help!!!!!!

[Duck mommy 2019]

Well, that is not good! You've most likely got hawks and owls too that can get them from the sky. Also, if you've got snapping turtles in that pond they will kill them or maybe just eat their legs which won't be pretty! Even if you build them a floating house on the pond there are otters and weasels that can swim out to them for a nice duck dinner.

You might do better to fence in an area in your yard which includes their house and get them a kiddie pool if you want to keep them safe from predators and make it easier for you to lock up at night. I don't know your pond set up but it might even be possible for you to fence in a small portion of the pond too? I have a friend that did that and it worked well for him.

we can’t fence in the pond. if we could catch them we would keep them in there coop but can’t get them

 

[Duck mommy 2019]

I live in Vermont and our ducks (Khaki Campbell) have now gone through one winter. Honestly they were happier in winter than they are when it gets really hot in summer. I'd go outside on VERY cold days (5-10 degrees) expecting they would've come closer to our house to find a spot to huddle, or gone into the very nice house we'd provided them, but they were happily splashing in what was left of their pond (much of it had frozen over). Basically we gave them lots of options of places to be warm and let their instincts do the rest - so far no one has suffered and we had a pretty cold winter last year.

In terms of predators, according to my husband who works for the Forest Service, they are likely safer in the water (assuming no snapping turtles) and I know that my ducks have been saved by having a pond several times (last winter we saw coyote tracks all around the open spot in the water, but didn't lose any birds...to that predator anyway, haha). To deter avian predators, we strung a line of neon paracord across the length of the pond. Apparently this confuses hawks/owls and they are less likely to dive there.

ours are safe for now but the pond freezes enough for birds to walk on it so they can still escape us (this is what happens in the winter) but we would not be able to walk on the pond to get them

 

[Duck mommy 2019]

So the whole pond is fenced and your ducks can go in the pond but also climb out onto the land? Is this correct?

So why do you need to catch your ducks?

Can their house just be closer to the pond inside part of this fence?

Can you post a photo of the existing setup?

If they can get in and out of the water they will be fine in winter. Ducks are incredibly cold hardy. Mine choose to sleep out in the snow most days/nights. When the weather is really terrible in winter they are smart enough to seek shelter in their house or behind a wind block. When the sun is bad in summer they are smart enough to seek shade. As long as your ducks have access to shelter and protection, they should be able to figure out how to use it when needed.

yes, the pond is fenced in with some land then (the land and pond) are surrounded by a concrete “wall” (this is so if the water were to rise (very unlikely so the ducks are safe from this) nothing would flood. the coop can’t be put into there and they are fine now but we are worried about winter

 

[PirateGirl]

yes, the pond is fenced in with some land then (the land and pond) are surrounded by a concrete “wall” (this is so if the water were to rise (very unlikely so the ducks are safe from this) nothing would flood. the coop can’t be put into there and they are fine now but we are worried about winter

Ok, so you don't need to catch your ducks now? So you don't have an emergency? What was your cry for help!!! about? In your response to me you said the pond is fenced. In your response to @DuckyDonna you said you cannot fence the pond. Right now I'm totally confused as to what your setup actually is and what you actually need help with. Why do you hypothetically need to go out on thin ice to catch your ducks if they are safe inside a fenced pond area? I think a photo would really help here and we can better advise you how to make your setup somehow safer or easier to maintain.

 

[Duck mommy 2019]

Ok, so you don't need to catch your ducks now? So you don't have an emergency? What was your cry for help!!! about? In your response to me you said the pond is fenced. In your response to @DuckyDonna you said you cannot fence the pond. Right now I'm totally confused as to what your setup actually is and what you actually need help with. Why do you hypothetically need to go out on thin ice to catch your ducks if they are safe inside a fenced pond area? I think a photo would really help here and we can better advise you how to make your setup somehow safer or easier to maintain.

the pond and land is fenced but not predator proof fencing and i can’t fence it to be safe from predators or put the coop inside the fencing. i don’t need to catch them right now but would like to catch them asap so they aren’t scared of me and so they can be safe from predators. the ice thing is that if i don’t catch them right now then i would have to wait until winter when the pond freezes into a thin layer of ice and that would be even harder to get them from and it would make them an easy target for the fox. sorry for any confusion! when i was talking to duckydonna i meant i could not fence in just a area of the pond to put their coop in or close too

 

[PirateGirl]

Got it. I'm fairly confident you will be able to catch your ducks sometime before winter. I can't say it will be easy, because when a duck doesn't want to be caught they sure make it difficult. I certainly find it easier to catch my ducks when I have the help of other people. I also find it easier in the evening. You can have a person (or a group of people) be scary with waving arms and flashlights or slapping sticks on the water on one side of the pond so that the ducks exit the pond in the direction you want them to go. Once on land you can essentially chase them in the direction you want them to go. I walk slowly with arms wide, a broomstick will make your arm-span even wider and help keep the ducks headed in the right direction. If there is a gate they need to go through, it helps to have a person near the gate waiting, very still, not moving and not being scary, and ready to close the gate the second it is needed.

 

[Duck mommy 2019]

Got it. I'm fairly confident you will be able to catch your ducks sometime before winter. I can't say it will be easy, because when a duck doesn't want to be caught they sure make it difficult. I certainly find it easier to catch my ducks when I have the help of other people. I also find it easier in the evening. You can have a person (or a group of people) be scary with waving arms and flashlights or slapping sticks on the water on one side of the pond so that the ducks exit the pond in the direction you want them to go. Once on land you can essentially chase them in the direction you want them to go. I walk slowly with arms wide, a broomstick will make your arm-span even wider and help keep the ducks headed in the right direction. If there is a gate they need to go through, it helps to have a person near the gate waiting, very still, not moving and not being scary, and ready to close the gate the second it is needed.

thank you, there is no gate since the concrete prevents them from getting to it. we have made them steps but they don’t use it bc they don’t like to leave the pond. i’m still a teenager so i have to listen to my parents and when i am able to catch just one duck they won’t let me keep it in the cage alone bc it cries which will attract coyotes and foxes as well as annoy our neighbors. so i need to catch at least 2 ducks at a time

 

[Duck mommy 2019]

Ok, so you don't need to catch your ducks now? So you don't have an emergency? What was your cry for help!!! about? In your response to me you said the pond is fenced. In your response to @DuckyDonna you said you cannot fence the pond. Right now I'm totally confused as to what your setup actually is and what you actually need help with. Why do you hypothetically need to go out on thin ice to catch your ducks if they are safe inside a fenced pond area? I think a photo would really help here and we can better advise you how to make your setup somehow safer or easier to maintain.

also, is there anyway to catch just the girl duck? she stays away from the boys and is scared of them now! there is the 4 boys and her and they tried to drown her and chase her all day

 

[PirateGirl]

The same goes for catching her. If my ducks split up it just means I have repeat the whole ordeal until I catch all of them or catch the one I need. The males are trying to mate with her, not drown her. 4 males for one female is a lot though and it will take its toll on her health.

 

[Duck mommy 2019]

The same goes for catching her. If my ducks split up it just means I have repeat the whole ordeal until I catch all of them or catch the one I need. The males are trying to mate with her, not drown her. 4 males for one female is a lot though and it will take its toll on her health.

really? they seem to just try to drown her because they attack each other too sometimes!