Pet Ducks Dumped in Neighborhood Pond, Help?

[CrystaBub]

I am so overprotective, I blame my mom.

 

[DuckyDonna]

Yikes I see what you mean. For some reason I thought the pond was in your back yard! Where is the pond? Is the neighbor who likes the ducks the one connected to you or next door where you could use the side yard?

I wouldn't worry about the ac unit. I don't see how that could be a problem. They'd get used to the noise from it.

I'm trying to envision this in the back yard with a fence incorporating that pine tree by going around it somehow so the ducks could get under it. How many of those pines are on your side? I have Leyland cypress trees at the end of my run and put the fence real close to them. The hard part was getting the netting over the top of the fence so nothing can fly in and get them. Where are you (state) anyway? We are out in the country so I know the situation is different.

I have 2 runs and 2 pens. One run goes outside the cypress trees and one run that goes in front of the trees. I thinking maybe you could do that? The runs can easily be separated from each other in case I have babies that haven't been introduced to the flock or sick ducks that need to be kept apart. Mostly in the winter they use the inside run.

I learned a horrible hard lesson about not having any netting over the top when a peregrine falcon swooped down and killed my beautiful Daisy. I thought they were too big to be killed. I was wrong. I still cry. I caught it in the "act" and I was too late. Hence the netting you see in this picture. Now every square inch of my duck runs have netting over the top but I still check it a lot to make sure everything is secure. 500 zip ties and 200' of plastic netting from home depot. I love my ducks!

 

[SansDuck]

Some people get away with 100 sq ft of run, but since your duckies are use to having alot of space it might be hard for them once they get use to were they are they are gonna tear stuff up fast.
If it was me I would make them a nice big run out in your back yard, with a pool and all kinds of fun stuff for them to get into. That way when they want to get out and run around they have a place. And at night you can still keep them in their pen/run in the front yard.

Also they will need a shaded place in the summer since you live in Missouri.

To be honest, they only had the pond for about two months before the attack on the third duck.

Before that I honestly dont know how much space they had at the orginal owners place.

If the owners dog was able to injure the fourth duck, I assumed they only had a backyard to share with the dog.

I'm assuming the bookcase they came with was the orginal shelter they used as ducklings, perhaps?

They came with no bowls, no kiddie pool, or anything duck related.

And the fact that the orginal owner said they loved dog food, I'm honestly not sure how these duck were raised to be fair.

I dont want to say anything bad about the orginal owner, snice I never met them. But it seems odd that they didnt buy anything for these ducks in the time they had them, or if they did why not give it to the guy he dumped them on?
They knew ducks would need supplies, once having new owners right?

And the guy he dumped them on, had no idea how to care for ducks.

Witch is probably the reason he put them into the pond, and let them be completely free range.

Sorry about the ramble, I just honestly dont know what the ducks lives were like before us and it makes me very curious.


I replied to @DuckyDonna about the backyard situation and the concerns we have on it.

Please, if you would give your opinions on my backyard that would be awesome!

I included a few pictures, so you all can get a idea on what the backyard/side yard looks like.

Thank you once again C.M. for your helpful reply!

 

[SansDuck]

I don’t have ducks....but on behalf of abandoned ducks everywhere....Thank You for your Kindness

No need to thank me! Any pet animal is welcome in my home!

Thank you so much for taking the time to read about the duckies story and commenting!

 

[DuckyDonna]

To be honest, they only had the pond for about two months before the attack on the third duck.

Before that I honestly dont know how much space they had at the orginal owners place.

If the owners dog was able to injure the fourth duck, I assumed they only had a backyard to share with the dog.

I'm assuming the bookcase they came with was the orginal shelter they used as ducklings, perhaps?

They came with no bowls, no kiddie pool, or anything duck related.

And the fact that the orginal owner said they loved dog food, I'm honestly not sure how these duck were raised to be fair.

I dont want to say anything bad about the orginal owner, snice I never met them. But it seems odd that they didnt buy anything for these ducks in the time they had them, or if they did why not give it to the guy he dumped them on?
They knew ducks would need supplies, once having new owners right?

And the guy he dumped them on, had no idea how to care for ducks.

Witch is probably the reason he put them into the pond, and let them be completely free range.

Sorry about the ramble, I just honestly dont know what the ducks lives were like before us and it makes me very curious.


I replied to @DuckyDonna about the backyard situation and the concerns we have on it.

Please, if you would give your opinions on my backyard that would be awesome!

I included a few pictures, so you all can get a idea on what the backyard/side yard looks like.

Thank you once again C.M. for your helpful reply!

Hey, don't feel bad about knowing nothing. 2 years ago when my neighbor's gave me 4 runners I knew less than nothing. YouTube and various internet sites were my only sources until I found BYC. I've come a long way from knowing nothing but still have a ton to learn! I even hatched some last spring! This web site will not steer you wrong. I wish I had found it sooner. You are doing fine so don't sweat it. We're all just trying to give you ideas from the lessons we've learned.

 

[shawluvsbirds]

1) By picture alone, can you see anything wrong with the ducks heathly wise, like feathers, bill, feet? We think they are pretty healthy but I'm not an expert.
They look perfectly healthy to me.

