This morning we were awoken by a phone call at 7:15 am. It was from our main post office.
“Um, we got a box of baby ducks or somthin’, here…”
“… want us to deliver them now?”
By 9:30 am, the box arrived, after flying into Logan Airport in Boston and being trucked west to Worcester, Massachusetts, our tiny ducklings have arrived at their new home. These too are Indian Runners ( egg laying ducks), which lay beautiful eggs for baking and custards. Duck eggs are large, and preferred for baking. Our exisiting flock is composed of two different types: all white, and white and fawn. This shipment of ducklings that arrived are different colors than our existing ones. They are still Indian Runners, but labeled ‘Black Runners’ and ‘Blue Runners’. When Mature, the black ones will be, well…dark black. When the ‘blue’ ones mature, they will look like long, skinny Mallard ducks.
Introduced into Europe in the 1830’s, they Indian Runner was first known as the ‘Penguin Duck’ , and was reported to be imported from Bombay, hence, the name.
Margaret ( our Irish Terrier) has already claimed them as hers, just like last year. The ducks too, have already implanted imprinted with her. She won’t let Fergus near them without snapping at his nose, and she sat guard over them all afternoon. The ducklings are on the front porch kept under a heat lamp on the floor in a giant, cardboard walled pen. We cut a hole in it so Margaret can peek in ( which she does frequently) to keep order in the flock.
How cute! I love baby ducks. My mother had some a few years ago and I couldn't get enough!
Just want to reach out and touch one of those cute little ducks.
Each year we have a male and female return to our "pond" the pool cover must look like one with the decaying leaves making the water dark. We have never had babies join them.
Imprinted. Implanted might require a mad scientist. Or do you have a dark side you haven't told us about yet?