No, the unique physiology of ducks allows for hand feeding that is stress-free, non-invasive and causes no discomfort. Ducks do not have a gag reflex and have esophagi that are able to swallow large, sharp fish in the wild without pain, let alone a smooth small plastic tube.
Some activists will claim we use metal tubes to inject large amounts of food into the animal’s stomach. This is patently false. We use small plastic tubes that deposit a small amount of wet, natural food in a feeding sac at the base of the duck’s throat. Ducks are never fed more than 9 ounces of grain at a time, which is less than half the capacity of their feeding sac. If at the time of feeding, the duck has not fully digested, the feeding is skipped. More info from independent veterinarians and academic studies can be found on our Updates & News page.