Rescuing mallard duckling

[L_259]

Hi,

It’s been 6 weeks since my family took in a baby mallard (looked to be about 1-2 days). We found her parents roaming around our place and let the duckling go to them but they tried to snap at her neck. So, we took her back into the house.

We tried looking up duck rescues around our area but none were willing to take her in (mallards aren’t protected in my country).

Unfortunately, no one in my area was selling any ducklings for me to get her some siblings.

The duckling has imprinted on me and thankfully I’m working from home and am able to keep her company.

She’s healthy and happily forages in the backyard (with my company). She has a constant supply of duck pellets but prefers foraging. She also has a kiddie pool set up but prefers the bath for swims. She roams freely around the house and at night I put her in a playpen next to my bed.

She has started to fly and I’m wondering what is the best step for her. We were thinking of setting up an outdoor enclosure where she can settle in for the night but during the day, let her roam where she pleases. There is a pond down the road from me and I’ve seen a lot of mallards there so she might end up flying there.

If you have any advice on what I should do, please let me know.

 

[nuthatched]

It's likely illegal for you to keep if you're in North America or a few South American countries. Contact your local Wildlife services.

 

[L_259]

It's likely illegal for you to keep if you're in North America or a few South American countries. Contact your local Wildlife services.

Hi, I’m not living in America. I’ve checked with our council and there’s no laws prohibiting me from keeping the duckling.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

Since keeping her is not illegal where you are, I would suggest you document her life journey. She's a wild animal and ultimately, IMO, she's going to do what she's going to do. Ducks are flock animals and there's a good chance that some day she will leave you to join her own kind. Meanwhile, she'll have one foot in each world - your world at night where you can keep her safe, and the wild world, where you can't. As she makes this transition you may end up with a fascinating documentary or at least portfolio of her life. We have a similar one here somewhere but I don't remember the name of it. It's the tale of a rather runty duck that did eventually grow up to have a family and a successful life in the wild. It made a great read, with lots of pictures.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

Ahem. Lots of PICTURES. (Hint, hint, lol)

 

[L_259]

Since keeping her is not illegal where you are, I would suggest you document her life journey. She's a wild animal and ultimately, IMO, she's going to do what she's going to do. Ducks are flock animals and there's a good chance that some day she will leave you to join her own kind. Meanwhile, she'll have one foot in each world - your world at night where you can keep her safe, and the wild world, where you can't. As she makes this transition you may end up with a fascinating documentary or at least portfolio of her life. We have a similar one here somewhere but I don't remember the name of it. It's the tale of a rather runty duck that did eventually grow up to have a family and a successful life in the wild. It made a great read, with lots of pictures.

Thank you so much for this! We are prepared for her to take flight in the future and join a flock. If not, she’ll always have a home here. We’ve had some ducks come on to the property and she’s always excited to see them. They would eat together before the ducks end up flying off. Sometimes they’ll try to peck at her which I’ll quickly intervene and separate them. In the meantime we’re enjoying having her part of our family. We were advised by some farmer friends to clip her wings but since she’s still a wild duckling, we think it’d be cruel to take her flight ability away from her. Documenting our time with her is a great idea and will give us some fond memories to look back on!

Here are some pics of Zazu

 

[Miss Lydia]

She’s adorable thank you for sharing her with us. Please keep us updated on her and how she is doing. She has found a wonderful family I think!

 

[BigBlueHen53]

I would not interfere unless they draw blood or it looks serious. If she's going to succeed as a wildling, she needs to learn the social language of the wildlings, and that's all part of it.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

And yes, thank you for the pics!

 

[L_259]

I would not interfere unless they draw blood or it looks serious. If she's going to succeed as a wildling, she needs to learn the social language of the wildlings, and that's all part of it.

Awesome, I’ll let them sort it out among themselves next time! We’ve definitely seen an increase in duck activity in our backyard since she’s come. Also, a few birds have decided to fly into the house when she’s inside