Calming a restless baby duck might be a daunting and uphill task if you haven’t done it before. You will equally fail in your quest to tame a baby duck if you haven’t read how to do so.
Unfortunately, not so many know how to calm a baby duck hence little has been said about it. Interestingly, here is one of the few pages that discuss the comprehensive and conclusive ways to calm your crying and noisy ducks or ducklings.
Therefore, we advise you to read this content from start to finish and practice every step discussed if you must calm your duck without any stress or hassle. We’ve had enough for the introduction, let’s dive into action.
Contents
What Does It Mean To Calm A Baby Duck
To calm a baby duck simply means doing everything possible to make it feel safe, comfortable, and happy in its home. In other words, calming a baby duck means exploring all the tricks you know to make it stop crying.
How To Calm A Baby Duck
There are diverse ways to calm a baby duck, including the mirror method, heat lamp, etc.
Mirror Method:
This is a tested-and-trusted way to calm a frustrated or crying baby duck entering into a new and unfamiliar environment.
Hang a mirror in the duckling’s room so it appears as though there are many of its kind in the room.
A baby duck won’t feel comfortable in a new environment if it’s isolated, but a mirror will make it looks as if there is another duck when she stares at the mirror. That’s not all, the mirror will equally make the room looks like a brooder filled with ducklings, especially if they are four or five in a room.
Heat Lamp:
A baby duck needs warmth in its tender ages. It will be restless and uncomfortable if there is insufficient heat to keep it warm. This is why providing a heat lamp will go a long way in helping you calm your baby duck.
However, you must know that ducks don’t require intense heat like chickens. Ensure you apply moderate heat range or level to prevent any adverse effect on the duck’s growth.
Can You Tame A Baby Duck?
Contrary to many people’s beliefs and opinions that a duck can’t be tamed, you can tame a baby duck if you know the right techniques.
Taming a duck means turning it into a mild, friendly, and controllable creature. Though taming a baby duck requires much time and patience, it is achievable.
How to tame your baby duck involves exploring the imprinting period. Ducklings begin imprinting immediately after birth; they follow their mother and recognize her voice.
You should take advantage of this period by carrying the ducks, speaking to the baby ducks in a sweet and comfortable voice, and giving them delicious meals. This will make it recognize your voice, conversant with your face, and yield to your commands within a short period.
Other ways to tame baby ducks involve wooing them with your sweet voice, visiting their brooder regularly, and ensuring a friendly approach.
Why Is My Duck So Noisy?
Ducks are loquacious creatures that love to make loud noises in their owner’s ears. However, ducks don’t just make noise unnecessarily, they do so to attract the owner’s or another duck’s attention.
They make noise to call for help when they are in danger. They also make noise to indicate hunger, pain, and other unfavorable conditions.
Meanwhile, some ducks make noise without any genuine reason. They just feel like exploring their high vocal attributes while communicating with themselves.
How Do You Keep Baby Ducks Quiet?
Providing a secure and serene pen for your baby ducks is one of the most effective ways to keep them quiet. Most ducklings are always quiet and gentle in a calm pen house as there is nothing to threaten or scare them.
You might be wondering how to make a duck pen safe and calm, shutting the duck in its pen at some point in the evening will do the magic.
Another way to keep your ducks quiet includes exploring the culling method. Ducks, like humans, can be influenced by their peers. Lousy ducks can turn a quiet duck into a noisy one.
Ensure you separate the culprit or noisy ducks from the pen or brooder so they won’t influence others.
How Can You Tell If A Duck Is Angry?
Angry ducks always make a side-to-side head bobbing to show their displeasure about certain issues and situations. It’s important you know the difference between up-and-down and side-to-side bobbing actions.
Up-and-down head bobbing signifies happiness, while side-by-side bobbing characterized by numerous angry quacks indicates an angry mood.
An angry duck seldom tilts its head and stares. However, this behavior could also mean your duck is in search of food or it senses the presence of prey.
How Do You Train A Duck To Be Friendly?
Try the following options if you desire to have a lovely and friendly baby duck:
Hold it frequently: Hold your duck regularly till it gets used to your hand and touch. Hold it close to you while watching TV to establish a great intimacy.
Give It Food by Hand: You might need to feed your ducks by hand if you want them to be friendly and happy with you.
Bring the duck out of the brooder, and give it peas, sardines, or mealworms by hand for some minutes before taking it back to its pen.
Talk To It: Talking to your duck will make it more friendly and happy as it will get used to your voice. It will become relaxed and friendly with you because it knows you can’t harm it.
Don’t chase your duck: Do not run after your duck for any reason because it will send a bad signal to them. Likewise, don’t let others chase them as it will result in a loss of trust.
Fun Fact About Duck
Here are some fun facts you should know about ducks:
- Ducks are social animals, they walk in groups.
- They have durable waterproof feathers. Their skin will remain dry despite spending hours in water.
- They are omnivorous creatures that eat grass, aquatic plants, insects, seeds, fruit, fish, crustaceans, etc.
- Ten-day-old ducklings can swim as a group beside their mothers.
- They love being in ponds, rivers, streams, or swampy areas.
- They can live beyond 20 years based on their species.
- They produce more eggs during the day when there is more daylight
- It takes an average duck 28 days to hatch her eggs. Only Muscovy duck takes 35 days.
Sources
https://rosevinecottagegirls.com/how-to-raise-friendly-ducks/
https://www.mypetchicken.com/backyard-chickens/chicken-help/How-can-I-tame-ducks-and-geese-H511.aspx
https://farmfromhome.com/why-ducks-get-noisy-and-what-to-do/
https://www.thehappychickencoop.com/interpreting-duck-behavior/
