Went out to do the evening feeding and water refill and found a dead duckling. Best we can figure is a snake got into the brooder, because of carelessness on my part, and killed one of my baby ducks. She was about 3 weeks old and the calmest one of them all. Her head, starting with her beak, all the way down to her shoulders was wet, slimy, I really don't know what you would call it. I guess it figured out she was too big to eat and let her go. But it was too late. It had already smoothered her. Cried, got mad and now kicking myself in the butt! My brooder is a 5x5 box that sits on a concrete slab. We have another box joined to this one that is approx. 10x4 with a small ramp so they can travel between the two. Their bedding, heat lamp, food and drinking water is on the 5x5 side and their "run" contained their swimming bowl and it gave them room to run and play. I had a problem with the water not draining out when I sprayed the box out while cleaning so my honey put me a drain hole in one end with a plug. Well dummy me forgot to put the plug back in this morning after cleaning. One simple mistake cost me one of my babies.
I really don't understand what this snakes thinking was. I had 3 ducks and 15 chicks, all about the same age, in the brooder together and he had to get my favorite duck! We did lose a chick also, I'm assuming because of panic, it had gotten into the ducks swimming bowl and obviously drowned. Atleast that is what I'm thinking happened. With the chick being wet, I couldn't tell about any other marks. But wouldn't it be able to eat the chick? It was a Buff Cochin, and not very big at all.
I really don't understand what this snakes thinking was. I had 3 ducks and 15 chicks, all about the same age, in the brooder together and he had to get my favorite duck! We did lose a chick also, I'm assuming because of panic, it had gotten into the ducks swimming bowl and obviously drowned. Atleast that is what I'm thinking happened. With the chick being wet, I couldn't tell about any other marks. But wouldn't it be able to eat the chick? It was a Buff Cochin, and not very big at all.
