OMG! My duck has been mutilated!

[coolguy221822]

I woke up to find 4 of my 5 ducks sitting outside. I let them free range, and they have never been in a coop. They have been fine all this time until today. I look around and see one of my Rouen ducks ripped apart! IT WAS ALMOST ALL BONES. I am scared now, my ducks are outside, but I don't have money to build a coop. I don't have a pic But it was all ripped apart. hat kind of animal could do this.

 

[microchick]

So people live where predators abound and show no fear of humans as they randomly decimate your livestock (and yes, chickens and ducks around us are considered livestock) to the point that they come around you in broad daylight and you let your birds free range because from what I've read it would be cruel to lock them up in a pen?

Freaking amazing, IMHO.

Bobcats and cougars that do not fear humans are not something you want around your property. Reserve or not, you do not want a wild animal not to fear you. It will eventually figure that it is okay to attack humans, pets and other livestock because it has not developed a healthy fear of humans. This is why the game wardens will destroy the predator rather than relocate it. Relocated it will just resume it's 'normal' behavior of feeding off of what ever livestock it can find.

Around us, everyone, even the Amish, have at least a 30 caliber or a shot gun sitting by every outside door of their house and they are prepared to use them if a Bobcat, cougar or other predator has the bad sense to go after any of their live stock. Not keeping your birds, sheep, cattle, horses, or what ever you have safe from harm is like taking a toddler out of a play pen and letting it play unsupervised next to a busy freeway.

We have a two story coop that has cost us the whole sum of 25 dollars, that amount being in hardware and nails. It is otherwise 100% repurposed material that we had on hand from other building projects. We built it off the ground, no chance of anything digging in, surrounded it with kennel panels and hot wired the run to keep predators out.

I would much rather spend money to build a cheap coop out of pallets and whatever I can find laying around to keep my birds safe and keep them penned up than suffer the horror (not to mention the terror and pain the animal suffers in an attack) of finding one of our flock torn to pieces by a predator.

Sorry for the rant and if I stepped on anyone's toes, but this kind of stuff just ruffles my feathers the wrong way.

 

[Tinque]

I am very sorry you experienced this.
I will completely agree that it is rather easy to go to Craig's List and get whatever you need. Post a wanted post. People will quickly reply and your babies will be in a safe place. The predator will be back. It is the cycle of life..
Pallet's and Dog houses as mentioned will work great.
Post a sign at your local feed store for help. There are lots of people that will be there for you. I would in a second if I was a bit closer.. Good Luck

 

[Duckchick2011]

I just wanted to say something. EVERYONE has such strong opinions and many of them valid but each of us need to realize that EVERYONE has different values and different ways of doing things. No one should judge another person's way of doing anything.

Neglect is one thing, that is definitely wrong, but there is no "right" way to do things. People have been raising animals for thousands of years. Free range, no free range. Rifle, no rifle. The animals living out in the woods have ways of protecting themselves, any of them would gladly kill a predator to protect their little ones and themselves. Those humans who choose not to kill, should not be judged, but then neither should those who choose too. In a sense, killing predators is just "natural" but I'm not going to put someone down because they believe in non violent solutions.

Those who free range, have their reasons. Those who do not, have their reasons. Everyone does and thinks differently. That is what makes people so wonderful.

We should stop jumping on others just because they do things and think differently. Seeing that we all raise animals, we have all lost animals before, through one thing or another.

I'm not going to argue one side or the other, but lets all realize that no individual "knows everything". You can be wrong, I can be wrong. So lets all just do things the best we can without condemning one persons way of doing something. Approach things with the mindset, "Hey, I don't know everything, this person may know something I don't. This person's situation may be different."

I don't know, I just hate to see so much conflict.

This is not a rant, simply an observation.


Oh and, good morning! Glad to hear about the eggs! YES, EAT THEM, they are delicious

 

[jducour]

Please don't post a picture.

A lot of people are able to put together a decent coop with mostly found materials. My coop looks really nice, but it is 80% recycled free wood. Here's the problem - whatever took your ducks life will most likely come back. It found a free duck buffet, and he wants to take advantage of it until they are all gone. You need to find a temporary solution until a more permanent one can be found. Can they be stored overnight in a garage or shed for the time being? If they were mine, I would bring them in to the basement if I didn't have a shed or garage.

 

[Duckchick2011]

It was weird, because there was no blood! All the flesh was stripped of its bones. I will take action with the ducks before night. I have noticed that the ducks have been spooked by a lot of things before. What so you think killed it. Sorry, I cant get a pic.

A vulture will eat coagulated blood...I'm pretty sure a raccoon would lick up blood...you might be dealing with a predator attack and then scavengers too. Big animal would have carried it somewhere private. Birds of prey normally feed right where they are and are very capable of stripping away flesh...

Do you know at what time the attack occurred? Night, morning, twilight, middle of the day??? When did you last see your duck alive?

You could always have a stake out..or if you have a game camera you could set that up. You should also research what sort of predators are in your area.

But at the end of the day, what is was, isn't so important as, how to protect your ducks.

 

[Duckchick2011]

If it was a coyote it would have carried it away...a clean carcass put's me in mind of some kind of bird of prey.

You could try saving up and building a lean too at least. It doesn't have to be fancy, just enough to give them some over head cover when they need it. ...an old dog house with hay inside would work just as well.

 

[JadeComputerGal]

I agree with the others that this was probably some type of raptor. An animal that is able to carry the duck away, e.g., a dog, will typically take it away. You also wouldn't normally see the type of thing you describe with a mammal, whereas raptors will be able to pick the bones completely clean because they have sharp beaks. If you have a pic or can get one, you can PM it to me.

May I ask how long it had been since you had seen the duck? Was it just the night before? It is possible to have multiple predator attacks that cloud the diagnosis. For instance, you could have an owl that killed the duck, but owls will typically take only the head. Once the animal is dead, raptors that feed on carrion, e.g., vultures, come and finish the job. They can pick a bird like a Rouen clean in a matter of minutes.

What I'm about to say isn't meant to be unkind. It's only to impress upon you how horrible this is. Please take a couple of minutes to imagine in your mind what the duck was subjected to when it was killed. Since you cared enough to post about this, I know you're not going to want any of your other ducks to be subject to such a horrible, agonizing death. If you want to keep them safe, you have to find some way to get them into some sort of shelter during nighttime hours. Even your screened porch is preferable to nothing while you're working on a long-term solution. Poop is an issue with any living thing, but poop can be cleaned up.

 

[JadeComputerGal]

I am very sorry you experienced this.
I will completely agree that it is rather easy to go to Craig's List and get whatever you need. Post a wanted post. People will quickly reply and your babies will be in a safe place. The predator will be back. It is the cycle of life..
Pallet's and Dog houses as mentioned will work great.
Post a sign at your local feed store for help. There are lots of people that will be there for you. I would in a second if I was a bit closer.. Good Luck

That is a great suggestion, Tinque! I would never have even thought of posting something at local farm or pet stores! That is great!

 

[coolguy221822]

It sounds like a raptor, which could mean many breeds of large predatory birds. I don't know what's in your region, but I don't think it was a mammal unless it was a multiple predator attack, which is always possible. How long had it been since you'd seen the drake?

@Tinque had a great suggestion that never would have crossed my mind. Maybe if you don't have the means or time to build a shelter, people at a local farm or feed store would be willing to donate materials.

I Saw him last night. I'm gonna posta papper at my feed store.