My husband has a buddy that is a few years older than we are. He and his wife are two of the sweetest folks you'll ever meet. They were not blessed with children of their own, and their later years have not been too kind.
They had to move to another house out in the country due to financial troubles, which is a side-effect of failing health.
But they found a nice little place with a pond. Our friend decided that the pond was in bad need of ducks. And he found nine little baby mallards at a bird sale or somethin'. My ex used to go to these things for chickens and other feathered critters. I have had two bad experiences with ducks, and they don't rate too highly with me. Forget geese. They are just bigger ducks with bigger attitudes.
He brought his new "children" home and fixed 'em up a nice little pen. Probably to keep them from being late-night snacks for foxes and coyotes.
He spent time with them every day and he'd let them out of the pen so that they could do whatever little mallards do. Whenever he let them out they would line up and follow "momma" everywhere he went. He couldn't go inside the house without putting them back in the pen or they would follow him inside.
So here's an old man walking around his property followed by nine baby mallards. The neighbors started watching the show, and then they called other neighbors to come over and watch!
If he put out the feed and was fast enough, he could make it back inside without the ducks. Watchin' from the window, he saw that after a minute or two, one would start lookin' around for "momma". Since they couldn't see him, they would start quacking. He could holler out the door, and that re-assured the "kids", and they would go back to feeding. After a few minutes, they'd miss him again and raise a fuss, he'd yell loud enough for them to hear him, and all would be well again.
He found a snake in the yard, and when he shot it the noise upset the babies and it took thirty minutes of talkin' to the ducks to calm them back down. I guess that makes him The Duck Whisperer.
But then he realized that they would NOT go into the pond. Like mallards should do. Since the ducklings had imprinted on HIM---and that indeed made him their mother---and they saw that "she" didn't go into the pond, they weren't gonna go in either. They do what she does. And "she" don't swim.
Now he is The Old Man With The Crazy Ducks. And this ain't right!
So he takes them down to the pond and, nope, they will not go into the water on their own. So he scooped 'em up and THREW them into the water. The desperate act of a desperate man.
Before you get upset with him, let me assure you that baby ducks can indeed swim. They just have to be shown that they can. That's easy to do if you are, in fact, a mother duck.
They swam alright! Back to the bank! Like feathered torpedos! Quackin' like crazy! They clustered around his feet and shook off the water, and followed him back to the house.
Mallards also fly. I wonder how he's gonna teach that. Let's hope nature kicks in before it's time to migrate Up North. Momma Duck is gonna have a Hell of a time with that one!
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He'll never get off the ground..
I LOVE the video, thank you so much!!!!!! It restores my feelings about my fellow man when someone will go to that length to help God's creatures. I felt better watching that!
this story was put into a full-lenght movie, I can't remember the name of it -it was a very inspiring movie
ron
I think this is what you thinking of But I'm not sure. It was a great Movie. hope you like it too Slick.
That is one of the most amusing stories I have read in a long time. Thanks for the laughs.
oh my gosh, I remember my son hatched a mallard duck in his bedroom, it was loud when it came out and hatched, thought I was its mother, but it was taken to a farm shortly after birth, LOL, I cannot imagine a half a dozen of 'em following me around! how funny!
Bear Hugs!
PolarB ;)
Good to see you posting I've missed ya!
As for the dude in the skirt on the Snapper, he would have been a lot more entertaining if he had been maybe 25 years old. Instead of over fifty. I've got "over fifty" here at home. But thank goodness he keeps his drawers on! The neighbors talk about us enough as it is. Along the lines of, "crazy damn white people", and such as that.
I tellya if you don't write a book, I think you should have your blog published! In your archives are the greatest stories, cracked me up TOTALLY! and just the way you put stuff, too funny! I imagine some British person trying to tell your stories outloud with that accent of theirs, can you imagine? now that would be funny too!
I had no idea that you could publish blogs! But if I don't get off this thing I'll be writing about my divorce! Girlfriend, I will catch up to you tomorrow! Gotta catch up to my old man before the Viagra wears off!
During the late 1980s and early 1990s, Lishman openly wondered if waterfowl could be taught new migration patterns by following low-speed ultralight aircraft. In 1993, after several years of logistical and bureaucratic setbacks, Lishman successfully led a flock of Canada geese on a winter migration from Ontario, Canada to Northern Virginia. Of the sixteen birds that participated in the migration, thirteen returned to Ontario the following year - entirely on their own.
Operation Migration was co founded by Bill Lishman and Joe Duff in 1994 and registered as a charity in Canada and a nonprofit in the United States. Following the successful experiment with Canada geese, the team turned their efforts to rare and endangered species.
In 1999 Operation Migration, led by Joe Duff, was asked by the US Fish and Wildlife Service to spearhead an attempt to reintroduce whooping cranes into eastern North America. As of 2005, the team continues to lead a new generation of whooping cranes on their first migration with the goal of establishing a self sustaining flock by the year 2015.