Daughter’s Pekin Duck Killed (Need help identifying what could have done this)

[R1Peacock]

First post — greatly appreciate assistance so we can prevent this from happening again. After asking us for years, my wife and I got our daughter 2 Pekin Ducks approximately 18 months ago. We have a secure coop that I built and each day we let the ducks out to forage and play in the yard. Our property is 3+ acres and is partially wooded. We are in the yard with the ducks or our Beagle is walking around the yard normally within 20-50 feet of the ducks.

Last week I stepped into the house for a few minutes to take a conference call. After 15 minutes I looked out the window before going back outside. I saw one of the ducks alone in the yard with our dog. I immediately was alarmed because the ducks were always no more than a few feet apart at all times. When the one duck saw me it ran in my direction quacking and calling repeatedly. I looked around the yard and found the other duck deceased a few feet within the woods. She was intact - but had a fist size hole in her back. I didn’t really look but I’m sure some of her organs had been eaten.

We live in the country so I’m sure there is a large list of possibilities. From the looks of the spot I found her it appeared to be the location where she was possibly chased and attacked. It was the middle of the day so that narrows the list of potential predators. So what do you think killed her (Hawk, Owl, Weasel)? Our daughter is totally devastated and we want to try to understand what happened. – Thank You.

 

[nuthatched]

Sounds like a raptor, sorry for your loss.

 

[Geena]

Sorry about your duck. The only predators I know of that actually prefer to eat the entrails are skunks and opossums. But it's quite odd that anything would go in through the back. Did your beagle do any tracking around the kill site?

 

[R1Peacock]

My Beagle is on an electric fence and can’t go into the woods so no tracking. We have game cameras in the woods (mostly for watching the deer) and we seldom get raccoons, barn cats, fox and possums at night in the area. There has been a couple small Barred Owls in the woods in recent months and I might see Hawk near the house a couple times a year. The day after the duck was killed we found a freshly killed rabbit with its back eaten out in a section of trees on the opposite side of the yard. Both the duck and rabbit was otherwise intact and there were no visible injuries to the neck. Whatever killed the duck appears to have come from above and sat atop of her opening up her back and eating organs.

My daughter is a bit freaked out having the other duck out of the pen. We have a couple ducks coming next week as companions. I know living in the country and having somewhat free range ducks you can expect incidents to happen.

Greatly appreciate everyone’s help. — thank you….

 

[Folly's place]

So sorry!
Keep your birds in their safe space until this is resolved, or at least until a few weeks have passed. Set up your game camera so you can see what's coming near your yard too.
Electric fencing works well against ground predators, but not raptors.
A raptor does sound likely, and often it will move on in a few weeks if the birds are unavailable. And people on this site have had hawks make kills within a few feet of them!
Your beagle might also be at risk here, especially if she's small!
Mary

 

[Geena]

I see you are from MD as well. I've had a few hawk and owl kills and they have always just stripped off some neck and breast meat, leaving the rest. But of course not all animals act the same and maybe an immature raptor or one with a taste for organ meat. If you find another carcass set your game cam up on it, predators will often return to the kill site the next day. I'm very curious as to what it might be.

 

[R1Peacock]

I’m leaning towards a hawk being the culprit. Since my daughter’s girl duck was killed I’ve seen hawks flying over my property several times a day - way more than previously. I have several farms around me and a couple homeowners within 1/4 of a mile that have free range chickens on their property. Earlier this week several hawks were swooping down trying to get chickens at a neighbors house down the road from us.

We have since added a pair of ducklings that are about 3 weeks old today. I was just walking with them in my yard with the surviving adult male duck and I heard a hawk. It sat nearly motionless in the wind currents about 200 feet above directly overtop our position for nearly a minute before drifting off down the valley. The ducklings stay in the garage and will not be going into the pen with the boy duck until they reach about 10-12 weeks old. Thus far the boy duck has been receptive to the ducklings.

I don’t think my daughter will let the ducks out of the pen in the future unless she stays with them in the yard. Definitely a learning experience. Our Beagle isn’t much bigger than an adult Pekin Duck and we have never worried about her in the yard. I’m thinking our Beagle can defend herself much better than a duck though given she also weighs about 20 pounds.

Thanks to everyone that replied.