Ducklings on the Slough

 A week or so after the cold week, with the ducklings drinking more than swimming in their starter pond we opened their pen so they could come and go.  They never left their pen.  Every morning and evening when I fed and watered them, I called them and threw them scratch grain, which is some of their favorite stuff.  Knowing they would get too big and messy for their pen and hoping they would come back at supper time we shooed them out of their pen. They did not come back to their pen at supper and only stayed on the shore of the slough resulting in the loss of a duckling.  The next day we pushed them onto the water.  They loved it!  And we loved watching them dunk and splash and swim. They still stay too close to the shore at night, at least some nights and we've lost two more over time.  Hoping they will learn from the wild fowl on the slough and stay away from shore overnight.