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Photography by Jodi Hertz
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Elliott, 7, has a double brace of ducks: Delany, Delilah, Daphne, and Dixie. “Do the names all start with D because of what they are?” the intrepid reporter wonders. “Yeah,” Elliott nonchalantly responds. There were two other ducks, but now they’re gone. “They were outside, and they were eaten by raccoons,” he says. No fear now; the ducks have dwellings in the cellar. They eat the bugs in the garden and contribute eggs to the household. “That’s why we got the ducks,” Elliott says. “[The eggs] are very good. They’re about the same as chicken eggs.” Here, Elliott, who also owns a miniature dachshund named Lola, is holding Daphne. It’s a rare sight. “My dad caught her and my mom was right next to me,” he says. “You can pet them all, but it’s hard, because it’s hard to catch them.” Elliott feeds the ducks by scattering food on the ground. “She won’t eat out of our hands,” he says. And does she bite? “Sometimes. I don’t think it hurts that much.” And have Delany, Delilah, Daphne, or Dixie gone to show and tell in his first-grade class? “No,” he says. Will they? “No.”
RUNNERS-UP
PJ gives Cash a smooch. Louie looks down at his best friend, Luna. Baby James studies Wilson.
