Newest kid on the block

One egg pipped on Monday, Tuesday saw no action, but this morning when I got up there was quite a hole in the egg and I could see a beak, and here good strong peeping.  I told the egg I was off to take the dogs for a walk and it had better be hatched by the time I got back.  And so it was!!

Here is Claire Duck, she is very calm, sitting for this photo, and very plucky when transferred a minute or so ago to the brooder box, apparently my cleaning efforts were less than thorough and there was a cobweb in the corner of the box, complete with airy fairy little spider.  Claire saw it immediately, scampered over, hurtled 3 times her own height up the wall and grabbed it!!  First meal 100% spider protein!!

I dont know if its a duck or a drake yet, but I promised my (recently) adopted daughter Claire that the very next duckling could be named after her, so Claire it is :)  She'll be a bit lonely until another duckling turns up, which hopefully wont be too long.  Her Mum is Ella and her Dad is Tony, and there were other eggs, but one by one they have fallen by the way side, she is only egg from 8 to hatch, but 'we've got more'!!  LOL!!

I gave her a good scrub with a towel after this pic, and she looks a lot fluffier now.  Normally ducklings peck at each other and remove all the dried 'stuff' on their feathers, but if you're on your own, you have to cope with a rough old towelling!!  She looks like a blue fawn, but genetically I think has to be a blue dusky, time will tell.