Against all my expectations, a student named Brandon managed to catch the errant duckling (named Sammy, a name that can apply to both males and females) and took it this evening to rehab. There it will be dried off, warmed up (spending the night on a heating pad), get food and water, and tomorrow will be taken to an excellent rehabber.
I am of course elated. I don’t know how Brandon did it without going into the water, but I was told he used a net. The duckling is reported to be tired after all that chasing (and following putative mothers), but is otherwise in good shape.
I am of course elated. Our motto on Team Duck is “No duckling left behind”, and our record so far is perfect.
Brandon, if you get in touch with me I can confer upon you Honorary Membership in Team Duck.
Sometimes life has a happy ending.
Great news!
That is a lovely ending to a lovely story. Hope Jerry has warmed up too.
I am elated, and relieved. I admit to being a softie and was distraught over the little guy’s predicament. Darn things are so cute.
Yay Brandon!!
I am so glad that wee Sammy is safe now and that you will not be out in the ice cold pond trying to rescue the little feather ball. It ended well.
Very glad to hear this.
May all who participated in this rescue rest well tonight.
May Sammy grow to be strong and healthy!
So glad you don’t have to go back in the water.
Excellent. For everyone involved, Jerry, Brandon, and Sammy.
This is fantastic news. That honorary membership is a perfect way of showing Brandon gratitude. This stuff with the ducklings and ducks is an emotional roller coaster! It’s funny to think that those particular ducks have fans and well-wishers from all four corners of the world. I hope the little male duckling turns into a beautiful male adult and that we will hear about either his exploits or his siblings exploits for years.
Jerry- you can “rewind” the Botany Pond Cam and watch Brandon catch the duckling! I reviewed you getting stuck in the mud after you posted this morning. By the way- are you trying to catch a duck in a Drosophila net!
I didn’t know that was possible. I just watched back through, but it would appear that when Brandon caught the little guy, they were off camera. So glad the duckling will be taken care of.
Great! What’s the link and the timestamp?
Yes, a Drosophila net. I was supposed to get a larger butterfly net, but didn’t get it to later. I wasn’t able to rewind the cam.
It is a moving time stamp- counting backwards from the present time. I can only “rewind” to the last ~8 hours.
A long-poled pool skimmer could be a useful thing. Also, one can *duck-tape* a butterfly net to a long bamboo pole. We used to use these things with our large fish pond. Bless your hearts, Jerry and Brandon!
We tried that but it was to heavy to wield around a fast-moving duckling. I finally scooped it up, but the skimmer was flat and so the duckling jumped right out.
I meant to mention that, for managing the fish, I re-jigged my skimmer and stitched on some simple netting that I got from a fabric store. Yes, the pole can get heavy and unwieldy. Sometimes I used the skimmer to break up melees in the pond and rescue female goldfish that were being overwhelmed by males.
Congratulations! Earlier in the day I thought that you’d end up drowning on behalf of that duckling. Glad that no one was harmed in rescuing that lucky duck!
That’s terrific! I am so glad he will be taken care of and is safe. Great job! Always a relief to hear.
Fabulous news!
Not all heroes wear capes!
I’m glad Brandon was able to catch Sammy so quackly. I suppose that Jerry and Brandon are now Sammy’s GODfathers. Bless you both.
Fantastic news – and kudos to Brandon!
Absolutely wonderful! This news made my day, just what we all needed…thank you to Team Duck and Brandon and Prof Ceiling Cat. (I learn a lot from these posts about ducks)