Mangaluru: Cute and adorable as they were I decided to name a few of them as Jack, Kack, Lack, Mack, Nack, Ouack, Pack and Quack, among the 100 plus ducklings which were parading the busy streets of Mangaluru. Among the many kinds of street vendors that we have in this city, here’s a new addition- “Baby Duck Sellers”. Imagine these tiny ducklings walking quite a few kilometers all the way from Panambur to the City and back – and they do it pretty much everyday. Since these street vendors have their temporary living shelters set up near Panambur/Baikampady, they have to travel to the city to sell their ducklings.
Priced at Rs 100 for a pair, pet lovers like to buy these cute ducklings, and according to Ramachandran – the street vendor hailing from Kerala, he sells close to 50-60 ducklings a day. These ducklings are shipped from Salem, and they arrive to the city by train. When I asked him whether it was hard to control these baby ducks while they are walking on the street, he replied “Not at all. We have the knack how to handle them, and these ducklings simply follow our orders”. Ramachandran controls the moving of the ducklings with the help of a long stick with a plastic bag tied at the end of it. I was simply amazed to see how these ducklings move accordingly, controlled by their handler using that stick – When he stops, they too also make a quick stop – funny but amazing.
The way these ducklings move around in the midst of people and heavy traffic, I even asked Ramachandran where there any incidents these ducklings being run over by vehicles, he replied, “Except for couple of minor incidents, where one time three of his ducklings died when they crushed under a speeding bike near Kadri Hills, other than that the journey of the ducklings through the city streets/highway has been a smooth one’. Other than Ramachandran, there are two more street vendors who also sell these baby ducks.
I thought of buying couple of these ducklings, but on the second thought decided not to, since we have already two huge white adult ducks, and bunch of roosters at home- I didn’t wanted these ducklings getting attacked by these “feathered-monsters”. If any one of you are looking to own these pretty and cute little ducklings, look for these street vendors who are always seen around Bejai KSRTC bus stand area and along that way. And if you do business with these street vendors, tell them you learned about them through our website.