[melholly]

...well, after an 6 week or so enforced duck free period I collected my new 16 week old IR's. One drake, 4 girls.

After losing all of my KC's and IR's to DVE in the most horrific way am a bit scared dipping my toe back in! The drake (trout) is a wuss and so far is first in the 'huddle' at the back of the house! The girls are very noisy, feisty and pecky! DD has named the white Jemima and one of the trouts Tinkerbell! The fawn is Camille, so just leaves 2 to name, I did swear after last time I wouldn't name them but when you've a 4 year old it kind of comes with the territory!

I'm hoping to be sharing lots of positive experiences and learning curves with you all this time around. One they start laying am going to get a small incubator and have a crack (no pun intended) at hatching some.

There's a pic on the blog for anyone interested. Will post some better ones once they settle down a bit and stop giving my heartattacks running into fences etc!

Mx

[Rosemary]

Well done! 

What's DVE?

[doganjo]

Well done! 

What's DVE?

Duck Virus Enteritis

[Rosemary]

ooh, that doesn't sound very nice 

[melholly]

Thanks.

DVE = Duck Viral Entiritis or duck plague more commonly. horrendous. It has a 65%+ death rate. I suffered 100% loss. They die horrifically no two ways about it. Nothing you can do, antibiotics ineffective. Disease is spread by Carrion or through infected stock. I can't prove it but am 99% sure mine got it from infected stock. I brought in 2 new birds immediately to my stock. Within a week they were showing the first symptoms, all dead within 5 days. My own fault and a massive learning curve.

Just horrendous. Had to have a period of inactivity as the virus lives on for a while, relocate the house, jeyes fluid the world...

Onwards and upwards!

Mx