On Thursday, the Sweetbriar Nature Center received a call from a local post office about a delivery from California of baby ducks. The recipient was not home and was not picking up the phone, the post office said.
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Originally, there were two dozen ducklings in one box and another dozen in a second box. Sadly, only 32 ducklings survived the trip.
"I just can't believe that this is legal, and this is allowed," said Janine Bendicksen, curator and wildlife rehabilitation director at Sweetbriar Nature Center.
It is legal to ship live animals, and the U.S. Postal Service is one of a few carriers that does.
"We have been working with hatcheries for more than 100 years to safely transport mail-order chicks seamlessly. When properly packaged and labeled, these live parcels are given special handling outside of our normal automated process," the USPS said.
The ducklings were shipped from California to New York in cardboard boxes with slits and had a small cup inside.
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"(The cup) was stapled to the wall, probably had water in it, and maybe some food, I don't know, but they were empty," Bendicksen said. "There were slats in the side of the boxes, and it did say 'This end up live animals.' Would you put your child in a box and hope that the post office is going take care of these fragile creatures?"
As shocking as it might seem to ship three dozen ducklings in two small boxes, Bendicksen said she has seen this kind of thing before.
"This isn't the first time that this has happened. We just are beside ourselves," Bendicksen said. "Now, what do we do with 32 ducklings around the holidays? I mean, these things can't be outside, they need to have warmth and food, and they're very messy. We don't have the facilities to keep them here."
Although Sweetbriar Nature Center does have some farm animals, the organization usually only rescues wildlife. But when the post office had no one else to turn to, the nature center stepped up.
Now Sweetbriar Nature Center is hoping to find a new home for the ducklings, but it will be challenging Bendicksen said.
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"You don't want to just give it to someone who has no idea what they're doing, because once they grow up, these animals are going to be up for adoption again, and then it's even harder to find home," Bendicksen said.
Anyone interested in adopting the ducklings is asked to contact the nature center at 631-979-6344 or vsswbriarnc@aol.com.
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