Mr Flapper Duck

Well… not unexpectedly, Rex & Turk got themselves kicked out of their first home.

Their new humans tried everything they could, but it just wasn’t a good match. Rex & Turk have spent too much time attacking people to be placed in a home with other animals and small children. Not only was bossy Rex being bitey, but shy Turk liked to sneak up behind people and try to murder them… especially the small children. (Always watch out for the shy, quiet ones).

So they are being picked up Thursday.

They’ll probably come to Casa del Flapper for a bit, until we can find another forever home.

Muscovy drakes are notoriously difficult to place in permanent homes. I was hopeful at this first try, because the humans were willing to make every effort to make it work. But while they love Rex & Turk, they can’t have a dangerous situation at their home. Special thanks to them for giving it a good try. We hope those wounds heal really quick!

P.S. I am stopping off for a nice lunch at that good cafe in Duvall before picking up these lovable, killer nerdballs.

“The Muscovy Boys” are so far living up to their reputation at the park as aggressive, marauding attackers. They spent their first day at their new home chasing and biting the goats. I guess now that people aren’t walking by, they got bored.

We’re hoping they learn to behave a little better as they settle in and realize:

1. There is always food available for them
2. The goats don’t have the food

Their new family named them “Rex” and “Turk.” Muscovies look a little like dinosaurs crossed with turkeys, so T-Rex and Turkey were the inspiration for their new names. I’m not quite sure which one is which, but I’ll try to find out.

They ate treats from the hands of the kids in the family, and didn’t bite any humans (just goats). They got to swim in their own pool and they even went back to their pen all on their own. Their pen is open now so they can come and go, but they have decided it is their home base.

Keep your fingers crossed that Rex & Turk ease up on the goat-chasing once they get a few good meals in their bellies.

Now that I’ve had a nap, I can share the whole happy ending for the muscovy boys. They wore me out today.

Last night after posting their photos on rescue sites and Flapper’s blog, I received three emails from people interested in taking them in and giving them a forever home. There are a lot of small hobby farms just outside of Seattle, so it’s not that difficult to find a suitable home. But it’s always harder for muscovy drakes. Luckily, they are pretty self-sufficient, and they can fly well-enough to fend for themselves on an open acre of land. Especially if there’s a herding dog around to protect them.

This morning I went to get them from the park, and found them both napping. They were already well fed this morning, so they weren’t begging for food from me. They didn’t want anything to do with me actually. I was worried that I wouldn’t be able to catch shy guy. I wanted to catch him first since he’s the most skittish duck, but he was not cooperating. So I caught the friendliest guy and put him in a carrier. That really freaked out shy guy, and he took off.

Thankfully a couple came up with stale white bread and threw some to shy guy and the mallards. He was totally into the junk food. By the way, people… bread is bad for ducks. Cat food or cheerios are healthier alternatives. The couple gave me a piece of stale bread and I was able to get fairly close to shy guy. The guy walked towards shy guy to push him a bit closer to me, and when he was within reach, I tackled him and grabbed him. I hung up some signs with information on Flapper’s website and we were off!

About 30 minutes later, we were near Duvall, WA. There are very cute little farms there, with everything from cherries to blueberries.

This little green shed with the pretty wildflowers marks the front entrance to the muscovy boys new home.

They will be kept in this kennel for a day or two until they learn that this is their home base. Then they will have the roam of the 9 acres of land.

Shy guy was making friends with this pug when I was getting ready to leave. Both muscovy ducks found their water dish and food bowl and drank fresh, clean water and ate real duck food for the first time in I don’t know how long.

Bossy boy was busy huffing and puffing to make sure everyone knew what he wanted.

The muscovy boys’ new home comes complete with some friendly chickens. Check out that white muppet. Doesn’t she remind you of Racquel L’Oreal?

There are also a few goats and some rescued dogs, as well as a herding dog to protect the flock.

Special thanks to the new family who was so quick to respond with their address and information when these boys were in need. They were not safe at that park, with people irritated with them and dogs chasing them.

Lastly, a note to everyone who frequents public parks, and all humans really: Please understand that ducks, even “ugly” ones, are creatures too. They deserve the same care and respect that you do, that your dogs do. They are not “a lower life form.” They are wonderful, happy personalities covered in feathers instead of fur or skin. Ducks are prey animals, and are especially susceptible to all predators. They are hyper-alert and always quick to fight or flee. No prey animal is interested in being near a predator. They view dogs as predators and they don’t know your dog is on a leash or that your dog is well trained. These two boys were not attacking because they were “aggressive nesting geese.” These boys were hand-raised and callously dumped like trash at a public park. They were friendly and hungry and looking for hand outs. Muscovy ducks are sweet and loving and amazing animals. And they, like all creatures, deserve compassion and care and a gentle helping hand.

Thank you to whoever posted the “aggressive nesting geese” signs, to Margaret for sharing her videos and leading us to the boys, and everyone else who helped them get to their new, safe forever home.

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And now… after we dropped those two sweet boys off at their new home, we headed into historic Duvall, WA.

I have never been to Duvall before.

Main Street is full of cute little shops and stores.

This restaurant was calling to me from across the street, so I had to go inside and get some lunch.

