There’s nothing worse than seeing babies out in the wild without their mama, especially when those babies don’t have much chance of surviving otherwise. This is actually the case with ducklings, as an orphaned or abandoned baby duck is too young to fend for itself, and unfortunately, the likelihood is that it wouldn’t survive.
So when a human finds an orphaned ducking, some might argue that we have a responsibility to step in and help. One man did exactly that, and he shared the whole thing on Reddit.
Reddit user powerbookguy was driving through his hometown when he came across an upsetting scene. A mother duck was lying dead in the road while her babies huddled around her, scared and lost. On his Reddit post, he said:
“I came up over a hill to find the momma duck dead and the babies scurrying into the road to get to her. I pulled a quick U-turn and shooed them off the road. They huddled by a closed garage for warmth.”
As soon as the man got out of his car and approached the ducklings, he realized that he would have to help them. They were so young and vulnerable, and would certainly die without being cared for.
The first thing the man did was call his wife and explain the situation to her.
She must have got a shock when he told her on the phone, “I’m bringing home 7 baby ducks! Hop online and figure out how we keep them alive.” She must have thought he was absolutely quackers — but she agreed to the rescue mission and began preparing for their seven new arrivals.
Meanwhile, the man was quickly trying to figure out a way to transport the ducklings back to his house. He realized that he had nothing in his car that would do the job, so he asked for the help of some kind strangers.
“I quickly discovered I had nothing in my car to transport ducks (won’t make that mistake again!). An employee from the golf course just down the street got me a box. Here they are cuddled in the box after I collected them.”
The man managed to get the ducklings home and then his wife and children stepped in. They had made a cozy little bed for the babies, using a soft towel to keep them nice and warm.
“Once home, my wife and daughters helped me make a temporary home for them…a storage bin with a towel in the bottom.”
But to the family’s surprise, the ducklings were able to escape from the deep container, so a plan B was needed. But in the meantime, the girls had an ingenious way of keeping the ducks safely inside.
“We quickly discovered these little guys (girls?) can really jump! My girls had this innovate solution to block them from hopping out while I searched for a better solution.”
The man made a ‘duck hotel’ in the corner of his garage, complete with a cozy heat lamp to keep the ducks safe and warm. The surrounding walls were really high so the babies couldn’t escape, and everyone was finally able to settle down for the night. Powerbookguy said:
“They seemed to take to the new spot right away. They drank water from bowls and then just sat in the water. Our neighbor ran to a local pet store and picked up some food for them.”
Thanks to everybody’s acts of kindness, the ducklings survived through the night, and thoughts were turned to what would happen to them in the future. Powerbookguy said:
“They survived the night! We’d done everything we knew to do and were pretty sure they would be warm enough, but it was great to see them alive and well still this morning. Next step, finding them a permanent home.”
Some users asked if the family wanted to keep the ducklings for themselves, but it turns out that they had recently welcomed a baby boy into their lives, so things were already a little hectic – though in the best sort of way, powerbookguy added.
We hope that these little ducklings found a safe home!
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