2) can you tell the age? We're thinking they might be young, when they first arrived they all looked and sound the same. Now that they been here for a few months, one is loud and the other one has curly drake feathers.

Not sure on the age, but I agree they look young.

3) what are the genders? We are 99% positive that we have one male, one female. Besides the one having a loud quack with no curly feathers, the other one has curly feathers and a soft raspy quack.
The fact that every time we bring them water, the duck with the soft quack will hop onto the others back, grabs their neck, tells me they are not celebrating over having clean water.
And durning one these celebrations, its was very obvious the one on top had a penis.

It sounds like you have a drake and a hen.

4) if they are dating, when should we expect eggs? They have done this celebration a number of times (almost everytime we bring fresh water) but we cant tell if they were successful? They both get really happy after the one on top falls off and after they will usually shake their tails or take a swim in their water dish lol.

If they buried the fake egg you put in there you could already have eggs hidden. I would check. If not they will usually start to lay once you have 12 hours or more of daylight. The trauma of the other duck being attacked could keep your female from laying for awhile though.

5) Also we recently put a fake egg in the ark, they moved it to the back and buried it some in the straw. Does that mean anything? We didnt think putting a egg in there would do anything but it almost seems like they adopted it?

They like to hide their eggs.

6a) this is a three part question. Now that they have a nice house(with straw and cedar bedding), plenty of food, treats including bugs and a good size pen and a moat. Should we eventually allow them to go to the pond durning the day or is it encouraging them to stay in the pond the whole night? Would they learn to come home at night on their own? Or is this just asking for trouble?

First off get rid of the cedar bedding. Use pine or aspen. Cedar can cause respiratory issues.
Personally I would keep them in their ark for a few months atleast. They sound happy and healthy. You could give them a day or two a week of pond time.
I would keep them off the pond during winter months, since predators will be looking for an easy meal.


(Also again I want to clarify, this pond does not get clean and people have fish in it including us in the past.)
Also the ducks would have to cross the street to get to the pond each day, it's not that big of a concern considering we are the last house on a dead end street but accident can still happen.

6b) Would I need to worry about snaped fishing lines or hooks that have fallen off into the water hurting them?

The ducks will be at the mercy of anything neighbors have dumped in there.

6c) opinions on keeping ducks in a backyard with pool/pen vs free range at day and coop at night.

Personally I would keep them in their pool/pen area.

And reading about ducks and bacteria from a pond doesnt make me feel safe letting them take a dip either.

7) after a major event or even maturing, do ducks personalities change?
When they first arrived, they were all friendly. Right before the death of the third duck all of them kinda become spooked and weary of humans.
And after the death, they would run away from people if approached to closely.

A trauma like that will definitely have them scared for awhile. With mating season coming up your drake might become more aggressive. Keep an eye on them to make sure he is not overmating your female.

8)Could a human or something that resembles it killed the third duck and now they're scared of humans? I know we have young kids and teens that hang around the pond occasionally.

Unless you have a budding serial killer around I suspect it was a raccoon.

9) like mentioned we are pretty sure they are pekins, but we could be wrong too. They dont fly but the one that appears female knows how to jump quite high off the ground. Can anyone tell from the provided pictures that they are 100% pekin?

They could be Pekins or white egg layers. I can't really tell the difference between the two breeds.

10) what are the most important things i should know as a new duck owner? Suggestions, tips, tricks, and other helpful information you cant easily find online would be greatly appreciated.

If you want them to become friendlier with you, you can sit with them for some time each day and quietly talk to them. You can also feed them treats from your hand. (Alot of ducks like mealworms, but mine like tomatoes better.)
Dog food is bad for anything, but dogs. I have given mine cat food during molting, but not alot.
They need water that is deep enough for them to get their nares (nostrils) in.[/QUOTE]
Well @Cayuga momma
I think you covered it!

@SansDuck
Bless you for taking care of these abandoned ducks!

I absolutely love how cute your pen and ark is. . but I agree with others that it won't provide much predator protection or shade in summer. Locking them up at night is a must. . and try not to let them out until after sunrise if possible.
I'm not criticising one bit. . I have 6 Cayuga ducks in my back yard in a not predator proof pen myself
I lock them up at night and put up a sport-berella for them In the summer for some extra shade
I let them roam the yard When I'm outside with them or am where I can watch out my kitchen window.
Oh. . I'm also in Missouri!

I've actually made their enclosure bigger since this pic was taken. . and as cute as our little barns are they are hard to herd them inside sometimes when they wanna be stubborn.
One thing I've learned is you will forever be updating/changing/cleaning/redoing things for ducks
Might as well get used to it. Something that works today may or may not work tomorrow.

 

[DuckyDonna]

If you want them to become friendlier with you, you can sit with them for some time each day and quietly talk to them. You can also feed them treats from your hand. (Alot of ducks like mealworms, but mine like tomatoes better.)
Dog food is bad for anything, but dogs. I have given mine cat food during molting, but not alot.
They need water that is deep enough for them to get their nares (nostrils) in.

