keep my ducks safe

[duckydoolittle]

Hello, we have a 1 acre pond and keep 4 drake mallards and one hen also a mallard. We have lost 8 ducks since last spring 4 of which were farm ducks. The most recent loss was 4 days ago. It was Abigail our last farm duck. She will be missed as she was the first. The ducks sleep on the pond at night. So my question is does anyone have suggestions on what we can do protect them.

 

[jonhpdx]

Create a coop for them to sleep in at night? Seems like the only logical conclusion I can come to to solve your problems...

Also,

 

[duckydoolittle]

Thanks for the welcome. We thought about a coop and not sure if we could get them to the coop. They love the pond. We feed them chicken scratch once in awhile. That is the only time we can get close to them. Has anyone built a floating platform? And if so will they use it?

 

[jonhpdx]

Thanks for the welcome. We thought about a coop and not sure if we could get them to the coop. They love the pond. We feed them chicken scratch once in awhile. That is the only time we can get close to them. Has anyone built a floating platform? And if so will they use it?

What are you looking to accomplish with a floating platform? The predators aren't going to be coming from underneath the water, most likely they're getting snatched by a hawk or other bird of prey from the air. I'd also question whether you could get them to use the platform in the first place. Ducks like water, and they like being in the middle of large bodies of water because it protects them from predators on the land. Unfortunately their tactics don't work so well if a hawk can get to them. The only way to really protect them is to surround them in predator-proof netting/fencing/wiring.

 

[duckydoolittle]

Good point. Pardon our ignorance, we thought because they are full grown they would be to large for airborne predators. Back to the drawing board. Maybe a floating platform with a house on it. Like a floating coop.:/

 

[Carcajou]

. They need to be locked inside at night. I had the same problem. When I had one duck left (a drake) and starting raising another flock I changed my tactics. I now feed a little portion in the morning, give them a snack midday, and give them their main feeding in the afternoon. I kept the new flock exclusively in a fenced area (where the coop is) until they were old enough that the older drake was used to them and they were big enough he wouldn't kill them. Part of the pond is inside the fence so water is not an issue.

I am able to get them to go into the fenced area with the late afternoon feeding and lock the gate behind them. They have been trained to go inside at dark and usually go in on their own. My hope was that the drake would follow the five new ducks into the enclosure and into the coop at night and it worked.

If you construct a floating coop you still need to lock them in at night. Racoons can swim and can get into a floating coop that is not locked tightly.

 

[duckydoolittle]

Carcajou ,

Thanks,

I Like your idea. Do you have concerns with an animal digging under to get in ?

 

[Carcajou]

Digging under the fence is a legitimate concern. So far, I have not had that happen but burying your fence can help deter predators that can dig.

I yield to anyone that has had a digging predator problem.

 

[duckydoolittle]

Buried it will be!

Thanks guys, I will post pics as we progress.

 

[smccuen]

Mine are happy with this floating house. They've been there for a month - living on algae, feeder fish, bullfrog tadpoles, dragonflies in the pool, 5 acres of cleared land full of bugs and tender plants. They have a flock block they may nibble on but seem not at all interested in the mash and treats I bring when I mow.