Let Muscovies approach on their own terms
Muscovy ducks stay calm with strangers when visitors sit at a distance and allow the ducks to wander closer by choice. Muscovies are heavy, quiet, tree-perching ducks quite unlike quacking farmyard breeds: they hiss, puff, and wag their tails to communicate, and they are generally composed birds that investigate novelty slowly. A seated visitor who stays still for a few minutes will often find a Muscovy strolling up to inspect shoes entirely voluntarily, which makes a far better visit than any attempt to herd the ducks toward the guests.
Read hissing and tail-wagging correctly
Visitors misread Muscovy language more than almost any other farm bird, so the keeper's first job is translation. A Muscovy that approaches with tail wagging side to side, head bobbing, and soft hissing is usually being sociable, greeting in its normal way. A duck that goes still, lowers its head, raises the crest of feathers on top of its head, and hisses with an open bill is asking for space, and guests should lean back and look away rather than reaching out to soothe it.
Prepare the pen and its perches beforehand
Finish feeding, water changes, and cleaning before visitors come, since Muscovies are easily put off by combined disturbances and a keeper carrying buckets through the pen scatters the birds just as guests arrive. These ducks love water for bathing, so a freshly filled shallow pool early on lets them bathe and settle before viewing; a Muscovy that has bathed and is preening on a log is in its most relaxed state.
Check the pen for the perches and low branches Muscovies use, because a startled bird flies up to them, and a rotten perch that gives way turns a small startle into an injury. Remove any visitor temptation to feed bread or snacks by hand: hand-feeding draws the whole group crowding and jostling around one person, bills snapping at fingers holding food, and ends with the boldest drake monopolising and the shy birds stressed.
Keep the visit seated, quiet, and unhurried
Muscovy visits reward patience more than any activity the keeper can arrange. Seat visitors, keep conversation low, and let at least the first minutes pass with no attempt at interaction at all. The ducks will reorganise themselves, the bold ones approaching, the shy ones settling at a comfortable range, and that self-sorting is the sign the visit is working.
If the keeper scatters the ducks' regular feed, throw it in a wide arc away from the visitors so the birds spread out feeding rather than mobbing one spot. End the session by having guests stand slowly and leave along the path they came, not by walking through the group for a final look, because a departing crowd pushing through settled ducks undoes the calm that was built.
A Muscovy that stays hidden, refuses feed for the rest of the day, or is limping or bleeding after flying into fencing in a panic needs quiet separation and prompt veterinary advice.
Repeat the seated routine until it is boring
Muscovies are creatures of strong habit and long memory, and a flock visited the same seated way each time soon treats visitors as furniture. Vary nothing important: same sitting place, same keeper doing the same tasks, same rule that ducks choose all contact. Notes on which drakes were touchy and where the flock settled best help the next keeper repeat the success.
Log the visitor-day jobs in KinsLe using Care Teams, so whoever is on Muscovy duty completes the pen checks, hosting, and feeding in the same order each time.