You’re not imagining things — thousands of rubber ducks have taken over Pike Street in downtown Canonsburg.
And a local candy shop is taking the blame.
Grandpa Joe’s Candy Shop, a 19-store chain with a location on Pike Street, placed 2,000 small rubber ducks around the Washington County borough on Sept. 29, according to a statement from shop owner Christopher Beers.
The candy shop, which has a location in Pittsburgh’s Strip District, doubled down by upping its prank to 2,000 medium-sized ducks on Oct. 2 and 600 large ducks on Monday.
On Thursday, Grandpa Joe’s placed 14-foot-tall inflatable ducks on the rooftops of downtown Canonsburg businesses — 10 of them, to be exact — and identified itself as the “serial ducker.”
“We love a good surprise — and we love Canonsburg,” Beers said. “The ducks are our fun, lighthearted way to spark smiles, bring people downtown and remind everyone that shopping and spending time in the heart of Canonsburg is the place to be.”
Residents and business owners took to social media, sharing reactions to the yellow-feathered phenomenon.
Canonsburg United Presbyterian Church called it a “full-on ducky takeover.”
West Pike Street’s L&M Flower Shop documented the progression of the prank, sharing photos of the small rubber ducks and recent inflatables.
Beers founded Grandpa Joe’s in 2012. Since then, he has opened locations throughout Pennsylvania, Ohio, Florida, West Virginia and Minnesota.
