Never kick a duckling when mama is close.

I have an on line friend, Rose Dutra Duncan. She has blogged here on Steemit about a new duck that just hasn't adapted to the new home. I laughed as I read her blog. I remember a duck. She was also aMuscovy. I was visiting a friend at his farm. He raised chickens turkeys ducks and barn cats. The ducks were in a shed that was open because they wouldn't stay anywhere near the pen. Not a problem. There was room and the ducks kept the insects down around the stored grain. The cats kept the mice under control and ignored the ducks. They knew better. That brings me to the story. I was sitting on a pick nick table talking with my friend and watching a rooster prance about the yard. The hens were in a fenced area next to the chicken house but the fence was just a formality. Everybody inside would get out if they wanted. Next best thing to free range. The rooster was accosting the girls and they had all turned on him chasing him out. He wasn't going to have any of that and went over to one of the duck nests just inside the shed door. Several one week old ducklings were trying to eat the grain that was set out in a pan. The rooster kicked them out of the pan and started eating and the little ones started squawking in fear for mama. Mamma was about 30 feet away and immediately went into action. She stretched her head up and spotted the rooster. What happened next I can only discribe as "Locked and Loaded" Her head went straight out front. Her body went level and her legs and feet were positioned like the big pushing wheels on a 1890's steam locamotive. Muscovy's don't quack. They hiss. And boy howdy did she hiss. She started running in the steam engine position hissing like she had a boiler full and the pressure was moving those legs that kept getting faster as she got closer to the rooster who hurt her babies. The rooster never saw her coming. He did feel her when she hit him full force and knocked him arse over tea cup from the pan making him bounce off the stacked 50 pound chicken feed bags. The explosion was EPIC!!!! I almost expected to see an outline of the rooster in feathers as he ran away from the duck. Well.... he tried to run away from the duck. Mama was on him still hissing as she chased him through the shed around the outside into the equipment barn and out again around the chicken brooder building past the pick nick table where we were sitting with our legs raised to avoid the mayhem before he finally got close enough to fly over the fence to run into the chicken house. Whew! I am exhausted just remembering it. Mama paced around the outside of the chicken house hissing and flying up against the fence to let him know she was still waiting outside. My sides were sore for three days from the laughing and trying to not fall off the pick nick table. The ducklings were unhurt and had resumed eating as soon as the ruckus was away from them. Mama finally left the chicken house after a good 20 minutes and went to see her babies. I was there for another 3 hours and the rooster didn't so much as peek his beak out the door or make a noise. He learned the hard way to never kick a duckling. Especially if mama is around.