A mother duck and her 13 ducklings wandered into Spir Candle Co. on Ballard Ave last week.
The folks at Spir, which is a candle store at Cathedral (5449 Ballard Ave N) employing young men who have been incarcerated, caught the whole thing on camera.
The ducks wandered in through the front door, and thanks to a very attentive shopkeeper, were escorted through the back door to the alley beyond.
“We made sure the garbage truck in the alley did not run them over then wished them well on their future adventure,” Spir shared on social media.
The full video is below:
It’s not the first time Ballard ducks have had a helping hand: For several years in a row, Ballard resident Nathaniel Peters helped escort a family of ducks from his apartment on NW 56th St near 20th Ave NW all the way to Salmon Bay. Peters did it so many times, he even had a name for it: the Ballard Mallard Duckling Drop.
If you see ducks walking through Ballard, allow them to walk freely, as they are likely navigating to nearby water. Keep a safe distance, do not try to herd or catch them, and report injured birds to the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife at 360-902-2936.
Photo: Still shot from Spir Candle Co. video