My ducks got eaten last night..so upset!

[maralynn28]

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I tried this thinking when my ducks got eaten...didn't help me much considering it was my beautiful beloved Welsh Harlequins (my daughter had planned to show them at the county fair this spring) that ended up being my "trial" flock.

Oh well, can't change the past and my egg production flock will be safe now.

So sorry to hear, I agree on the not beating yourself up. I had deep feelings of guilt but apparently this is not all that uncommon and you can't fault yourself. I'm sure you are sad for your lost duckies but focus on the thought of hatching their babies might be the bit of cheer you need.

 

[DuckLover9138]

Quote:
I tried this thinking when my ducks got eaten...didn't help me much considering it was my beautiful beloved Welsh Harlequins (my daughter had planned to show them at the county fair this spring) that ended up being my "trial" flock.

Oh well, can't change the past and my egg production flock will be safe now.

So sorry to hear, I agree on the not beating yourself up. I had deep feelings of guilt but apparently this is not all that uncommon and you can't fault yourself. I'm sure you are sad for your lost duckies but focus on the thought of hatching their babies might be the bit of cheer you need.

Yeah, it is sad. I love animals, but I have to balance it with the real world. I try to stay vegetarian as much as possible because it is hypocritical for a healthy adult to love animals and eat them a few hours later. Then again, when we try to do the impossible, we often lose the opportunity to do what is possible. I dont plan to send myself to the hospital soon for not eating any meat. Factory and wild caught conditions are usually horrible. The only real exception is science because it can do a lot of good for a long time.

 

[FenDruadin]

I can SO identify. I lost two out of my original flock to a domestic dog, then I lost the entire flock overnight on Thanksgiving of all things, to a fox that pushed open their pen and ate or dragged off all but one--seven ducks in one night! Then I fixed things so they were more secure, and bought companions for my remaining lonely duck, and one night forgot to put them up and lost the two new ducks. I really seriously considered selling my remaining lonely duck because I felt so terrible and thought I would never be a good duck mom. But my dad came for a visit and ordered ten new birds (including some geese, lol) for me, and that flock is still alive and well (except one goose who died defending his flock against the neighbor's pit bulls who got loose while my birds were free ranging).

I am so glad I stuck with it. I learned from my mistakes and know a lot about protecting my flock now. People kind of laugh at me when they come over and see my set up--the chain link, the extra reinforcing hardware wire around the bottom, the electric wire around the outside, the wire over the top (and then I tell them there's wire under the mulch on the bottom too), the lock on the gate... they laugh until I tell them my experiences.

I'm so sorry for your loss. It's never easy. I hope you'll decide to try again, and fix the issues that led to your losses, and be kind to yourself.

Good luck!

 

[cdnley]

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Its a terrible feeling to be responsible for these feathered friends and somehow fail them. I too considered cancelling my new duck/goose order because I can't bear to go though this again! I was already paranoid..and checked on them day and night...worried they would succumb to the same fate as their brothers, and my nightmare came true! The pond is now empty which makes me feel pretty sad (
I have learned that I must train them from the get go to go into their pens every night. I will vigilantly feed them in their pens so they get used to going in them at certain times so I can lock them up for the night and the winter. If they do not go into their coop at night I will lock it up so they will be forced to sleep in the pond or on the shoreline so they can swim to safety if need be.

I will make a nice coop that will serve as their secure area. Their outdoor area will have a pallet bottom and a chicken wire surround so there will be no getting through or digging under it. The actual coop will have to be larger to accomodate all the ducks and geese..especially for the long winter. I would like it to be at least 6ft high so I could access it for easy cleaning..again a pallet bottom. It will have two entrances with sharp wires on the outside to prevent digging around it.

So yes I have learnt a lot, but at the expense of my feathered friends (

On a side note I am getting some traps so I hope to trap and eliminate the fox! I will keep you updated!