Imprinting. It’s what ducks do. Normally, they imprint on another duck. But not always.
But what is imprinting? “Imprinting is, (according to the Encyclopedia Britannica) in psychobiology, a form of learning in which a very young animal fixes its attention on the first object with which it has visual, auditory, or tactile experience and thereafter follows that object. In nature the object is almost invariably a parent.”
In other words, the baby thinks what it more or less first sees is ‘Mom’.
Imprinting and Birds
Imprinting has been particularly studied in birds, especially chickens, geese and ducks. But, it is known to happen in other species, including mammals, such as us humans (where it is known as bonding).
In the case of ducks, when they hatch, they are looking for ‘Mom’. That is, the one who will protect them. If separated from their actual mom, they will look to another to be that lead role. This easily can be humans, but has also be known to be dogs, even the odd cat!
Duck Sounds
A Mom, whether in the wild or domestic, is anticipated to teach some necessities. Like in human life, children learn words and what they mean. Ducks learn sounds and what those mean. They could be a call to ‘found food, come eat’, ‘follow me’, or ‘danger!’.
I have been a Mom to 2 imprinted ducks in my life, thus far. Both I had to rescue and thus I chose to be imprinted on. (It is not something to choose lightly.) The trouble is, as a human mom to a duck, the expected duck sounds are not naturally inherent.
Over the time I spent with Maggie, my first imprinted duck, and my other ducks I have learned many duck sounds and what they mean. (Mallards actually have a language of 250 sounds.) They in turn have learnt the meaning of certain sounds I make. And like dogs, you can teach them to understand certain commands.
Choosing Imprinting
Now imprinting is really cute. I mean really, really cute. Having this tennis sized ball of fluff duckling follow you as fast as its little legs will run, peep at you and snuggle into your shoulder… what’s not to love? Except, like human children, they require you to be their parent until the grow up and leave the nest (as it were).
Yes, this is quicker than in the human world, but it still takes time. If you wish to have or find yourself deciding on letting a duck imprint, be aware you are looking at at least a year before you will have some form of independence. They are very similar to having children in their attention needs and dependence.
As ducklings, they are completely dependent on you, just like a baby. And will take as much time and attention as a baby, And need cleaning up after, just like a baby. You can even diaper your duck.
Timeframes
Ducks reach adolescence at around 2 months old (boy ducks voices actually change, that’s one of the first ways you can determine the sex of your duck). Then as they become proper teenagers, they start to get fashion orientated and grow their respective plumage. That is, they start to look like the duck breed they are from.
Like most teenagers they would rather not be seen with their parents, though no surprise they still need you for home and food. If you have other ducks they will start to want to hang out with them.
The Ugly Duckling
If your other ducks are not imprinted, you may find that your imprinted duck gets bullied. After all, as a non-duck you couldn’t teach them all the proper duck skills. Maggie really was disliked by my other, older, ducks. Because of this she stayed closer to me for longer.
I finally did gain back a modicum of freedom when she reached 4 months old and wanted to test her wings, both literally and figuratively. But that opened a whole other can of worms, having to keep an eye on her as she learned to fly, and would get lost.
Independence
Regarding imprinting and independence, much depends on if you have other ducks. Ducks, like all birds, are flock animals. They need to be with others. If you have a single imprinted duck, you can anticipate that you are and will always be their flock. They will not want to be without you, at any time. (You’ve probably heard of parrots going mad when left alone or not given enough attention?)
The flock does not always have to be ducks. My Maggie flocked with me and my cats when she was growing up. But I only gained real independence from her when she had a flock of other ducks to hang out with.
Hard Decisions
With imprinting on my mind, I had to make the very real decision whether to save one of Maggie’s newly hatched ducklings. He was suffering from niacin deficiency. By choosing to take him under my wing (euphemism) I knew that, if he lived, he would end up imprinting on me.
And so, Gabby became my second imprinted duck. He was a talkative duckling, so as I first suspected a girl, I called him Gabby. (Yes, when young, the girls do talk more. It swaps a bit as they get older.) And, with imprinting I was back in the realm of motherhood. Only having one hand free generally and always having to watch where I stepped for the next, oh, 2 or 3 months.
