyhh]

Hi
I hope someone can help me- I have 9 red sexlinks for about 9 months now, and we are adding to our flock with baby chicks who are still in the brooder in the house, but we got 2 pekin ducks that are a month old. We kept them next to our hens in a tractor so they could see each other, but after a few days we had to integrate them because we moved.
The hens will attack the ducks viciously if the ducks are running from us (they are terrified of us too) so they gang up on the poor duck, jumping on them and pecking and scratching!
I couldn't stand that so I segregated them in the new barn we moved them to.
My question is, will they always attack newcomers, or is this because they are young?
I'm nervous now about introducing the new chicks when they are old enough...

Any insight would be so appreciated- thanks

 

[StephieSky]

Chickens are predatory opportunists.
They sense a weakness in the ducklings when they run, thus they become prey.

It is instinctive for chickens to spend their entire lives attempting to look, act and present as healthy and fit animals as they move about in the pecking order of a flock. Any perceived weakness will be exploited by dominant or just plain predatory birds.

Animals do not question the morals of their actions. They just do whatever works and whatever has the most rewarding outcome. This is exactly why I disagree with old age being the most humane method for a chicken to die. Really, its not. Older fowl that become lame are easy targets for bullies and predation.

" I never saw a wild thing sorry for itself. A small bird will drop frozen dead from a bough without ever having felt sorry for itself. "
David Herbert Lawrence
That should be some consolation for the emotions you experience watching this behavior. The ducklings are just trying to survive and the chicks are just trying to be upwardly mobile in the pecking order.

I'd just keep them apart until the ducklings reach an age where they can defend themselves quite handily. An angry duck is more than capable of taking on a predatory hen. As ducklings they are "sitting ducks" for the sharp beaks and social climbing attitudes of the chickens.
Hope this helps some

 

[arpyhh]

Yes, that makes sense. Very helpful.
Thanks so much!

 

[StephieSky]

You're welcome I would love to have ducklings! If I wasn't right on the edge of a wetland preserve I might try it. As it is... I imagine they'd get picked off by the hawks or owls in a heartbeat the minute they got loose and headed for the other ducks.

 

[arpyhh]

I feel so bad that they are so terrified of us. :-/
They comfort each other which is so precious, but I want to be able to interact with them so I'm hoping now that we've moved I can spend more time with them.

 

[StephieSky]

I'd get a big kiddie pool, put on my bathing suit, grab some treats and sit in the pool with them! lol You could have the kids do it Summer is on its way here ..supossed to be nice weather this weekend! Yay for sunshine!!

Don't worry The ducklings will be fine. They'll warm up and follow you around like baby ducks once they figure out you're not the source of the peckings. Especially if there might be treats whenever they see you. If you want devoted pets, I feed very tiny amounts of treats all the time. It works like a charm with birds. They like building alliances and food is a major priority, regardless of how much they might have in there feed dispensers.
The more they see me as the provider/finder and sharer of good things ( and someone who would run them down and scare the bejingles out of their fuzzy little butts if they ever dared to attack me ) the more necessary I become and the higher in the pecking order I go.

Once the duckies and the chickies are all relatively the same size you shouldn't have any problems. Unless its with a duck snatching the feathers right off a bossy hens head lol

 

[arpyhh]

That's a great idea! I will try it.
Thanks!