How do I give away all these unwanted ducks?!

[HoustonChicks]

We love animals. I have lots of chickens. But we have been invaded by unwanted ducks. New neighbors moved in several years ago with ducks. They flew over the fence to my property next door and started having ducklings. There's nothing cuter than a bunch of ducklings! But now there's about 40 huge ducks and they have flown over into MY yard and are raising the next generation. The water is muddy, my car is poopy, they fly onto the rooftop, the feed bill is very high. I try to find the nests when the eggs are fresh, but they hide them and the next thing, here come more adorable babies that are huge in a year. The worst part is that my lawns are totally gone, yep, bare ground where there used to be grass. Parks won't accept them; we've tried. My feedstore always has plenty of its own from the hatchery. The final obstacle is that my husband has emphatically decreed that no ducks may be given away if it is to be killed and eaten. So, can anyone give me advice on a source that will take these off my hands? I live in Houston. Craigslist, maybe? These males are huge and are not easy to handle when caught. I'm not sure of the breed; they are white or black and white, some red on the bill like a Muscovy, but the main thing is that they don't quack, they sort of hiss except a female will chirp for her ducklings. If someone wants free ducks, how do we catch them? Best at night? I've tried to get my husband to agree to only keep the females, but he has his "favorite" males, and this Spring's eggs will already be fertile. Any advice is welcome.

 

[lomine]

I'm a little confused as to who these ducks belong to. If these are the neighbor's ducks, it is his responsibility to keep them out of your yard. Even if you get rid of all the ones in your yard and he still has some you may have more come over. If you haven't done so already, I suggest you talk to your neighbor about it.

It does sound like they are Muscovy considering how prolifically they are brooding and raising ducklings. If you don't want more ducklings you have to get rid of all the males or keep them completely separated. The more you pick up their eggs the better they will get at hiding them, unless you confine they to a pen where you can easily pick up the eggs.

You can definitely post the ducks on Craigslist. I'm not sure how much interest you will get if you say they are not for food. Even if you find someone who says they won't be eaten you can't control that after they have left your yard. Forty ducks is a lot to get rid of so your husband may need to reconsider his stance on this. One of those ducks could provide a good meal for a needy family.

Good luck.

 

[caesargirl]

Call animal control. They will also speak to your neighbor. (Perhaps that will prevent an uncomfortable conflict). This will also help you establish the legalities of this situation. Unfortunately, your husband having favorites, especially males, means more babies. In some situations if you are caring for any of them, this can cause legal issues if they become sick or injured and are not treated. You need to have clear lines. Yours or theirs. But, contacting animal control or the ASPCA will help you establish a legal plan of action. Remember, if you feed or help these animals, you may be held legally responsible. Also, selling or rehoming them may cause issues. Good luck.

 

[AxolotlLove]

I want! I'll take all 40! Your lucky I've got a 60 acre pond and a huge pen for mine. Unfortunately, I can't have them

 

[HoustonChicks]

I'm sure the "original" duck owners would say that only the originals belonged to them. They would not claim the ones that are grown from the several generations that have come from just those few. You're right, if my birds got into their yard, I'd have a wing-cutting party. These ducks are so strong, I thought I was going to break my wrist when I grabbed hold of one while it was mating and it flipped around.

 

[lomine]

You should talk to the neighbor before you do anything, since it sounds like you haven't. The last thing you want is for him to come to you after you have gotten rid of the ducks and accuse you of stealing. He is definitely in the wrong for allowing them to get out of his yard but that doesn't automatically make the ducks your property. If you can document that you tried your best to get him to take responsibility it will be better for you in the long run. A sort of cover your own back kind of thing.

Please, please don't release them on a pond. You have already seen what a small population can do. They will wreak havoc on the local ecosystem. Even if they didn't you would be subjecting them to any number of predators, possible starvation, and likely many horrible deaths. Not to mention you would probably be breaking some laws.

 

[AxolotlLove]

What I meant by saying putting them on a pond was finding someone who owns a big pond (like us, we take all unwanted ducks around here and have a big pen and feed them and they're penned up in winter) and ask them if they could live there

 

[HoustonChicks]

Buck Oakes, I imagine the swimming pool neighbors wern't very happy to have ducks in their pool. Decorative, but not so sanitary. I posted in the "Where Are You" section and it'd be Heaven if someone with a big trailer could take these ducks to a pond. Yesterday when I pulled into the yard, a big duck hit the top of my car and promptly pooped down the side windows. Also, we have a small in-ground fish pond that had koi fish in it. Fish were beautiful, about 5 years old. Ducks naturally went over the stiff wire covering to sit in the water. The chemistry of the duck poop in the water resulted in all the koi dying.

 

[tmorgan46]

I think you've taken the correct first step - posting here! Besides CL, I'd suggest posting in the Social forum of "Where I am, where are you" (or something to that affect, I may be off on the correct title.) The forum is broken down by state and there is also an area where you can post trades and such (I haven't been there but remember reading a post or two about it). My wife and I added ten Muscovies to our small flock just a couple months ago through a very similar situation. They've integrated quite well and we couldn't be happier!! I still owe photos of some of our new cuties and haven't forgotten, but with all the rotten weather we've had the past few weeks I just haven't found a good photo day. Anyhow, a couple of ideas I hope will help.

Troy & Tina

 

[Buck Oakes]

We love animals. I have lots of chickens. But we have been invaded by unwanted ducks. New neighbors moved in several years ago with ducks. They flew over the fence to my property next door and started having ducklings. There's nothing cuter than a bunch of ducklings! But now there's about 40 huge ducks and they have flown over into MY yard and are raising the next generation. The water is muddy, my car is poopy, they fly onto the rooftop, the feed bill is very high. I try to find the nests when the eggs are fresh, but they hide them and the next thing, here come more adorable babies that are huge in a year. The worst part is that my lawns are totally gone, yep, bare ground where there used to be grass. Parks won't accept them; we've tried. My feedstore always has plenty of its own from the hatchery. The final obstacle is that my husband has emphatically decreed that no ducks may be given away if it is to be killed and eaten. So, can anyone give me advice on a source that will take these off my hands? I live in Houston. Craigslist, maybe? These males are huge and are not easy to handle when caught. I'm not sure of the breed; they are white or black and white, some red on the bill like a Muscovy, but the main thing is that they don't quack, they sort of hiss except a female will chirp for her ducklings. If someone wants free ducks, how do we catch them? Best at night? I've tried to get my husband to agree to only keep the females, but he has his "favorite" males, and this Spring's eggs will already be fertile. Any advice is welcome.

they're muscovy ducks, u need to tell their rightful owners to clip their wings, and become more responsible with their pets