Need Help In Odell, Oregon

[Huntmaster]

They have had to have been there awhile to be comfortable enough to nest in that area.

 

[ruthhope]

I've followed up on Reddit/Duck

The poster there is still engaged and is planning to catch the welsh harlequin with [likely] angel wing
The poster originally wrote " The guy at the Ace across the street said they'd been there a long time. I thought they looked pretty good other than the Welsh harlequin's wing. There were geese sitting on nests. I'll call the animal rescue and at least try to get the Welsh's wing figured out. They were not scared of me and I was able to pick a few up after coaxing them with cracked corn"

The Facebook people also wrote '... these ducks have "been there for decades," "are not abandoned" and "are very well taken care of."'

Several folks in the Reddit/ducks discussion are engaging with the original poster, who later wrote:
"I'm still going to get the Welshie to the vet and then I might just keep her for my flock. I'll keep a general eye on them but I'm afraid if I start rounding them up, I'll get the town after me. And this is rural Oregon. They got guns here."

 

[Huntmaster]

I've followed up on Reddit/Duck

The poster originally wrote " The guy at the Ace across the street said they'd been there a long time. I thought they looked pretty good other than the Welsh harlequin's wing. There were geese sitting on nests. I'll call the animal rescue and at least try to get the Welsh's wing figured out. They were not scared of me and I was able to pick a few up after coaxing them with cracked corn"

The Facebook people also wrote '... these ducks have "been there for decades," "are not abandoned" and "are very well taken care of."'

Very nice of you to follow up. I kind of figured it was something like that.

 

[DuckDuckJuice]

I've followed up on Reddit/Duck

The poster there is still engaged and is planning to catch the welsh harlequin with [likely] angel wing
The poster originally wrote " The guy at the Ace across the street said they'd been there a long time. I thought they looked pretty good other than the Welsh harlequin's wing. There were geese sitting on nests. I'll call the animal rescue and at least try to get the Welsh's wing figured out. They were not scared of me and I was able to pick a few up after coaxing them with cracked corn"

The Facebook people also wrote '... these ducks have "been there for decades," "are not abandoned" and "are very well taken care of."'

Several folks in the Reddit/ducks discussion are engaging with the original poster, who later wrote:
"I'm still going to get the Welshie to the vet and then I might just keep her for my flock. I'll keep a general eye on them but I'm afraid if I start rounding them up, I'll get the town after me. And this is rural Oregon. They got guns here."

Yes, I’ve been messaging her privately. She said she got a call from the sheriff today regarding her concern for the ducks. This is the last thing she sent me.

 

[ruthhope]

Yes, I’ve been messaging her privately. She said she got a call from the sheriff today regarding her concern for the ducks. This is the last thing she sent me.

Well, the Sheriff was kind!!! Better than the owner coming with guns.

As someone commented on Reddit: "so it's duck and run when you run with a duck..."

 

[DuckDuckJuice]

They look at home to me not dumped. Sounds like the locales know and have known them to be there. Kinda looks to me like you will be stealing someone's birds. I would be making darn sure before I would remove any of them.

Unfortunately, the OP initially made it seem as if the birds were on public land, in which case they would be considered dumped. Later on, in her private messages to me, she mentioned the “business owner who owns the property” telling the sheriff on her, which makes it pretty clear with whom responsibility lies for these animals. I am very against the situation the ducks and geese are in, but agree that, now that I have all the facts, it would indeed be theft. Even with all of this, I would still take the Welsh Harlequin. It needs veterinary attention and it’s wrong of the business owner to not provide it. If he wants to claim them as his property, he needs to take responsibility and provide proper care.

 

[DuckDuckJuice]

Well, the Sheriff was kind!!! Better than the owner coming with guns.

Agreed. I’m glad it went through the sheriff. Thank you for checking back the comments in the original post. I stopped checking them after switching to a private chat with the OP and missed a few comments of hers. She seems very nervous about the whole thing, so I hope she hasn’t gotten herself in any trouble. Not legal, necessarily, but small towns like that can be unforgiving about things sometimes.

 

[Huntmaster]

Even with all of this, I would still take the Welsh Harlequin. It needs veterinary attention and it’s wrong of the business owner to not provide it.

Wow you are very condemning to business owner when you know very little facts. The duck probably just has angel wing which is fairly common in waterfowl. And not much you can do with it on an adult bird needs to be treated when young and still growing.

but small towns like that can be unforgiving about things sometimes.

Most people can be unforgiving when people feel free to help themselves to their property and rightfully so. I understand you are just trying to look out for the birds, but you need to be better informed before you act or even condemn someone you know nothing about.

 

[DuckDuckJuice]

Wow you are very condemning to business owner when you know very little facts. The duck probably just has angel wing which is fairly common in waterfowl. And not much you can do with it on an adult bird needs to be treated when young and still growing.

Most people can be unforgiving when people feel free to help themselves to their property and rightfully so. I understand you are just trying to look out for the birds, but you need to be better informed before you act or even condemn someone you know nothing about.

You are being incredibly condescending and judgmental, yourself. Angel wing typically causes the wings to stick out at an unnatural angle. The WH’s wing is dragging at her side, which seems to me to indicate injury. Either way, it needs to be evaluated and that is the responsibility of the “owner.” If he is incapable of providing that basic necessity, maybe he should reevaluate his decision to keep waterfowl.

As far as how informed I am, I am going off of what I have been told by the OP, and have made corrections/updates as I’ve gotten more information. I have not taken a single action, nor do I plan to, other than making a post to assist someone out who didn’t know what to do and was asking for help. As I have previously stated, on both Reddit and this forum, I am in Ohio and have no way of intervening beyond that.

I assume I must have said or done something to offend you, considering your tone from the very first comment you made. It seems that every post I’ve made on this forum in an effort to assist someone else has drawn the ire of members like yourself, who feel the need to “educate” everyone on how absolutely wrong they are to try to help animals that are clearly not in ideal situations because they “look happy.” Quite an assumption to make based off of very little information, wouldn’t you say? Domestic ducks are the same as any other pet/livestock. They need shelter, security, adequate food, and veterinary care. Anything less is neglect, period.

Finally, I apologize. I do not enjoy being argumentative or aggressive in any way, I am just so very tired of constantly trying to defend myself when I am just a middle-man. It’s exhausting and my patience has run out.

 

[DuckDuckJuice]

It seems I’m not the only one who has had this problem, according to the OP.