Just been through this with a week old gosling. I was devastated as our dog had been so attentive. I asked my DH more detail and he said she was mothering it when he found her with the body. She had got both of them through the end of the crate I had put them out in for the first time! Certainly the injuries on the remaining gosling look like mothering. Goslings skins just cannot take the onslaught as well as pups. Hugs sent your way. It sucks. It took me 2 days to even acknowledge my dog...and now she has no right to be anywhere near the remaining one, so she knows it is mine.
I am so sorry to hear about your runner. I know it is hard to go through. I had 12 EE chicks in the brooder in my bedroom once, I always kept the brooder in there away from all the traffic and noise, till one day my daughter (3 yo) walked out of the bedroom with a bottle of febreeze looking very guilty. She knows better than to bother the babies! I ran into the room to find the brooder box SOAKED with febreeze along with all but one or two chicks. I tried to save them but all but 6 died. I cried so much! I loved my little chickies! I had wated EEs for so long. I kept asking her why! WHY! She said and I quote "they stunk" sorta funny now and I feel guilty saying it but I couldnt even look at my 3 year old for two days with out giving her the stink eye. She didnt mean to hurt them anymore than your dog meant to hurt your runner. Sometimes we do things we dont mean to do. I am sure my dog has killed a bird once or twice that I cant remember the exact time right now but my daughter febreezing my stinky EEs is the most memorable thing to me. I am lucky I have a bird dog (he isnt trained but he thinks he is) and he usually doesnt hurt the birds he catches. He has killed a quail or two that got him in DEEP DOO DOO but he knows when he can and cant catch a bird (youd tell your dog to catch a bobwhite that was flying away if you were me too havent lost one yet thanks to him) I know it is hard to lose a bird baby. I just lost a baby bob tonight, stupid hens cracked the egg a few days before hatch, he made it halfway through zip and I helped him out but the crazk caused a second aircell to form and he just didnt make it past a couple of hours. He was my first bob of the year.
Remember your dog loves you and didnt mean to hurt you. Dont hate him for something that was not done out of malice or hate. He was just being a dog. A stupid dog. But a dog. I feel for you darlin' I hope you can get another duck. Do a nice little funeral for your runner and try to remember all the good things you loved about it.
Are you sure it was the dog? even if it was i agree with the others it's just a dog being a dog, my dogs are all raised with other animals so are my horses but i make no mistake i don't allow the dogs in with the horses, i don't leave the rabbits loose with the dogs and the dogs and the ducks may adore each other through the fencing(there housed right beside my dog yard) but i won't chance them being together.. the dogs can be rough and unintentionally kill one of them just like the horses could kick and kill a dog.
You can't be sure it was your dog unless you caught him in the act. Just because he had blood on him doesn't mean he did it. He could have picked up your Runner after the fact. We accused our Plott Hound, a hunting dog, as killing one of our ducks because he had the evidence in his mouth. We found out it wasn't him but our Australian Shephard, a herding dog, that killed the duck. Unfortunately, she was doing what she was bred to do, herding. We caught her in the act of herding our chickens around, and though she wouldn't intentionally kill them she could by accident. Our hound is out with the poultry all day, and could care less about them. The Aussie has to be monitored, and is not allowed out if the chickens and ducks are free ranging.
Even though Mia, the Australian Shephard, killed the duck we still love her. She is one of the most obedient dogs we have. So, before you condemn your dog you need to know for sure, without a doubt, that it was him.
We were extremely sad when our duck died. I know how you are feeling, and I pray that you will feel better soon.
I'm sure that it was her she is a bird dog she is always trying to get at them. i was holding my Khaki Campbell on my lap and the dog came over looking all sweet and cute and snapped at her head and just about got her almost, i was very upset with her i wasn't able to look at her for a week or too and i just about hate her now i can't look at her without crying, im sure it was her we dont have any other animals around the house she keeps them away, i fell bad for my other ducks the most they loved her (if its even possible for a duck to love another duck) they looked at her like they wanted her to get up or something it was so sad. well thanks you guys are so supportive thanks again.
Blaming the dog is placing the blame in the wrong place. The blame belongs to the person who left the duck and the dog unsupervised in the yard together.