Today is a day that only ducks would enjoy. 40 degrees Fahrenheit, drizzling.
The ducks are gloriously messy. They splatter everywhere. They are unrepentant slobs.
Names
Jo, the secretary up at the High School informed me that Belladonna named all eight ducks. For some inexplicable reason, she saw fit to name all eight of them "Kubota".
Bath time
See their grubbiness and seeing the puddles of standing water I decided to give the ducklings a bath. I found a tub, ran tap water into it (about 65 degrees because it has been sitting in our accumulator.
I tossed in the ducks and then walked out to the mailbox and back.
Hey, wait. I only counted 7 little heads bobbing?
And there were three other heads rapidly losing altitude.
It only takes two things to fly. Altitude, pilot skill and air speed. Pick any two. Body temperature should be added to that list if you are a duck.
Their grubby feathers were not capable of insulating them, even from the 65 degree water.
Four of the birds are under a heat lamp, prostrate and shivering. The other four are cussing me out like sailors.
Another 'speriment gone bad.
I hope to have it sorted out before the kids come home.
You need to be very careful with little ducks. They can drown or die of hypothermia if there is no mama duck to warm them. It is advisable to put pebbles or marbles in their water dish to allow them to get out of the water.
ReplyDeleteI know it sounds silly, but losing little ones is so *not cool*.
Hello Milton:
DeleteThank-you for reading and thank-you for commenting.
You are sure right about their vulnerability to hypothermia and drowning. All of the birds are now in a chicken coop. I will need to do a some more thinking on how I will house my birds as they get bigger.