Donegan's Weekly Growth Comparison Photo: Seven Weeks Old

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Week Six Update

Hooray for less poop! Donegan's feathers are coming in nicely, so he is poopin less. lol Getting to be quite the handsome fellow, though I do prefer the dark green plumage. Not an ounce of green shimmer on his head yet! Monday we're taking him to disneyland. No, not in the park, as much as I wish I could :D As I've said before, having a pet duck is a huge commitment and they just don't thrive like fish or dogs if you leave them for the weekend. This is no joke :) You want a companion... you got one! I'm waiting for him to grow a bit more before I start sewing more diapers. I adjusted the pattern a bit and added an adjustable strap down the back and I finally found my poly-cotton waterproof duck canvas. Yes, it's called duck canvas. Hooray for irony!
I'm doubling the size of his cage when we get home from Disneyland. Other than that, nothing new in regards to him.
As for me, though, I have a tattoo appointment set for March 16th. My son has Autism and I, myself, have Aspergers. We spend a lot of time beating the odds and stereotypes, and spreading awareness. So I really wanted an Autism awareness tattoo because it is such a big part of our lives (and we couldn't be happier, let me tell you). But I want a duck tattoo, too :( DING DING DING! Mesh them together! So I have this pic on my facebook profile, but I think the ducks are hideous.

So I drew my own. The colors will be in more detail and the words made to look like grass, but here it is. I'm putting it on the inside of my forearm. The man who is going to do my tattoo told me he has a granddaughter with Autism. It makes it that much better to have someone do it that has a true understanding.

And I leave you with more six week old pics of Donegan (click to enlarge)

Donegan's Weekly Growth Comparison Photo: Five Weeks Old

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First Paddles

He is one month old now.  His feathers have grown in on his chest so he took his first official swim today in the bath tub!  These are his first paddles... trying to figure out how his feet work.  All my videos are of baths so far, but there will be more to come when the weather warms up. Besides, who can't sit an watch a duck play in the water for days??  ;D

Donegan's Weekly Growth Comparison Photo: Four Weeks Old

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Week 3 Donegan Update

Donegan keeps getting sweeter and sweeter. Welsh's are definitely my number one breed to recommend. He got a bath upgrade and needs one again already! He's getting big. He's convinced he still fits perfectly on my shoulder and in my hand. lol. He also started wearing the next size up in training diapers. My eyes could be playing tricks, but it seems as though his walk is a bit off... maybe too pigeon toed. I'm going to look into it, but regardless it doesn't seem to bug him. He's a poopin machine! SURPRISE! Looking forward to less poop after his feathers are in. They are on their way... looking less like feathers and more like spikes. Gotta love that awkward stage. He's still quite photogenic, but we will see if that still stands next week!! :D His beak is slowly getting lighter. Welsh Harlequin males have a dark beak when they hatch, which lightens and turns yellow over time. The femals are born with a light beak that darkens with age. This is why most breeders consider welshs the easiest to sex at hatching. I did a supervised cat/duck meet n greet with donegan in his cage. YUP... the cats were terrified of him. lol I'll be looking for a medium there. I really need to get some orders in for juvenile and adult diaper harnesses, but it's hard to guess the size =/ We removed the heat lamp, but have the heat turned up in the house. Other than that and upgrading the size of his food and water dishes, nothing new :)

Donegan's Weekly Growth Comparison Photo (3 Weeks Old)

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Donegan's Weekly Size Comparison Photo: Two Weeks Old

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Taking a Breather

Thinking about the week I had and laughing about it now. It was a crazy one. One of those where every little thing goes wrong... from the cat collapsing my paint shelves to getting three drinks spilled on me by little people within two days (lol). Today Donegan and I are going to sit our booties down and we ain't movin for nuthin! :D 

13 days old

Donegan Update: One Week Old

So far Donegan is proving to be one amazing little duck. I'm in awe at his friendly, confident nature. He is such a JOY to have in my life. I really cannot say enough. Welsh Harlequins are the way to go, at least from Metzer Farm's flock.
Today he met my 5 year old son for the first time. I expected Donegan to be shy, but soon as my son sat down, Donegan made a bee-line for my son's lap and immediately laid down for cuddle time. Not long after that they were playing together. Unbelievable. Cheyenne, as amazing as she was, was never this confident... and she also didn't "love" my hands as Donegan does. He loves to be picked up. I love him so much.

He's growing fast, as ducks do. Tonight I will move the heat lamp a bit farther from the cage.... little by little every night so that by the end of the week he is acclimated to the temperature in our home (which is warmer than usual to keep him comfy in the dead of winter).
(click pics to enlarge)

Week Seven Update

So, Cheyenne is seven weeks old today. I'm SO EXCITED that her intermediate diaper harness officially fits with no problem. Finally, she doesn't take it off and seeing that it was her first day with it on, she was very tolerant of it. We were able to take a nap together with no worries on my end ;D Today was the best day I've had with her.
You can barely see the black harness on her:


Also, about her Angel Wing. A couple days ago, after having wrapped her, I decided it was just too much to put her through. I felt terrible for making her endure the whole process and decided, since it's cosmetic, and not to risk injury of blood feathers, etc in her struggle, I would let it be.

Yesterday her angel wing looked horrible. Worst it ever had and thoughts of wrapping it started crossing my mind again, but still I let it be.

This morning I wake up and, unless I'm hallucinating, it looks as though it's correcting itself!! All within the night hours! It's crazy. I sure hope this isn't presenting false hope, but I'm excited about it.

Here's her wing today:


And a couple extra pictures...

Cheyenne's Weekly Growth Comparison-- Seven Weeks Old

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More Week Six Pics

Weekly Growth Comparison-- Six Weeks Old

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Update: Week Five

Cheyenne is doing good. I have concerns that she may be showing signs of Angel Wing, though. :( I surely hope not. Her left quills that are coming in are splaying out a bit. On the right side, the quills are neatly tucked under her wing. We shall see! I posted these pictures in the yahoo group petducksRus in hopes of getting tips and advice. In the mean time, I'm weaning her off starter feed today and adding xtra oats to deplete the amount of protein she's consuming.
You can see here that she's forming green feathers on her face now (yay!) And when she's out, she is now using her Ducky Diner from The Goose's Mother. Really cuts down on the mess. Her feathers are coming in more and more. (Note that Cheyenne is a LOT darker than all the pictures I post of her. She's so dark that I have to brighten the pictures up enormously so that you can even see her). I'm going to put her intermediate harness on again today, and hopefully she has grown enough and won't be able to take it off. I'll update later.

With that, here are a few five week photos of her. The first one is my favorite picture of her.  I love it when she flaps those little wings!