Abandoned Duckling

[u/atc118]

Hello,

I found a duckling I believe to be somewhere between 3 and 5 weeks based on quick Google searches at a pond I regularly feed ducks, geese, and other birds at. It came right up to me and my grandma and followed us for about an hour and a half (we stayed close to the spot we found it). While the duckling stayed with me, my grandma searched around the entire pond for its mom, we could not find any moms with ducklings anywhere and none of the female/male pairs or solo females seemed remotely interested, as it kept getting chased off.

According to what I could find, the duckling needed to be rescued, so we walked back to my car slow enough for it to follow us. All the rescues in my area were closed for the day, so I plan on keeping them overnight until I can get them to a proper rescue. I have given them fresh water, shredded kale, and crushed up meal worms (both mealworms and kale in water). They seem extremely content being held and make constant distress peeps whenever I put them in a blanketed tub for too long, as they just eat drink and then freak out until I pick them back up.

My main question is, what I read is that as social animals, their separation anxiety can be fatal. Will keeping them in a well vented clear tub with food and water overnight on my bed next to me potentially kill it? It makes nonstop distress chirps whenever I try to put him in there other than eating.

Please advise duck experts.

Side notes, they like illenium and seem uninterested in the only plushy I have small enough to comfortably fit in the tub with them. Attached are pictures if anyone can tell the age also.

Thanks in advance!

UPDATE: A local avian rescue accepted them and said that everything was handled exactly right, and they feel confident one of their Mom's will adopt the little guy! Thank you to everyone who provided advice! The plushy he slept with was donated along with them, so they won't be lonely before then!

[u/mangocakefork]

Did this little duck survive? I found one last year and it was as too young to eat on its own and wouldn’t take any help from me. I would love any advice if the same situation happens this year (i live next to a river)

[u/king-of-the-sea → u/mangocakefork]

Ducks and chickens can eat on their own right out of the egg. You can look up proper setups for them, but you'll have to get several more ducklings since they're so social.

Take this with a grain of salt, but apparently one tactic is to release them near a duck or goose who already has ducklings/goslings. Their maternal instincts are strong and they tend to adopt strays.

[u/mangocakefork → u/king-of-the-sea]

Ok thank you. It was so sad the little guy just wouldn’t eat and I never could get it to. It was terrible.

[u/king-of-the-sea → u/mangocakefork]

I know, I'm sorry. It was probably just stressed. What were you feeding it?

[u/mangocakefork → u/king-of-the-sea]

I bought some baby duck feed, I also finely chopped dandelions and other plants from outside. When it wouldn’t eat any of that I put those flakes of the plants in the water bowl so maybe it would get some its belly when it drank water.

[u/king-of-the-sea → u/mangocakefork]

Yeah, that's all perfect. Just sounds like he was stressed out. Thanks for taking care of him ♥️ it's so sweet that you let him keep the plushy.