Lost a duck last night, andy ideas on what got her?

[miss_thenorth]

First off I'll say thet they freerange. Her carcass was found 6 feet away from my chicken coop. A feather trail of about 15-20 feet, starting in the other direction of the coop. Her breast was half eaten, and she had bite marks on her tail and onethe top of one wing.

Since on of my ducks has ducklings, the duck that was killled is usually close by the drake, and the chicken door of the coop was open. It was only the one duck taken. i think that is important, b/c whatever it was had the opportunity to get in the coop, or atleast take the drake, or mamma with her babies.

I bought a large live trap, but I need to know whta I am dealing with.

Predators known in this area are raccoon, oppossum, (skunk?) fox, coyote, owl. It was a 15 lb duck. any ideas?

edited to add, the horses, sheep, cow and goat I would think would have become unsettled if anything larger like a fox or a coyote were near. Or would they? The carcass was about 30 feet away from their paddock/barn.

 

[Wifezilla]

Isn't the breast being eaten a coon sign?

Hawks and owls go for the head. I know that from personal experience

And wouldn't a coyote have eaten the whole thing?

 

[miss_thenorth]

I was leaning towards coon also, but just need to be sure what I am dealing with. Thanks.

 

[Marianne]

The raccoons here go for the heads, too.

Wouldn't a coyote haul the carcass off? 15 pound duck would have put up a fight, so I'm guessing some larger, fast moving critter.
The bite marks on the tail and wing probably were from when it was chasing it and finally caught it.

Hawks and owls would have had different bite marks, I'm guessing coyote or fox or even big dog? We had a couple of stray dogs show up and they were grabbing chicken tails like crazy while they were chasing them around. I didn't know I could move that fast.

 

[savingdogs]

We believe we have lost poultry to dogs/coyotes and there is never any sign at all, they just vanish.

So I would suspect a smaller predator since there was so much carcass left, a large animal could have carried the whole thing off.

 

[miss_thenorth]

On a side note, our dogs free range also. So they had access to the outside last night as well. Two nights ago, Rocky was barking like a mad dog about every hour of the night. He usually only barks if there is a reason, ie, something or someone on the property that doesn't belogn there. Last night he only barked once, and my guess would have been it was about 3 am.

I had lost a rooster to the neighbours dog four years ago. Dogs tend to just kill,, and leave it there, as they ar not hungry. There are no real feral dogs around--strays once in a while, but not feral. I don't think it was a dog.

i am puzzled though, b/c of the fact that the dogs had access to outside, but the breast was eaten. could it hve gotten under the dogs radar--that it was there long enough to eat some of the carcasss? the only thing I can think of that could possibly have came undetected would ba an owl. But I had to put down one of our cats who was attacked by an owl before--the marks on the back and tail wer not like the marks thta were on my cat. So, I kinda ruled that out. That, and I haven't heard the owl at all this spring. My bedroom window faces the barnyard, and my window was open. i am not usually that light of a sleeper to not hear a ruckus. I only heard Rocky bark the one time. And he is fearless--I would thnk he would have attacked whatever it was had he known it was there.

Well, I am going to set the live trap tonight, and I probably won't be sleeping much tonight either. i think the ruger .22, the spotlight, and I will become bed fellows tonight. Hubby is on night shift.

 

[BeccaOH]

Probably a coon.

I lost a duck last Saturday night. The coon came in over the fence (my ducks and geese stay in the run all night) and somehow stunned a large duck (no major injuries on the body) and then tried to shove it under the fence. The neck was stretched and striped but the large body kept the duck from going under.

I trapped the coon 6 feet from the crime scene the very next night.

My first coon attack was carnage. The coon beheaded 20 half-grown chickens inside a coop that I thought was secure. Ate most of only one.

 

[miss_thenorth]

Probably a coon.

I lost a duck last Saturday night. The coon came in over the fence (my ducks and geese stay in the run all night) and somehow stunned a large duck (no major injuries on the body) and then tried to shove it under the fence. The neck was stretched and striped but the large body kept the duck from going under.

I trapped the coon 6 feet from the crime scene the very next night.

My first coon attack was carnage. The coon beheaded 20 half-grown chickens inside a coop that I thought was secure. Ate most of only one.

What did you use for bait?

 

[BeccaOH]

Probably a coon.

I lost a duck last Saturday night. The coon came in over the fence (my ducks and geese stay in the run all night) and somehow stunned a large duck (no major injuries on the body) and then tried to shove it under the fence. The neck was stretched and striped but the large body kept the duck from going under.

I trapped the coon 6 feet from the crime scene the very next night.

My first coon attack was carnage. The coon beheaded 20 half-grown chickens inside a coop that I thought was secure. Ate most of only one.

What did you use for bait?

Partially peeled back can of sardines. Coon has to work to get the sardines out which helps insure the trap is tripped.

 

[miss_thenorth]

Thanks, I think I have a can. so, from what you are saying, it is quite possible that the coon, if that is what is was, might have gone for the coop to kill more? But maybe my Rocky did scare it off?

They will all be locked up tight until this thing is caught.