Duck Tales

The first duck egg! I'm so proud. There it was, greeting me and my friend Ben unexpectedly Wednesday morning. I am so proud of my little Khakis... and, I must admit, of myself too. This here egg has been a long time coming. Read on....

... I never wrote about this here, but early last summer after some minimal encouragement by our friend Blair, I decided to raise me some ducks. The reasoning was one part "when in Rome," one part "learn new life skill," one part "ducklings are adorbable," and one part "I work from home and I need some daily-responsibility-to-a-living-thing-that-depends-on-me to get me out of the house, even in winter." So I ordered 15 Khaki Campbells from JM Hatchery in PA, and when I got the call from the Post Office, I went to greet my little ducklings. I waited my turn in line, walked up to the counter, and said, I've got a package to pick up. "What kind of package?" "Ducklings." Attendand turns to the back "Ladies here for her ducks!!" And there they came, chirping away from their little cardboard box. Take a look:



We set up a little run for them on our front porch. They were a happy crew. And then it turned grim. Leaving the house at 6 am one morning, my business suit on, heading to Lansing, Michigan for some work meetings, I am horrified to find... the ducky masacre. I will spare you the details. Suffice it to say that raccoons are evil, heartless creatures that don't even bother to eat what they kill. See photo below to note the fate that befell those raccoons.

I was determined to try again. I will not be defeated by pesky raccoons! This time I put the duckies in the barn, sides and bottom reinforced so as to keep out wiley predators (there had been a case last season involving a mystery animal burrowing a tunnel under the chicken coop and "freeing" at least 10 chicks through this hole). When they were big enough, we put them outside, where they grew to healthy young things.

Then we ate 8 of them. (Plucking the feathers off ducks is a tricky business.... I now have a better appreciation of the phrase "Like water off a duck's back). Jan's duck a l'orange was the big winner.

Then comes winter, and back in the barn they go. Seven females, 1 lucky Drake (male). They start this funny mating ritual which involves unusual head manuevers to the floor, and running in single-file circles around their watering can.

They shit like crazy, and because they are semi-wild they freak out anytime you come near.

And thus it went, until Wednesday, when new joy came with arrival of egg #1. I'm proud to say that so far, we have welcomed egg #1, egg #2, egg #3, egg #4, egg #5, and egg #6. Check out the height of that healthy yoke!