It is called “The Grange Cafe” and I recommend it very, very highly. They source their food from local farmers whenever they can, and their menu included several vegetarian options.

I opted for the vegetarian benedict with local free-range eggs, which was unbelievably good. It was probably the best breakfast I have had in years. The asparagus and broccolini were an amazing substitute to what is usually ham in regular eggs benedict.

If you ever find yourself in Duvall, WA… with or without muscovy drakes… I highly recommend The Grange Cafe.

And lastly, all the very best to shy guy and his bossy buddy in their new, safe forever home. They are sweet, lovable boys and they deserve the very best.

“What the… YOU SAID THERE WAS BREAD IN HERE, LADY!”
I was able to capture and transport both muscovy drakes to a new forever home together today.

Here’s what was getting these muscovy boys in trouble at the park.

And this:

The two muscovy boys are now away from the park in Mill Creek, WA where they were dumped. That’s also where they were chasing people and being chased by dogs (and vice versa to protect themselves).

Now they are settling in to their new forever home near Duvall, WA. They are in this temporary pen for a day or two so they can learn where “home” is. After that, they will have the run of the property which is well over an acre.

They have fresh food and fresh, clean water and a safe place to live now. They have duck and chicken friends and more. We left them with a 40lb bag of quality duck food and a kiss for good luck.

I’ll post more later. But first… a nap.

Special thanks to the stranger who helped push the shy guy towards me at the park so I could tackle him.

This handsome muscovy drake and his shy buddy are both looking for a good, safe forever home.

Here’s shy guy. Together, they are hanging out at a public park, where they don’t belong.

They are both very, tame. In fact, too tame. It is my guess that these two were hand-raised by someone who hatched muscovies and ended up with too many males. So they dumped them at this park in Mill Creek, WA.

Unfortunately, because they’re so tame, they walk right up to people and bite them to ask for food.

Someone has posted signs that misidentify them as aggressive nesting geese. We’re glad the signs are there though, as they help keep people from messing with the ducks and letting their dogs chase the ducks.

I gave both boys a hard time about the sign. Not only are they not geese, they’re also both male so they’re not nesting. They appear aggressive because they’re hungry and looking for handouts.

They walk right up to people on the trail and bite them. This guy in the purple shirt got bit.

Do you have room in your heart and your home for these two friendly boys?

I wish I could have brought them home with me, but we’re all full here at Flapper’s house, and there’s no where safe to put them. I’m very worried about them being at the park for very long, because they chase dogs and climb on people. A dog is certain to bite them before long, if a person doesn’t kick or injure them first.

Please cross post this to any lists near Seattle, WA and note that I’m willing to drive them up to 3-hours away. People can contact me through Flapper’s website here, at http://www.mrflapper.com/blog.

Stay safe, muscovy boys. I’m working on a good home for you as fast as I can.

Maya, Sam & Lily’s new forever home human, sent this quick note:

“Sam and Lily are fantastic, as are our other ducks (we have 6 total now). They all get along very well. As soon as I get a chance, I will send you a picture of the flock. They love hanging out in a bunch all day long.”

We’ll post a photo when we receive one. It sounds like they’re doing great. And no ducks deserve a great home more than those two sweet kids. Maya was in Yellowstone when she wrote us that note. We contacted her to see if she’d take in a duckling rescued by some kids near her, but unfortunately that duckling didn’t make it through the night.

Special thanks to Maya for emailing us back from her vacation in Yellowstone.

Here is a video of Sunny the duck. You can see how her legs aren’t working very well. But she is 100-times better than she was a week ago when I picked her up. The medications must be helping everything for her.

Here’s Racquel L’Oreal the Chicken. This video turned out a little dark so we’ll have to try again another time. But take a look at her. Isn’t she fancy?

And lastly, here’s Olivia the Chicken. I really like Olivia. She is feisty but friendly.

All three kids are done with one of their medications. They still have two different kinds of antibiotics for another five days. We’re hoping to get Sunny the duck in to an avian veterinarian this coming Thursday. We’ll also do a follow-up fecal test on Racquel to make sure all four parasites are gone. Until then, they’re hanging in there and doing okay.

Aren’t they cute?

The quarantine kids are doing pretty well.

They have their own spot on the lawn and a wading pool and dust bath area that are separate from my own ducks.

I can’t tell which end is which, but here Olivia enjoys a bath in dirt.

“They bathe in dirt? That is messed up.”
Flapper can’t quite grasp the point of chickens, yet. But he’s coming around.

Sunny of course enjoys a regular bath in water, since she’s a duck.

Olivia is a little wary of me, but she’s been better about letting me give her medication. And she even sat still while I cut poo out of her feathers today.

Racquel is very tame and friendly, and thinks I’m pretty nice, even though I give her pills.

All in all they are doing okay. The chickens should be pretty good after 10-days of medications, but Sunny is permanently handicapped, though I’m still not sure quite why. She will need a vet visit soon to make sure she doesn’t have any underlying illnesses that are causing her pain or discomfort. As long as she can get around okay and she isn’t in pain, she should do okay. Right now I think she has both pain and infection though. I can see it in her eyes. We should know more in a few weeks.