How’s this for a Feel Good Friday story?

A group of unlucky ducklings, who seem to have found themselves trapped on top of the roof at the Woolworths store in Franklin, have been saved by onlookers who worked together to reunite the babies with their mother.

Miki Carige witnessed the scene while shopping, and said their mama was wandering around the carpark calling out for them, while the seemingly helpless ducklings watched on from the roof above.

“Then two of the ducklings jumped on the road, in a car space, and I got a bit little concerned at that point, “she said, “I thought ‘oh no’ because they were not moving, but they sort of just got up and I picked them up,” she said.

The rescue efforts continued, and saw bystanders gather up nearby items to help catch the ducklings, while others escorted them across the road to a nearby pond to reunite them with their mother.

“That brought some of the Woolworths staff outside, and they were so great,” she said, “immediately they were trying to get someone to get a ladder, get up on the roof.”

“Some of the staff went and got us some cardboard produce boxes to catch the ducklings.”

“It was a whole operation,” Miki said.

“It took about 30 minutes but the teamwork from the community was awesome.”

Miki said the whole situation was wholesome.

“The whole community, everyone that was there, we just sort of banded together pretty quickly,” she said.

Image: Miki Carige (Facebook)

 

“We managed to get mum safely across the road to the pond, and all the ducks that were stuck on the roof were brought over to her.” Miki said, when she posted the story on social media.

Members of the Canberra Notice Board Group, where the post originated, were full of praise for the rescuers, and the staff of Franklin Woolworths.

“This has made my day!!! Thank you everyone involved,” One user wrote.

“That’s why I love our town. Great effort everyone, caring for the little and the lost,” wrote another user.

The post has reached over 1 thousand likes within the first 6 hours, gaining traction as a Feel Good Friday story.

As for the response, Miki said it just shows how proud we are of ourselves, as Canberrans.

“It’s just nice to hear some good things happening in the community,” she said.

“Canberrans generally are very friendly, very lovely people, and that story is just one example of many, of the community coming together to do something good,” Miki continued, “over something so little, like those ducklings.”

 

Image: Miki Carige (Facebook)

 

As for how the ducklings managed to get on the roof in the first place, well, it’s not uncommon for mother ducks to find a safe location (often from a considerable height) to lay her eggs.

According to experts, once hatched, the young will then build up the courage to make the jump to the ground, without injury due to all their fluff, before being escorted by their parents to nearby water and feeding areas.

So while not necessarily stuck in this case, these shy ducklings have certainly had somewhat of a VIP start to life.

Miki said while they didn’t know that at the time, she now feels at ease in hindsight.

“We were still very concerned when we released them, that they’d be alright,” she said.

“Aside from that fact, they were walking into a busy carpark on a Friday morning, regardless of whether they survive that fall they probably did need a bit of help from the community to the pond.”

Miki said she wouldn’t change anything, and as a community those involved should be proud of their work.

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