The Duck Sanctuary in Winchester is making sure ducklings rescued recently from a Walmart parking lot in Orange County are getting the care they need.
When 350 duck eggs, intended to be eaten as a delicacy, unexpectedly started hatching after a shipment delay, they were abandoned in the parking lot. That’s when the Duck Sanctuary stepped in and rescued 130 of the surviving hatchlings.
Today, all but 15 of the baby ducks are living in volunteer foster homes where they will remain until they reach 6- to 8-weeks-old.
The ducklings require specialized care for the first two months and that is why they go to foster homes that can give them that care, keeping them indoors, according to Howard Berkowitz, founder of The Duck Sanctuary in the Riverside County community.
After 6 to 8 weeks the ducklings will be returned to the Duck Sanctuary where they will be available to be adopted as pets to individuals only, not to farms.
The eggs were picked up by volunteers from the parking lot in Brea on July 20, after a woman in possession of about 300 so-called “balut eggs” contacted The Duck Sanctuary, Berkowitz said. The eggs are considered a delicacy in some cultures. Balut eggs are duck eggs incubated almost to the point of hatching and then boiled and eaten.
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Berkowitz is a biochemist who founded the sanctuary 10 years ago. He’s had to move locations a few times due to complaints from neighbors. The Winchester location also is temporary; Berkowitz told CNS earlier this month, he’s trying to raise the funds to buy a 20-acre property in Aguanga.
The sanctuary, which rescues abandoned ducks and geese, has six regular volunteers and another three staff members.
Donations can be made at theducksanctuary.com.
City News Service contributed to this report.
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