Well @Cayuga momma
I think you covered it!

@SansDuck
Bless you for taking care of these abandoned ducks!

I absolutely love how cute your pen and ark is. . but I agree with others that it won't provide much predator protection or shade in summer. Locking them up at night is a must. . and try not to let them out until after sunrise if possible.
I'm not criticising one bit. . I have 6 Cayuga ducks in my back yard in a not predator proof pen myself
I lock them up at night and put up a sport-berella for them I'm the summer for some extra shade
I let them roam the yard When I'm outside with them or am where I can watch out my kitchen window.
Oh. . I'm also in Missouri!

View attachment 1674696 I've actually made their enclosure bigger since this pic was taken. . and as cute as our little barns are they are hard to herd them inside sometimes when they wanna be stubborn.
One thing I've learned is you will forever be updating/changing/cleaning/redoing things for ducks
Might as well get used to it. Something that works today may or may not work tomorrow. [/QUOTE]
My place looks like the set of "Deliverance" compared to yours! At least I'm not in a "neighborhood" where the they'd want to shoot me! I think I hear dueling banjos!

 

[shawluvsbirds]

Well @Cayuga momma
I think you covered it!

@SansDuck
Bless you for taking care of these abandoned ducks!

I absolutely love how cute your pen and ark is. . but I agree with others that it won't provide much predator protection or shade in summer. Locking them up at night is a must. . and try not to let them out until after sunrise if possible.
I'm not criticising one bit. . I have 6 Cayuga ducks in my back yard in a not predator proof pen myself
I lock them up at night and put up a sport-berella for them I'm the summer for some extra shade
I let them roam the yard When I'm outside with them or am where I can watch out my kitchen window.
Oh. . I'm also in Missouri!

View attachment 1674696 I've actually made their enclosure bigger since this pic was taken. . and as cute as our little barns are they are hard to herd them inside sometimes when they wanna be stubborn.
One thing I've learned is you will forever be updating/changing/cleaning/redoing things for ducks
Might as well get used to it. Something that works today may or may not work tomorrow.

My place looks like the set of "Deliverance" compared to yours! At least I'm not in a "neighborhood" where the they'd want to shoot me! I think I hear dueling banjos![/QUOTE]
OMG lmao!
Well. .But your ducks are probably safer than mine.
I lost one to a fox before I started locking them up at night. I never thought a fox would come that close to our house. We have a partial privacy fence but part of it is barn wood. So it just came right up and got a free duck dinner early one morning

 

[Cayuga momma]

To be honest, they only had the pond for about two months before the attack on the third duck.

Before that I honestly dont know how much space they had at the orginal owners place.

If the owners dog was able to injure the fourth duck, I assumed they only had a backyard to share with the dog.

I'm assuming the bookcase they came with was the orginal shelter they used as ducklings, perhaps?

They came with no bowls, no kiddie pool, or anything duck related.

And the fact that the orginal owner said they loved dog food, I'm honestly not sure how these duck were raised to be fair.

I dont want to say anything bad about the orginal owner, snice I never met them. But it seems odd that they didnt buy anything for these ducks in the time they had them, or if they did why not give it to the guy he dumped them on?
They knew ducks would need supplies, once having new owners right?

And the guy he dumped them on, had no idea how to care for ducks.

Witch is probably the reason he put them into the pond, and let them be completely free range.

Sorry about the ramble, I just honestly dont know what the ducks lives were like before us and it makes me very curious.


I replied to @DuckyDonna about the backyard situation and the concerns we have on it.

Please, if you would give your opinions on my backyard that would be awesome!

I included a few pictures, so you all can get a idea on what the backyard/side yard looks like.

Thank you once again C.M. for your helpful reply!

Well I can see your concern for the backyard. I would still put some kind of run back there as a backup even if its not that big. You have plenty of time though so there is no rush. You can post pics in the thread for coop and run design. Those guys probably have loads of ideas on what you can build with what your working with.
When it comes down to it the ducks are much better with you then where they were and I can tell you have a lot of love for them.
Keep us updated on how they are doing. We all love videos and pics.

 

[DuckyDonna]

My place looks like the set of "Deliverance" compared to yours! At least I'm not in a "neighborhood" where the they'd want to shoot me! I think I hear dueling banjos!

OMG lmao!
Well. .But your ducks are probably safer than mine.
I lost one to a fox before I started locking them up at night. I never thought a fox would come that close to our house. We have a partial privacy fence but part of it is barn wood. So it just came right up and got a free duck dinner early one morning [/QUOTE]
Wow, that really stinks! I've got over 200 acres out back with nothing but fields and woods so my little redneck duck kingdom doesn't have to be beautiful. Good thing! I've lost 2 ducks. One to that falcon and one 4 wk old to a HUGE king snake. I can't do anything about the snakes (except kill them) but I can try to keep down the killing from the sky! I've seen foxes during the day but not for years. We've also got a ton of coyotes but only at night so far. I make sure my little street gang is locked up in their secure pen by nightfall. We've got dogs and we're out and about in the yard during the days mostly too.