I had an issue like that a long time ago with Muscovy ducks and their babies. The neighborhood children would all show up to throw rocks at them. Usually it was enough to go out and give the kids the evil eye and tell them to go away, but one day there was one kid who just wouldn't stop. I went out there and gave him a lecture about how would he like it if someone started throwing rocks at him. I asked him how he would feel if he were completely defenseless against someone picking on him like that. After I finished the lecture, I told him to leave his bike there and go get his parents and bring them back so that I could tell them what he had been doing. He left his bike, but he didn't come back. His bike was gone the next morning and I never saw another kid out there. Word gets around, I guess. Unfortunately, some adults later started shooting all of the ducks from their apartment balcony with a bb gun and some of the ducks were poisoned. They were reported to the SPCA and I think given eviction notices. Eventually a duck farm came to take away the surviving ducks and gave them a good home. Some of the ducks those people killed were ones that I had handraised after the mother ducks had been killed by wild animals, and of course I had given them all names, so I felt a personal sense of loss. It's hard to sit helpless with ducks that are bleeding to death or writhing hideously from being poisoned. It was a horrible thing to experience and it's very important to straighten the kids out because cruelty starts out small and doesn't always stop at animals. Many states have statutes making animal abuse a punishable offense. Tell your neighbors about what you've seen and make posters to hang around to let other people know that they are being watched and will be reported.

Yes, I have. I don't know the exact cause, it could be nutritional or perhaps genetic. Assuming you are using proper food, it is perhaps just a genetic thing. My sister, MANY years ago, when she was a teenager, found an abandoned wild mallard duckling in its nest after the mother and brood had left. Same thing, it couldn't walk, but crawled. She brought it home and put it in a box with a light. The legs stuck out straight back behind it. Despite the fact it never could walk, it lived 4 or 5 years. She built it a pen. It had a small tub, couldn't really swim but could float and bob. It was very friendly and tame and seemed genuinely attached to her. It actually had a very good life. It was even quite clean, just had to make sure to keep the straw and bedding clean and fluffed so it didn't sit in its waste.

shawnamaverick You should probably get some duck feed as ducks require different nutrition than other birds. Provide some small gravel for digestion. With our farmed ducks we have the heat lamp at about 90 degrees F the first week and decrease it by 5 degrees per week. It may be illegal where you are to keep a wild duck so you should check into that. Duck will need fresh water every and food that meets it's nutritional need. Depends on the type of duck, but if it's a water fowl it will likely roost on the ground so just a safe place for night. You may find that the duck will not accept the chukar. Ducks imprint very strong on what they see when they hatch. In this case it believes it is a duck. If it was hatched out by humans it would believe it was a human. Ducks can be very aggressive so be prepared for that. You may find you have a loudly quacking baby on your hands for a while, they are flock animals.

Goodness! I guess all these strong feelings about your ducklings means that you all care for them a great deal. That's a good thing! :) I'm always learning something new here and I love all the input. I have played the "mama" part with my first and only 2 babies. My mallard is about a month old and his playmate is a little over a week old now, and is a Blue Swedish. I've offered them chick starter and they seem okay with that. They also have some greens everyday. I've also offered them tepid water in a shallow pan, but I didn't know about them needing to get their entire heads into the water. I will remember that from now on. I've been letting them play in about 2 inches of warmish water in the bathtub with food in the bottom. I did already know about them needing to be warmed up quickly after getting wet. They seem cold when they're through playing in the water. I remove them and wrap them in a warm towel. Then I lay down on the floor beside them and let them get under my shirt. I breath warm air on them and rub them lightly with the towel while they preen and fall asleep. I have never put them back in their pen while they are wet, though. I know they'd get mighty sick mighty quick. While they are so young I keep a couple of fleece throws for them to cuddle up in while they are penned and in their box. The pen and box have been moved to the garage now and I use a heat lamp for them. My mother raised chickens, so I knew a little bit about birds and used some of what she taught me to help me with these little ducklings. No breeze or wind is a very important point. Thanks for teaching me about the depth of water so they can clean their bills, nostrils and eyes. Aren't they just the cutest little creatures you've ever seen? I just love ducks! I'm so glad one of them found me. :) Maggie chickenmama1