Orphaned black-bellied whistling duckling - advice needed

[coffee_and_quail]

Background - There was a duck calling on top of our garage this morning, and our dogs were going nuts. By the time we found the source of all the chaos, the mama duck had gone. My husband drove around the neighborhood with the duckling to see if he could reunite them but no luck. We have a lake very close to us, and plan to walk there with the duckling daily until we find the mother.

So....how do we care for this in the meantime? We have experience with quail but 0 with ducks. We believe it's a black-bellied whistling duck. Does anyone have estimates on age? What would be best to feed it? Are there any common duckling illnesses we need to be aware of? Basically, what can we do to ensure this little guy is happy and healthy until we find his mama??

 

[Ilovemychicks08]

He looks to be around 1 to 2 weeks old maybe. Do not put him in with your quails. The mother will probably not take the duckling back. Put him under a heat lamp and make him a little brooder with duckling feed.

 

[Ilovemychicks08]

Background - There was a duck calling on top of our garage this morning, and our dogs were going nuts. By the time we found the source of all the chaos, the mama duck had gone. My husband drove around the neighborhood with the duckling to see if he could reunite them but no luck. We have a lake very close to us, and plan to walk there with the duckling daily until we find the mother.

View attachment 3138525View attachment 3138526

So....how do we care for this in the meantime? We have experience with quail but 0 with ducks. We believe it's a black-bellied whistling duck. Does anyone have estimates on age? What would be best to feed it? Are there any common duckling illnesses we need to be aware of? Basically, what can we do to ensure this little guy is happy and healthy until we find his mama??

And i think you are correct on the breed.

 

[coffee_and_quail]

He looks to be around 1 to 2 weeks old maybe. Do not put him in with your quails. The mother will probably not take the duckling back. Put him under a heat lamp and make him a little brooder with duckling feed.

Yea we definitely weren't going to put him in with the quail and risk some sort of illness or one of our roos attacking it.

Currently have him in a cage in my office with the brooder set up and some water. What duckling feed would you recommend?

 

[JoJoM]

I’ve never heard of that breed of duck. What a prettt duckling!

We were given an orphaned Merganser on the weekend and my chicken had just hatched her chicks and she took it right in. Unfortunately neither of our broody ducks were quite ready for motherhood. We’re just trying to figure out the correct diet because they have different needs.

The only advice I can offer is to ensure the duckling can submerge its entire bill into the water, they need to be able to clean it properly after beating.

 

[Buckingham Palace]

Aw. What a cute duckling. Such pretty marks.

 

[Ilovemychicks08]

Yea we definitely weren't going to put him in with the quail and risk some sort of illness or one of our roos attacking it.

Currently have him in a cage in my office with the brooder set up and some water. What duckling feed would you recommend?

I think manna pro is good or all flock. Let me find someone who knows more about ducks. I have done a ton of research but dont have ducks.

 

[Ilovemychicks08]

@Aunt Angus

 

[Ilovemychicks08]

@Trimurtisan

 

[KaleIAm]

I recommend contacting a wildlife rescue. There are laws against people without wildlife rehabilitation licenses possessing migratory birds (any duck who isn't domestic). You should try to handle it as little as possible because that will make it harder for it to be released into the wild.