The ducklings have made the move to the coop. This week, they will turn 5 weeks old. They still don’t have their full feathers, but they have grown so much.

We brooded in the house for just over 3 weeks. The challenge with ducklings–which I knew–is water. Even the littlest ducklings want to be in water, need to be in water, love to be in water. I set things up as best as I could in the brooder to limit the splashing, but everything was still very wet.

When I felt like the temperatures were warm enough and the birds were big enough, they moved out.

The ducklings have their own section of the coop separate from the chickens. They have an indoor pen with an attached outdoor run.

When I first put them in the run, they were pretty unsure. I sat with them, and they stayed close. Very close.

Ellie and I had found a section of an old plastic barrel, so we put that in the run so that they had a small tub for swimming. They quickly discovered the tub and happily hopped in, so that made them more comfortable. They loved nibbling on all the weeds and grasses in the run, so that helped too.

The drama came at night when it was time to go in the coop. They had no idea what to do. I lifted them one by one and passed them through the small door to Ellie who was inside. Then I locked them in. When I came out in the morning and opened the door, I was able to talk them into coming out on their own, though they had no idea how navigate the ramp and tumbled off the side (it’s a very short fall, and ducklings bounce pretty well).

The second day, we repeated the ritual. The third evening they were able to walk up the ramp into the coop by themselves with us herding them from behind, and they were confident enough to come out by themselves in the morning. They have now figured out that the coop is a good place and they go in and out on their own. I still lock them in at night, though the run is very secure and I don’t really think they’re at risk.

We’ve also started letting them free range a bit during the day. If we’re outside, we tend to let the chickens out. So we’ve included the ducklings. Again, it took them awhile to build their confidence. Walking through the gate was hard. But they feel safest with us, so they will come to where we are (usually at top speed). They also know their baby pool is across the yard, so that’s additional motivation.

The other day the chickens were between the ducks and us, and the ducklings blasted right through the flock. They did not care that anyone was in their path. Our big barred rock, Boss-Boss, didn’t know what to do when all four ducklings were coming straight at her.

And that’s why I got ducklings. They are hilarious and fun and we love having them.