Your Responsibility
Imprinting is a very real responsibility and not to be taken lightly. Ducks are so so so cute when tiny, but they quickly grow up and to some become not so cute. And as they get bigger so does their mess. Yes, I am talking poop. Lots of it. But like mother’s of human babies you do get used to cleaning their messes. Sort of.
Because your duckling is imprinted you can’t just go and leave it alone, or with other ducks. You are stressing it irresponsibly if you leave it alone, and it could be bullied or even killed if left unsupervised with other ducks. Like kids, ducks can be cruel to those that are different.
And very importantly, once grown you can’t just dump it somewhere like a lake. First of all it’s illegal, but on top of that you have not taught it how to survive in the wild. So it won’t.
It’s a tough decision to choose to let an imprinting happen, particularly if you are saving a duck. But it is a very real commitment, so here’s hoping I’ve given you some food for thought.
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I enjoyed your article and look forward to reading more of your stories. I have a beautiful imprinted baby but she’s got a couple duckling siblings that hatched after her. At least she also knows how to be a duck. Lolol. Loving being a duck mom.
Love that you love being a duck mom. It truly is something special (and a lot of work). Thanks for reading and making my day by enjoying my writings. Truly appreciated. Hope all goes well with you and your duck family.
hi ! I have a 6-7 week old duck that I raised from the beginning. Mum found it alone near the park pond. Did not expect it to be such a fulltime babysitting job ! It absolutely needs to be near me at all times and will run after me all the time. It’s almost done getting its wing feathers. I don’t know what to do with it next.. I try leaving it with a chicken a few times a day since one week (had all the good intentions to to take it to the pond’s ducks 3x a week but I got harrassed so that ended quickly). I could get another young duck but what if chickens and two types of ducks will all not get along ? I do have separate spaces in the garden in case ducks need to have their own space.
Hello there. Thanks for reaching out and finding/reading my article on imprinting. As you have discovered, an imprinted duck is not an easy thing and is now a very real commitment. It absolutely needs you now as its mother to look after it. It won’t accept anyone or anything else, at this stage. As it gets older it will need you less and less, but it is a slow process. And much will depend on whether it has other ducks to be with. A single duck with chickens is not a good idea. So you need to decide it you want to have ducks, and get another (and be careful about male/female and whether you wish baby ducks.) You will be able to tell the sex of your duckling after week 8, depending on the type. The voice changes first and is more noticeable in boys first.
If you do not wish ducks, try to find someone around you that has pet ducks, eg ducks that are tame. A tame duck can shift its imprinting, but it will take another duck owner who understands ducks to deal with the crying. Yes, they do cry when they lose their ‘mother’. That is part of what it is doing when it can’t see you, and follows you around. Fear of losing you. Honestly, at this stage they are just like having a baby, but they do grow up quicker.
Ideally wait until the duckling has its feathers before finding it a new home if you can. There is a very brutal pecking order amongst ducks and the older it is the better it will fare.
If you really can’t look after it, you need to take it to a sanctuary for abandoned ducks. Please do not release it into the wild, whatever you do. It has not been learning how to fend for itself by being with you.
I hope this helps.
thank you so much. I understand it wants me near, and I’m happy i don’t have to be anywhere all day because that would be a big issue. It started using it’s big voice yesterday, still using a lot of tiny mood sounds but also the loud quacking. All the wing feathers are almost out. I found someone who guessed it is a female and he is selling 1 female mallard duck (which is rare) but he suggested I couple mine with a male.. I thought having another young female Mallard would be the best option but apparently this isn’t going to happen via this man. Is there another kind of duck I can get that would fit ? I’m in Belgium so maybe they have the same types around. Also very open to giving it a home so I’ll try to look into that.
The main thing is that it is of a similar size, especially if a male. Female or male is fine. If not the same breed of duck, a female would be better company if yours is a female. Of note, females are louder than males. It’s one of the ways we can tell them apart.
This article might help – particularly the part on Growing Up : https://www.pumpjackpiddlewick.com/can-ducks-be-pets/
If you decide you are going to keep ducks, there is a book by Krissy Ellis, at Dunkin Ducks, that is super helpful.
And if you are on instagram, there is quite a community of pet duck owners, including some in Belgium. They may be worth contacting if you decide not to keep your duck. Simply search pet duck belgium. Ericas Ducks is one I know of in Belgium.