Somethings killing my ducks

[Tiffy316]

I've lost 6 ducks over the past 2 weeks. They just disappeared without a trace. There's no way they flew out bc their wings are clipped and the run has an 8 foot high fence. I also found one of my poor guineas mauled to death in the run.

All of my chickens are fine so far, but I need to find out what's killing them before it's too late. I'm not sure what's been doing all this, but I've seen a raccoon hanging around the barn recently.

Any ideas what could be killing them and how I can stop it. I live in the country, so there a lot of potential suspects. We've never had a problem with birds of prey or coyotes before, so I don't think they're the culprits. Thanks for the help.

 

[ChicNmom]

The raccoon sounds like a likely suspect for mauling the Guinea.

Is there any netting or cover over the fence?

Hawk attacks usually result in a lot of feathers left behind. Coyote attacks also leave feathers behind.

Maybe a bobcat or owls.

 

[Barbours]

I've lost 6 ducks over the past 2 weeks. They just disappeared without a trace. There's no way they flew out bc their wings are clipped and the run has an 8 foot high fence. I also found one of my poor guineas mauled to death in the run.

All of my chickens are fine so far, but I need to find out what's killing them before it's too late. I'm not sure what's been doing all this, but I've seen a raccoon hanging around the barn recently.

Any ideas what could be killing them and how I can stop it. I live in the country, so there a lot of potential suspects. We've never had a problem with birds of prey or coyotes before, so I don't think they're the culprits. Thanks for the help.

The raccoon could get small ducks. A fox or coyote could have gotten the ducks or a big owl. Really anything could have gotten them if the animals are just roaming around your land. You could try to put a net over the run. Or use hardware cloth so predators can't reach in. Or if you really want to find out how buy a game camera at Walmart and put it in your yard

 

[Tiffy316]

The raccoon sounds like a likely suspect for mauling the Guinea.

Is there any netting or cover over the fence?

Hawk attacks usually result in a lot of feathers left behind. Coyote attacks also leave feathers behind.

Maybe a bobcat or owls.

There's no fence or netting over the top of the run. I haven't seen any huge piles of feathers left behind. My ducks just disappeared. Will a raccoon maul something, but leave most of the carcass behind?

 

[ChicNmom]

Yeah, raccoons seem to like the killing more than eating.

 

[Tiffy316]

The raccoon could get small ducks. A fox or coyote could have gotten the ducks or a big owl. Really anything could have gotten them if the animals are just roaming around your land. You could try to put a net over the run. Or use hardware cloth so predators can't reach in. Or if you really want to find out how buy a game camera at Walmart and put it in your yard

Could they run off with a duck without leaving any trace behind? The only way to get in is to dig under the barn or climb an 8 foot high fence. There aren't any large holes under the barn as far as I know. The only way to get in is to climb the fence.

 

[Tiffy316]

Yeah, raccoons seem to like the killing more than eating.

But what about the ducks just disappearing? They'd have to try to squeeze it under a small hole in the barn or climb over an 8 foot fence to get them. The run is about the size of a small dog pen. A hawk or owl would have a pretty tight squeeze to just swoop in.

They'd almost have to land, kill the ducks, and fly off with them. But that would probably leave a pretty big mess, and mine just vanished.

 

[ChicNmom]

The only other thing I can think with ducks is being stolen by people.

Are the disappearing overnight or during the day?

Maybe you need to put up a camera.

 

[Tiffy316]

The only other thing I can think with ducks is being stolen by people.

Are the disappearing overnight or during the day?

Maybe you need to put up a camera.

Yeah, but I can't afford one right now. In any case, I live pretty far put on the country, so I don't think anyone's stealing them. Everyone tends to keep to themselves. Besides, there aren't that many houses in my area. Everyone's pretty spread out.

 

[ChicNmom]

Are they disappearing at night or day?

If during the day I wonder if the ducks are still managing to fly even with the wings clipped?