Help for my ducks safety

[tsumm0109]

So I did fake eggs and the raccoons took them. We have two and I don’t know what to do. Please help I’m so scared they are going to kill my ducks. We can’t keep them out of the ducks pen. They are now digging underneath the pen to try and get in. They have ripped off the wire we had on it. I’m not even sleeping at night because I have to keep going and checking on my babies. Please please help.

 

[Pyxis]

It sounds like you need to redo the duck pen to make it more predator proof. Do you have pictures you could post so we could give you ideas on how to improve it? In the meantime, it sounds like your ducks should be put into the house at night for now, to keep them safe, until you can get the pen spruced up. Perhaps you could put them in a crate in your garage or a spare bathroom for now? Or do you have a coop that's predator proof that you could lock them in at night, and just not allow them to access the pen until it's daytime?

 

[tsumm0109]

It sounds like you need to redo the duck pen to make it more predator proof. Do you have pictures you could post so we could give you ideas on how to improve it? In the meantime, it sounds like your ducks should be put into the house at night for now, to keep them safe, until you can get the pen spruced up. Perhaps you could put them in a crate in your garage or a spare bathroom for now? Or do you have a coop that's predator proof that you could lock them in at night, and just not allow them to access the pen until it's daytime?

 

[SuperDuck]

Let them come in at night. Set up a dog crate with a blanket or towel. You'll do more laundry but their safety is worth it.

 

[tsumm0109]

They are in the pen that’s inside the big pen. We put up two flood lights on the smaller pen that they sleep in. We even took and put food away from the pen so the raccoons could eat and maybe leave my Lois and Clark alone. We put out hot sauce around the outside of the big pen. We don’t feed inside the big pen anymore. Now we feed in the small pen at night and we let them out in the morning for pool time and feed them on the patio.

 

[tsumm0109]

I have this that I use when the weather gets bad or like when we had the hurricane.

 

[tsumm0109]

is it mean to do that? I was told ducks want to be outside. Is that not true? I get what your saying about keeping them safe and for a day or two would be fine but is it something they would be ok with more long term? I would be fine with them living indoors at night.

 

[SuperDuck]

My boys are afraid of the darkness and sleep indoors every night. As soon as the sun starts to go down, they start pounding on the door to come in. They sleep in our living room and watch tv every night.

They overtook our dog crate and they stay in there every night. They wouldn't know what to do with all the room your lucky birds have! Haha

 

[Pyxis]

I have this that I use when the weather gets bad or like when we had the hurricane. View attachment 1935171

That is perfect, I would bring them in there at night for now. The dog pen looks pretty sturdy. You'll want to lay down an apron of wire around it so the raccoons can't dig under, and then you'll want to put up hardware cloth on the bottom two feet so that they can't reach in, and that will make it much safer.

Here is info about an apron fence:

https://www.mypetchicken.com/backya...n-apron-fence-and-why-is-it-helpful-H282.aspx

As noted, a raccoon might lift up a bent apron fence, so if you want to do that and not a dug apron, make sure to stake it down.

 

[KaleIAm]

I agree, bring them inside until you can fully predator proof their enclosure. I would even bury hardware cloth so they would be protected on all sides.