It is with tremendous sadness that I post this message and hope that some of you duck lovers become wary of a potential predator lurking in your ponds. This past Saturday, my lovely Daisy (2 year-old female Pekin) was savagely attacked by a vagrant snapping turtle who unbeknownst to me has taken up residence in our pond. My husband and I are currently in the process of trying to trap the beast but so far have been unsuccessful in our attempts to find it. In the meantime, my remaining 4 ducks are in lockdown and the pond is off-limits. They are not happy with the arrangement, however I've tried to make it more appealing to them by placing a plastic swimming pool in their penned area.
I have heard turtles will kill ducklings, however Daisy was an adult, rather large duck. She was apparently dabbling along the shoreline of the pond and the turtle snapped her neck. I found her on the side of the pond, still in the water, with her head still submerged underwater. The turtle nearly took her head of with what appeared to be only one bite!
Daisy is now buried in one of the ducks favorite places to nap in the afternoon. She was my loudest voice in the morning as she demanded to be let out of the pen and fed. I will miss her dearly.
