when can a baby duck swim?

I have an abandoned baby duck (1 1/2 weeks old now) and I know they are not supposed to swim right away because without a mother they do not get the oil they need to protect themselves against the water...but at what age will my duck begin getting the oil glands and be able to go swimming? I had read somewhere else that it was at about 6 weeks but I am not really sure if that is correct.

Hello! We also have a duckling...Don't know how old... We found it today, it seems to have a "bad" leg.. It could be broken, but i doon't see any obvious signs of a breakage...
Just as a matter of interest: what do you feed your duckling?
Thanks

we got chick feed (which also says it is for ducks, geese, etc.) at the local Tractor Supply Store. It is small pellets and you get it wet so it makes it softer for them to eat. At 3 weeks they can begin eating some scrap foods such as bananas, strawberries, spinach, etc. But just make sure it doesn't swim yet!!! Good luck with the duckling!!! watch out...they grow fast!!! At 3 weeks our baby duck is beginning to get some tiny feathers and is getting pretty big!

give it bananas - soon he'll be swiiming faster than australian athlete

have baby duck 9 days old broken leg. have leg set, can it go in the water? already knows how to swim.

I have 2 duck but I dont know what age they can swim but we ask my mums friend and they said 1/2 months but I think that is to long dont no what to think.....
HELP
and they have poo all over them so can you put them in the bath ??

I used to put my ducklings in a lukewarm bath and let them play then hold them in a nice dry towel, they love the swim and it seems to have done no harm they are fully grown now.
I had an adult duck with wet feather - that's a condition where the oils seem to go and they get soaked through when wet- I used to clean her up and dry her with a hair dryer and a towel. She has recovered really well now.

i have found abandoned baby ducks and they are swimming and they have alot of feathers

My ducks are four weeks old and they swim fine, just watch them, and when they are done swimming, dry them off and let them preen themselves under a hot lamp.

The ducks need to swim in order to clean out their sinuses.

not sure how old my baby ducks are..... but maybe a month? Can I let them go out to the pond with my one lonely female adult duck? They are getting some feathers on their tails now.

When you buy a duckling for Tractor supply they are only a day old. I would recommend waiting a month ATLEAST before putting them in water.

we have 4 baby duks and we need to know when can they swim

lisa marie wrote:

I have 2 duck but I dont know what age they can swim but we ask my mums friend and they said 1/2 months but I think that is to long dont no what to think.....
HELP
and they have poo all over them so can you put them in the bath ??

you can not take them a bath with soap but with water its ok

bought a baby duckling today, apparently its 2 to 3 weeks old and it seems to swim just fine, it panicks sometimes though so you have to take it out of the water

Amanda wrote:

I have an abandoned baby duck (1 1/2 weeks old now) and I know they are not supposed to swim right away because without a mother they do not get the oil they need to protect themselves against the water...but at what age will my duck begin getting the oil glands and be able to go swimming? I had read somewhere else that it was at about 6 weeks but I am not really sure if that is correct.

As soon as there strong enough as long as they dont get cold

i have 2 ducks when can i put them in the pond

I hatched two call ducks and I put them in luke warm water (shallow) at a day old and they tried to swim so I made it deeper and now I can't get them out, my advice, let them swim early on in there life so they can get there oils but let them prune themselves (dry them a little so they don't get cold)

i have a 1 month old duck can i put it in a pond with many other adult ducks??

I have 6 ducklings. They are about 1 1/2 months old. I want to put them in the pond now, but one has a broken leg. Can anyone tell me if he will be okay out there? They are very jittery around people still, but they love the water. The one with the hurt leg hasn't gotten in the water much. But the others I think are anxious to go.

be careful, i took in 7 abandoned ducklings, all appeared healthy. I made my own feed of blended cat food fruit and veg which they loved. i then made the fatal mistake of putting them in a about an inch of warm water in the bath, i dried them as best i could. Then one by one they started to die, by next day all but one were dead. Whilst i tried to keep them warm i don't think it was sufficient, i reckon they needed a radiated heat such as a heat lamp. Pretty gutted although if i'd left them they would have been easy prey for the local cats.