[VIDEO] Owl snags one of my ducks

[erkme73]

I suppose it'll take patience and timing. They see me coming, they head for the water. Once in the water, they stay out of reach. I'll keep working at it. I was hoping there was some kind of trick (i.e. an irresistible treat).

 

[Miss Lydia]

Ducks are naturally afraid of everything. It will take time but keep being persistent and consistent. Only feed them inside nowhere else. You are more than likely going to have to catch them somehow or herd them to shore and have someone ready to get them as they come out, keep them inside their pen for at least a week so they know this is a safe area. It takes time and patience when ducks have been traumatized poor things need that protection. I saw where someone used a long rope had one person on each side of their pond and drug the rope across the water slowly to get their ducks out then someone was there to catch them as they came out. Or if you can get enough people make a fence out into the water with an opening going into their new pen, and herd them in that way. Or use that cheap plastic fencing. Whatever you do is going to be hard on them but just keep in mind your doing this to protect them and give them a happy safe life,

 

[GranderTheGander]

Thanks for the update. I was lying awake one night worrying about your ducks.

 

[HollowOfWisps]

I'm sorry for your loss Both owls and ducks are two of my favorite animals and I'm sad that owls eat ducks. There is an owl that will often fly tree to tree when I go on my walks and these past couple of days it started showing up at my house sitting outside my kitchen window on the fence or willow tree in the back lawn. Instead of my ducks free ranging from 7am-7pm now they are only out for 5-6 hours when I'm out there with them. We also had to re-think the new duck area and are turning the duck yard into a duck aviary with overhead protection. While Mr. Owl (as my Winnie the Pooh loving kids have named him) didn't attack any of my ducks he has served as a ever looming reminder of how defenseless ducks are to ground, water and aerial predators.

Mr. Owl:

 

[Miss Lydia]

I love Owls. Just don't want them dining on my birds. Or hawks either. We even have Eagles now but have only seen them flying above the river thank goodness.

 

[erkme73]

What beautiful pictures. Thanks for posting those. It's nice to see them in daylight/full color. All of my experiences have been at night.

Incidentally, yesterday I took a long rope and several adults to corral the ducks (took several attempts) into the pen. Man, were they freaked out - shaking, shivering, even scraping their bills against the chicken wire to the point I was concerned they'd hurt themselves.

However, after adding food, and leaving them be, 24 hours later they are relaxed and enjoying the partial shade and the small portion of the pond that extends into the pen. Although, they didn't sleep at all last night.

The plan is to spoil them for the next couple of days, and then hope they return to it on their own after they're let out.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Thankfully you got them and they are beginning to relax. I'd keep them up at least a week and always put food in their pen so they have to go into eat. You could get them into a routine by shaking a can with feed or treats so they start to learn coming when can shakes and add a whistle if you do this consistently you could use this to get them in every evening. I have half acre fenced and I take a plastic coffee can with meal worms out shake that can and whistle and doesn't matter where mine are on their property they come running.
Others probably have tips too.
One thing about chicken wire. It only keeps our poultry in but nothing out. You might want to consider reinforcing.

 

[erkme73]

Thankfully you got them and they are beginning to relax. I'd keep them up at least a week and always put food in their pen so they have to go into eat. You could get them into a routine by shaking a can with feed or treats so they start to learn coming when can shakes and add a whistle if you do this consistently you could use this to get them in every evening. I have half acre fenced and I take a plastic coffee can with meal worms out shake that can and whistle and doesn't matter where mine are on their property they come running.
Others probably have tips too.
One thing about chicken wire. It only keeps our poultry in but nothing out. You might want to consider reinforcing.

All excellent suggestions. The chicken wire is just there to keep them from hopping through the cattle panel squares. The panels are very sturdy

 

[GranderTheGander]

Pom-Pom ducks are so cute! How did they breed domestics to get a pom-pom on their heads?

 

[SolarDuck]

Pom-Pom ducks are so cute! How did they breed domestics to get a pom-pom on their heads?

It's called crested and it's actually a deformity. People continue to breed this deformity even though having that crest on their head causes a variety of health issues. You should never buy a crested duck because it supports the continued breeding of them.