but one is still hanging on.
Last night 2 of the neighbor's pitbulls got out of their yard and broke into my duck pen, and killed all (but 1 so far) of my ducks.
The pen was secured with hardware cloth on the bottom, top and all sides. Half of the roof (4 ft high) was solid, half hardware cloth. One of the dogs climbed on top of the pen, and broke through the wire on top (from her weight). The ducks had no chance. She just made the rounds and killed them all. 4 survived the initial attack; 1 died within 30 minutes, 1 died this morning in my husband's arms, and the third one died a few minutes ago. I took the remaining two to the vet this morning, but since she does not treat birds, she told us to take them home, keep them warm, treat their wounds (2 punctures) with Neosporin and give them electrolytes. I did all that, but the one must have had more serious injuries than we thought, or died from shock. The remaining duck has one small puncture wound and scrapes, but is eating, drinking and walking (although a little wobbly). I think she will make it if she does not get an infection. I have her on electrolytes, antibiotics, and am putting Neosporin on her wounds.
I am devastated. They were a mix of Khaki Campbells and Welsh Harlequins; the oldest ones I got in May, and had just started laying a month ago. The newer ones I got in August, and all were very friendly and tame; would follow me around the yard. We just finished building them a duck pond.
If I would have had a gun, I would have shot both dogs on the spot. We called animal control, and after much arguing, they finally picked them up. We spoke to the neighbor this morning, who says his house was burglarized last night, and the gate was broken. I saw no evidence of that, nor have the police been around. This is not the first time they have escaped. He has offered to pay for the ducks, but it does not make it better.
I am not even sure I want to get more ducks - this is just too hard. The only problem is I have this one poor lone duck. I can't even think of what to do right now. Should I get ducklings and hope she will bond to them, or get some adult ducks?
I will think about it tomorrow. Today, it's just too much.
Last night 2 of the neighbor's pitbulls got out of their yard and broke into my duck pen, and killed all (but 1 so far) of my ducks.
The pen was secured with hardware cloth on the bottom, top and all sides. Half of the roof (4 ft high) was solid, half hardware cloth. One of the dogs climbed on top of the pen, and broke through the wire on top (from her weight). The ducks had no chance. She just made the rounds and killed them all. 4 survived the initial attack; 1 died within 30 minutes, 1 died this morning in my husband's arms, and the third one died a few minutes ago. I took the remaining two to the vet this morning, but since she does not treat birds, she told us to take them home, keep them warm, treat their wounds (2 punctures) with Neosporin and give them electrolytes. I did all that, but the one must have had more serious injuries than we thought, or died from shock. The remaining duck has one small puncture wound and scrapes, but is eating, drinking and walking (although a little wobbly). I think she will make it if she does not get an infection. I have her on electrolytes, antibiotics, and am putting Neosporin on her wounds.
I am devastated. They were a mix of Khaki Campbells and Welsh Harlequins; the oldest ones I got in May, and had just started laying a month ago. The newer ones I got in August, and all were very friendly and tame; would follow me around the yard. We just finished building them a duck pond.
If I would have had a gun, I would have shot both dogs on the spot. We called animal control, and after much arguing, they finally picked them up. We spoke to the neighbor this morning, who says his house was burglarized last night, and the gate was broken. I saw no evidence of that, nor have the police been around. This is not the first time they have escaped. He has offered to pay for the ducks, but it does not make it better.
I am not even sure I want to get more ducks - this is just too hard. The only problem is I have this one poor lone duck. I can't even think of what to do right now. Should I get ducklings and hope she will bond to them, or get some adult ducks?
I will think about it tomorrow. Today, it's just too much.
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