[doganjo]

Put them in their run and they moseyed around checking it ou, quacking (4 girls) and squeaking (boy). 

Had to have a real discussion with them to get them to go in their shed, but a brush and a big wooden pallet helped persuade them 

Tomorrow I'll spend a bit of time getting to know them. 

[Mammyshaz]

They look happy 
Did you not show them a roast tin or mention orange sauce when they played up??
 
Wish I could have a couple of ducks, would love their  eggs for baking 

[Eastling]

There are lovely. I've got a grey, a fawn two whites and a" Derek" which looks very like the front two in your picture. Do you know what breed they are?
 
You could try hand feeding some lettuce, mine would give their right wing for a piece of lettuce!

[doganjo]

Ha ha- might try the roasting tin tomorrow - I have back up if they are not in by 7pm though - the big boys of the  CSSA committee are coming for a meeting. 

These are purely for eggs - Indian Runner and Khaki Campbell cross i think.  One of the black ones with the white speckled bib is the drake - he has a blue/green Campbell type head.  The other black, two fawns and lilac are my girls.  I spent most of yesterday making the shed and run temporarily fox safe as my son tried to get over to do the right job but there was an accident on the M 8 and he had to turn back.  He'll come and check re-do my work on Saturday. 

[HesterF]

Yay for ducks! I've discovered that if I'm really late (i.e. it's pitch black), the ducks will put themselves to bed. Otherwise we still have an evening routine of me chasing them round the duck house, pausing for a while as they pass the door in the hope they'll go in. Every circuit a few peel off to go inside but it normally takes quite a few circuits. Two things I've noticed - one is that they don't seem to think 'outside the box' or rather 'outside the house' so instead of making a break for freedom across the pen (which is big enough to keep me running after them for hours), they will just run round and round their house. The other is that the Silver Appleyards are much better behaved than the Cayugas. I don't know whether it's to do with degree of domestication but as I do my final circuits every night, it's always in pursuit of black ducks and drakes. As you can tell, I have time to think about these things - as I go round and round and round  .

Enjoy your new arrivals and prepare for mud-bath heaven,

H

[ZaktheLad]

They are lovely - I do love ducks and would like some of my own, but have no pond or water access for them. 

[Womble]

Hi Annie,  I'm so pleased you've got ducks again. When you're up to your knees in smelly mud, you'll wonder how you ever did without them! 
 
I have to say, our duck house is deliberately up against the fence, and we have no problem getting them go to bed. The geese on the other hand....... 

[HesterF]

ZaktheLad - no need for pond or water access if they're domestic ducks. Mine just have a big dog bath (although I'm eyeing up the huge cattle troughs if I can work out how they'll get in and out). It means you can clean it out and move it around as well so they always have fresh water which is important.

H

[Clansman]

They are lovely - I do love ducks and would like some of my own, but have no pond or water access for them.

I've got Muscovys in the back garden and although I have a small pond for them they hardly use it, preferring to wander around on land foraging most of the day.

They go in for a clean up if they are dirty and to mate but other than that it doesn't get used

[ellied]

Congratulations on restocking the duck contingent, I know you'll be happier having them again and wish you good luck in establishing a quacking order about who decides bed time.. 

[doganjo]

It's been fixed now but yesterday there was a gap of 6 inches between the shed and the back fence.  When I followed them round I found them 5 deep one on top of the other.  A stiff brush pulled the top one off, then she stuck her head through the hit and miss fence and i thought she'd either get through and end up as dog food or get hung.     I eventually dislodged her with the brush, and the others came down too.  Blocked the end of the run with a big pallet so they can't do that again.
I'm keeping them in the run for a  couple of weeks till they get used to their new home and hopefully me too.  I have a burn in the front paddock, so in the meantime they just have two buckets of water.

[northfifeduckling]

Your pics made me giggle, Annie, they look like just mine (wonder why that is  )! So glad you've got them - once one had ducks, can't really be without (as mush as I love the hens and their boy). Which one's the drake? And, do you have a really noisy girl amongst them, then I knew her gran 

[doganjo]

The boy is teh one with the green head.  None of them are particularity noisy as yet but they've only been here a day - give them time .................... Can't get them to stay in one place long enough to get a decent photo
.

[Eastling]

They certainly are good entertainment value. I have also spent time chasing them around at bed time. I have found if you can put one in the house the others will eventually follow.


Mine don't seem  keen to go in when I have just cleaned then out.


Ours have a couple of containers with water for nose cleaning etc and a drinker. OH has made a little pond with a piece of damp proof membrane and bricks for now.


The grey girl we have is the noisy one, which then starts the others off.
Someone once likened ducks to gremlins with water which I think is quite apt.


Hope your DIY skills hold up until your son cames

[doganjo]

As some of you may know, I lost my Swedish Blue drake, Jack, his Khaki Campbell wife, Jemima, and their three daughters, to Mr or Mrs Fox earlier in the year, as well as 10 of my hens.

I wanted to protect any additions to the menagerie so my hens and quail are now in my brick concrete floored garage in the back garden, with weldmesh runs and netting over the top, shut in as routine every night around dusk.

I decided to use the redundant hen run at the side of the house for the new ducks, but to try to make it more secure.  My son Donald is such a great help to me; he travels over here from Paisley to help me make or mend whatever is needed.  Yesterday's project was 'thwart the foxes'  and hopefully we have succeeded. 

7 foot high posts were screwed to the four foot high panel fence, which is right hard against the slab path - hopefully avoiding any digging under.  Attached to that is chicken wire and orange building site mesh netting - hopefully too wobbly and high for foxes to try to climb.  At the other side of the run is the 10 foot high railway barricade - again hard to the railway line ballast, with the orange netting again strung from that to the gate.  The pop hole can be raised and lowered from outside the run, and is very heavy - my dog can't pull it open and he is very strong.
When they have become used to their run and shed they will be allowed into the front paddock when i am here.

Here are a few photos to let you see what we've done.