Snapping Turtles

[lwharran1]

Recently we had a duck lay her eggs inside our front porch area. Once they hatched, 23 of them, we kept them inside this area till they were old enough to be taken to the lake behind the houses in this area because everytime you see a mother duck with ducklings they are gone within a week. They take them to the lake and the snapping turtles kill them. I wasn't going to live with that. I wanted them to have a chance at life...... so now there are 23 more ducks around our area. Yesterday I saw another Mama duck with only four left. I chased after them but they went inside the porch area and on instinct I boarded their exit off. I cant take seeing them one day and gone the next. It breaks my heart. So now there are four babies that will be watched and fed till they're big enough that the turtles won't hurt them. It takes approximately two months since they grow so fast. We provide them with cracked corn, meal worms, and growth duck pellet . Then we leave a small tub with water in it so they can learn to swim there instead of chancing them with the turtles. There is grass for them to munch on too. They have protection from the weather and they can get the rain or sunlight too...... I dont know what else to do because I dont want to chance they will die.

 

[cavemanrich]

Keep doing what you are doing. ... I heard turtle soup is delicious

WISHING YOU BEST,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, and

 

[Folly's place]

Maybe an over supply of those turtles? That seems like a lot of ducklings lost, more than we've ever seen here with the wild geese on our farm pond.
Have you talked to your DNR about it? How about posting on the duck thread too.
Meanwhile, take care of your duckies!
Mary