Does anyone know anything about ducks?

[polly7]

I found this little guy in my driveway, he'd been mauled by the neighbour's dog. He's little, and shouldn't even be around here this late, especially so young.

Does anyone know what kind of duck this is?? I've searched the internet and found nothing that resembles him.

Someone told me he's a teal, but they don't look alike to me.

[Fire Walk With Me]

1. What a beautiful bird, I just adore ducks. I hope you can take care of it and that it heals fully.

Sorry, don't know what kind of duck that is but wanted to offer my thanks for doing the right thing. The little one is probably grateful and happy for the help!

[polly7]

2. Thank you. I really think he'll do ok.

I've called him Mr. Cranky, he hisses at me and bites me quite a lot, but he's soooo cute. Just yesterday he started walking a bit .... a little wobbly, but his eyes are bright and he's finally started eating and drinking. A big improvement from a few days ago.

Thank you for adoring ducks.

[RebelOne]

3. Contact your local wildlife rescue.

There should be one listed in the phone book in your area. They will know what to do.

[Arkansas Granny]

9. You could also contact your State Game and Fish Commission.

They should have lists of wildlife rehabilitators who specialize in these things.

[polly7]

10. Yes, I did that and am going to take him in next week, the lone woman

who runs it is overwhelmed right now with babies of all types. She said she's never seen so many young animals being brought in this time of year, and that what I'm doing for him now is just what she'd do there, so a few days won't make any difference. I'm going to miss him though.

[Major Nikon]

4. This one, maybe

http://www.greglasley.net/ruddyduck.html

[polly7]

5. Wow. That's him!

Thank you!

Perfect picture.

[Mendocino]

6. May be an Oldsquaw

but being young the plumage is likely to change so it's difficult to tell.

[polly7]

15. That's a pretty duck.

I never realized there were so many variations in plumage, and they're all gorgeous. The Ruddy duck that was posted seems to be a perfect match. I've never seen one before .... we have tons of Mallards ... and mud-hens. I'll have to pay more attention next spring, he could be common here for all I know.

[Mendocino]

18. I consulted my Audobon Field Guide

to North American Birds. They had a wonderful picture of a Ruddy, but it was a full grown male. The body was reddish-brown and the stripe down the bill was a light blue. Didn't resemble your little cutey much at all. But I'm not very good with birds anyway. The Oldsquaw in my guide was a female and did look more like your hen.

[polly7]

20. Thank you for looking that up. The Ruddy seems closer than

anything I could find, but you could be right and it may not be her either. It's so hard to tell.

[JanMichael]

7. That is one seriously cute duck. My wife had one growing up

Daisy lived for almost 15 years, there are photos of her around the house (surely to god, she has been cannonized by now)...

Make sure she gets both grains and greens...I would consider contacting a wildlife specialist..depending on where you are, maybe Best Friends Animal Society?

I love ducks. All of them; they are the best birds, with the most awesome personalities-

[polly7]

11. I wish so bad I could keep him.

My cat knows where I've hidden him though and sits at the door licking his lips. If I was still on the farm it would be no problem. Yes, grains and greens for sure. I had to dig under the snow to get the grass, but he seemed to perk up once I put it in with him. I also scraped up some small gravel for digestion. Hopefully now that he's starting to eat he'll do ok.

Your Daisy was a lucky girl. 15 years ... that's fantastic.

[JanMichael]

16. Daisy was one of those pet store ducklings that used to get sold

around Easter. She came home in what looked like a Chinese take-out box. Granny Jean said "she must be a Daisy!"

She slept in bed for the first few months, then had to move out to her house under a magnolia tree...

Lots of Daisy stories...

Fantastic birds...I wish people could see there little personalities come out...they aren't that different than dogs in some respects-

[polly7]

19. Awww. She sounds adorable.

I'm glad you have good memories of her. We never had ducks at home, but I loved to watch them in the sloughs with their little ones.

[valerief]

8. I hope you name him Daffy! Mr. Daffy Cranky. nt

[polly7]

13. Very cute. I like it. :) nt.

[KC]

12. He is

precious ! I hope he will be ok !

[Chan790]

14. On type: no idea. He is however a she, I suspect.

Male ducks are brightly-colored (like what you think of when you think of a Mallard), Females are neutral earthy tones as ducks are ground-nesting and the female is largely confined to the nest and protection of the eggs and the camouflage effect helps. (Hatchlings are also neutral-toned but that looks more like a yearling, though the lack of anything to compare it to for size might be misleading.) It's the same reason males are showy, so that they can act to catch the eyes of predators and lead them away from the nest and towards the other males of the flock. Ducks are flock-defensive...the males are mean and like geese and swans they swarm...one gets hold of you, goes limp-weight and kicks you furiously while the rest of them beat the shit out of you with their wings.

I live next to a public park with a duck pond, I started out observing them and then started reading about them. But I can't ID the variety, all the females look the same to me.

[polly7]

17. Oops! So it's Ms. Cranky.

I remember being little at home and having a huge goose chase me every time I went out to the barn. I was more afraid of him than the bull. So far this little one's bite doesn't hurt at all but she's so quick .... and that hissing is kind or unsettling at first.

[MiddleFingerMom]

21. If greywarrior offers to care for it, do NOT say "No".

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Say "HECK, NO!!!"
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[polly7]

22. LOL !!! Thank you! n/t.

[BlueJazz]

23. I think it's a Mud-Hen

[polly7]

25. Mud-hens have pointed beaks though, don't they?

I'm pretty sure she's a duck, exactly what kind I don't suppose I'll find out for sure until Cheryl, the wildlife lady, sees her, or until she gets to Regina. I'm crossing my fingers she's a bit rare, so she'll get some special treatment! She is extra cute though, in any case.

[BlueJazz]

26. A mud-hen is a duck :)

[polly7]

27. I don't think they're from the same family.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Coot

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duck

But that little duck in your picture sure looks like mine. Maybe they were just hanging out together. :)

[yankeepants]

24. That's either an immature or female Ruddy Duck n/t

[GoCubsGo]

29. Yep.

[snagglepuss]

Whatever you don't feed it bread. Bread is bad for ducks.

[snagglepuss]

28. dup self delete

[suninvited]

30. I think that is a Ruddy duck

definitely not a Teal, as a Teal has yellow or orange feet.

This image of a Ruddy duck, which includes a foot looks a lot like yours



another shot that makes me almost certain yours is a Ruddy

[petronius]

31. The subject you meant to type is "Hey XemaSab! WTF is this!?"

:)

But I'm going to say it's a male ruddy duck in non-breeding plumage (they get the blue bills in the breeding season)...

[XemaSab]

33. This is the correct answer

You're right about the duck, too. :D

[TK421]

32. I'm not sure what kind it is, but I've always liked ducks. People around here hate them, though

we have SO many of them along the Delaware River, and most people here view them as pests. I like hearing them squawk as they're moving along the banks...it's a pretty cool sound to wake up to.

[polly7]

34. Thanks everyone!

I knew I'd get the answer here.

You're all great!

[HopeHoops]

35. You could pull a graywarrior and duct tape it to the wall.

Seriously, though, call a local vet and they'll direct you to the correct agency in your area. Unfortunately, that often means euthanasia, but in most states it is illegal to keep wildlife as pets and a mauled duck sounds like a pretty high-maintenance pet anyway.

That said, I've got a deformed hermaphrodite wild rabbit as a pet and my vet helped us with an infected wound he had as a kit. He's 4 1/2 now.

And yes, it is illegal to have him and it was illegal for the vet to treat him, but sometimes nature needs a little help from us no matter what the fucking law says.