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The Backyard Zoo

By

Jim Dunlap

"Duck Season"

It's duck season. No, no, not hunting ducks but rescuing ducks. 'Tis the season and we take in hundreds of wild baby ducks, not to mention the dyed ones that were victims of being Easter gifts. The babies come in all day and are picked up by Rogers Wildlife Rehabilitation Center. There the experts raise the ducklings until they fly away or can survive on the pond.

Oh what to do, what to do? I will exercise my considerably extensive mandible/maxillary configuration and tell you. Let’s say you find a family of ducklings that have made a home in your pool. There are rescue tactics you can try. If your property backs up to a source of water, e.g., pond, lake, creek, just open the yard gate and momma duck will lead her family out. If the babies are in the pool and cannot get out, you can place a board from the water to the edge to form a ramp. You should not "rescue" a duckling unless: you have proof that mom has had an ugly encounter with an SUV, the baby is alone and wandering the streets, the duckling has suffered the long tooth of a cat or dog, your child returns from the park and says, "Mom, look what I found." Place the duck in distress in a shoebox with some tissues. Call Tammy, office manager extraordinaire at 469-752-1194 and bring it on.

Homonyms just fascinate me. The lobby was busy with orphaned babies coming through the door carried by concerned citizens. Tammy was busy consoling a family that brought in a family of baby rabbits. I answered the door and was handed a shoebox full of holes. I thanked and assured the people that the baby they brought would be well taken care of. Tammy had just finished her spiel and was headed to the back with the bunnies. I handed her the shoebox and simply said, "Duck." She instinctively squatted with her arms above her head and was prepared for the worst.

Baby ducks are helpless creatures and you should help them when you can. The life of a duck isn't all it's quacked up to be.

Contact Jim Dunlap, director of the Holifield Science Learning Center of Plano independent School District, 3100 Shiloh Road, at 469-752-1194 or jdunlap@pisd.edu.

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