UPDATE: The search is still on since we've received few viable local
options. Some of our more distant prospects are a duck blogger (https://www.facebook.com/DucksToo?ref=ts&fref=ts), a lovely sanctuary (https://www.facebook.com/IzziesPond?fref=ts) in S. Carolina, and even an intense-looking-but-friendly animal lover/singer of a heavy metal band in Texas (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rDe02fpDPno). But we'd like to find somewhere closer to Gainesville so we can visit, so we won't be making a decision until May 1st or possibly late May depending on how things go. Thank you everyone for your support!! (We were even on the news!)
To answer some questions:
-Muscovy ducks actually are allowed in Hawaii (Thanks gcadry1), which is great news. But we have already taken great but time-consuming, unpredictable jobs (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MAny2vpmRvg), and we won't be able to provide the stability/housing/attention//financial levels that he deserves. We will do whatever is best for him. Putting him up for adoption has been a very difficult decision.
-Whether McIntosh will accept another human or be heartbroken- The way he acts in the video is the same way he acts with strangers. He adores all people, and he acts friendly and will follow around anyone and treat them as if it were me (the person he imprinted on). Plus we will be coming back and visiting him.
We are looking for a new home for our beloved 2 yr old Muscovy drake named McIntosh. We live in Gainesville, FL but we're moving to Hawaii very soon, which is coincidentally the only state that forbids the entrance of ducks :(
McIntosh is a very special duck. He acts more like a dog than a duck, and we treat him as such. We got him when he was a few minutes old, so he thinks he is a human, and is way more tame and humanized than normal ducks.
We also have a normal, non-imprinted female duck who is a companion to McIntosh- we would like it if you adopted her with him. She is very sweet, quiet, self-sufficient, and she follows McIntosh around. She would give almost no more work than what's needed for one duck.
We are asking for a few requirements:
1. He must have a safe yard to free range and play around in from morning til dusk. It would be best if you have a pond or stream in your yard, but a kiddie pool would do.
2. Please spend as much time as you can with him. Since he thinks he's a human, even if he is around 10 other ducks, he would get lonely without human companionship. He is great at following you around and just hanging out nearby while you do chores, sit on the porch, work in the garden, lay out in the sun, etc. He won't run away.
3. Every time you don't see him for many hours, he will go into a very specific "attack mode" in order to re-establish his dominance. He will bite your feet for about 3 minutes, and then completely exit this state and go back to being a sweet duck. He will not randomly bite you when he is out of this state. Luckily he has no teeth, it's just kind of annoying, so you would have to be patient with this, and never kick him, etc.
4. Keep his water clean- we have a big tupperware container inside of his cage that we dump and refill every other day. We change his hay every week or two. It's pretty easy.
5. Lock him up inside of his cage before dusk. Ducks are very vulnerable to predators. Dogs are the biggest daytime threat, and there's not much we can do about that except have a good fence and always being on the lookout when he's outside of fenced areas. Never trust a dog to be with a duck- they can kill them just by playing with them.
6. Clip his wings once or twice a year, or he might fly into a street, into a neighbor's yard with a dog, or get lost. I can teach you when to clip and how (easy).
7. We would prefer a stable, long-term home for McIntosh in an area without too many predators. It would be even better if he was not in contact with any male ducks - they would probably bully him. He will not mate with female ducks, so don't worry about ducklings or him harassing the females. It would be great to find someone within Gainesville, but we're not opposed to traveling a ways for a good home. Note that the city of Gainesville allows 2 ducks per house (we live in some suburbs next to campus).
If you are interested in adopting McIntosh, or have any questions about him, that is great! Send me an email at jzill@ufl.edu describing your situation and housing/animal set-up (pictures would be even better). Please don't be discouraged if you've never had a duck before, we will be happy to tell you everything about them, and we can provide you with his cage/some food/some fencing/etc. He is easier to take care of than a dog, and he's the best pet we've ever had :)
We hope that you will come to love him as much as we do!
Thank you,
Julie and Felipe
Songs:
Razorlight - With a little help from my friends (Beatles cover)
Canned Heat - Going up the country
Mungo Jerry - In the summertime
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