So What Ever Happened to Betty’s Brood? (A Duck Update)

It has been a long time since I did a Duck Tales post. The
last time I shared was this spring as Betty’s brood of babies were hatched and
growing. Time flies on the homestead and I never updated you all on how they
did. So here is the rest of the story……

 Betty and Bill hand their wings full with their hidden little nest of eggs. I don’t think either of them were prepared for parenthood. They were wonderful parents, don’t get me wrong, but you could tell as the duckling grew bigger and became more independent, the stress of keeping an eye on all of them was starting to wear on the couple. Especially when the ducklings started sneaking through the fence into the neighbors yard. Betty and Bill would quack their brains out trying to get the ducklings to come back to them.
Now one thing you need to know about ducklings is they grow FAST. In no time those cute little ducklings took over our yard. By 38 days old, they were just as big as Betty and Bill and
that means they were eating us out of house and home and depositing just as
much poo as mom and dad. It was starting to get a little messy! And, well, the country kids don’t like wearing shoes in the summer…. See the littlest country kid’s shoes behind the ducks, over by the tree? Yeah, more than once they stepped in a little something. LOL
Luckily we found homes for all but one. Well I should say,
we decided to keep one and found homes for the rest. It was a sad day when they
all left, but it was an amazing adventure to have been part of their coming
into this world. I mean I DID help most of them hatch out of their eggs, since Betty’s shells were so darn thick!
The one duckling we kept, was a female and we named her Baby
Girl. She was a baby and she is a girl, so in country kid logic, it seemed
like the perfect name. She is a beautiful little thing, but unlike Betty who I
hand raised from a day old, Baby Girl eyes me with suspicion most of the time. While I wish she were friendlier, that will come with time…. and treats.
Bill and Betty really seemed to enjoy not having a herd of duckling following them everywhere. Baby Girl did her best to stick close to them, but you could see them both start to relax again. I know raising two country kids has me stress out most of the time. I wouldn’t know what to do with ten kids! Over the summer they all settled into a new normal.
Bill got his pool back after the herd left. He is one guy who REALLY likes his pool time and with twelve ducks, he didn’t get much alone time. Betty and Baby Girl respect his needs for the most part and always let him jump in the pool first for a while without them.
Baby Girl has experienced her first snow fall and was a little unsettled by it. She spent most of that day just sitting in the pool. Bill and Betty reassured her that this white stuff was nothing to fear and she has not only become accustomed to it, but LOVES to play and sit in it. She is always the first one out the door every morning.
Even at temperatures below zero, the ducks enjoy sitting in the snow. They tuck their feet up into their feathers and just sit. I don’t get it myself, but if it makes them happy, who am I to judge! Now personally if I were a duck, I would stay inside the shed with the chickens under the heat lamp all nestled in nice clean straw, but hey, to each their own.
I just cross my fingers that this spring Betty doesn’t try to hatch another nest full of eggs. And lord help us if Betty and Baby Girl both hide nests. We will be up to our eyeballs in ducklings. I try not to think about that, but I must admit, it haunts me. But for now I will try not to think about it, and just enjoy my slightly expanded and then contracted little flock of ducks.
If you want to read more about our duck raising adventures, 
pop on over to our Duck Tales section of the blog. 

8 thoughts on “So What Ever Happened to Betty’s Brood? (A Duck Update)

    1. Ducks can be some really messy buggers LOL But I wouldn't trade their mess for the world. I love my ducks. 🙂

  1. They are so beautiful it must have been hard to part with them. Thanks for giving us an update and linking up at #Overthemoon. You certainly lead a very interesting life! Have a great week!

    1. It was and it wasn't LOL I loved them all but the massive amounts of duck poo, well it was time for them to go.

  2. Awww. My boys very much want a few ducks. LOL!. thanks for linking up to Simply Natural Saturdays.

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