When I was a small child back in the seventies we had a family eider down. It was a hand me (eider) down from my great grandparents. I loved the eider down, I used it whenever I was feeling poorly or cold in bed. It was a beautiful thing finished …
Meet Wayward. Wayward is a wild mallard duckling, pictured here at 3 weeks old. Wayward was found alone at only a day old. For about 5 months a year I take in lots of ducklings, just like Wayward. Some are found alone, some are found in small groups. All have …
Please note this article on how to care for wild baby ducks pertains to wild Mallard ducklings only. Domestic breeds of duck and wildfowl require different types of care. Mallard ducklings are more likely to be found in the first 24 hours after hatch as the mother may have to …
There has been great debate about the practise of pinioning waterfowl species recently with the law being open to misinterpretation leaving breeders, private collectors and conservation organisations open to criticism and pondering their own moral path. Legally it’s yet to be decided if this practice should be allowed to continue, …
Zoe Brodie-James has written a number of articles on the welfare of ducks for us, some of which have been quite moving but none of them have been quite so emotive as this one which focusses on foie gras [liver fat] and its production. Gavage [noun: The administration of food …
Most of us have been aware of High Fernley Whittingstall’s ongoing campaign to raise the welfare standards of British commercially reared chickens, but what about commercially reared ducks?
Zoe Brodie-James investigates the ethics and law of releasing domestic ducks into the wild on the local pond and finds some sad and sometimes illegal scenarios that go on there.
