I cant think of anything off the top of my head that could have caused that. Ducks are really hardy birds so for one to drop dead is pretty unusual. First thing that came to mind was gapeworm, but you'd have a necropsy done to find out. I wouldn't bother if everyone else is looking okay, but that's just me. I sold three Amherst pheasant chicks today for a tidy sum. While I was catching them one flew out past me to parts unknown. By the time I got home it was there by the pen trying to get in. I managed to catch him and put him back. I'll probably keep the remaining chicks, they won't eat that much more as they grow up anyway. I have a turkey hen on about 20 eggs right now. Christ, I hope I can sell them before Winter or it's gonna be a little pricey feeding them til Spring. ( But I could get a lot more money, soo...)
Slightly on-topic by dead ducks and all, not sure if any of you have heard of Letters from Wingfield Farms. IT'S FUCKING HILARIOUS. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wingfield_Series I've been to a few of the live plays, and have all of the DVD's. (If anyone wants them, let me know and I'll upload them to the server or something for you to download). The Wobbles. Read this, starting at about the May 2nd entry: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.ca/books/214857/wingfields-world-by-dan-needles/9780307360847/excerpt His duck has "the wobbles".
Probably the best one-man live show I've ever seen... dude does 80+ characters, and they are ALL discernible. EDIT: This is NOT the main start of the series... this is a few volumes in... so there is a bit of an expectation that you know the characters up to this point... like "Maggie"... if you watch it from the start it makes more sense.
Wingfield is so fucking funny. Rod Beattie is used as a character study in university drama programs because he's THAT good. My sister and I periodically yell out "Everybody up, we gotta a fiiiiiirrrreeee" for no real reason at all except that it's hilarious.
Okay, 'wildered, here's your picture: Spoiler 4 African geese, 4 Americuana chickens, 2 leghorns, and 2 mallards(?)
I recommend separating your chicks and waterfowl as soon as you’re possibly able to. Waterfowl are messy which can cause issues in other birds that need things a little drier.
This. Waterfowl are wet as hell. They will find water and splash it everywhere Recommend you make a special waterer for the waterfowl. Like a tupperware container with holes in the lid only big enough for their heads. They need to be able to get their heads in water to clean their nares but more than that and you will have a mess. Also the fuzzy babies can't be let to swim in water without being totally dried off by you. They dont have momma to oil their fuzz.
Yesterday was so cool and breezy I decided it was a good day to catch up on stuff for the animals. I started with getting rid of the turkey eggs. There were over 25 of them in the nest and yesterday as I checked to see if any hatched there was a serious stench telling me some were rotten. Flies swarming, the whole thing. So I kicked mom off the nest and threw all of them away. I'm sure some of them were viable, but didn't want to bother checking each individual egg. Especially if one suddenly decided to pop in my face. So screw it, no more babies til Spring. I filled in and fixed a mudhole the ducks had developed under their water bowl. Also decided to let them free range a little to give the grass in their yard a break. Amazingly, they've stayed out of the creek. I assembled a new nest box I bought for the layers. It wasn't a hard assembly, but it still took me a couple hours because all the screws went into tight spaces. They were small, and my fingers are not. So I spent a good deal of time dropping them and cursing. But it got done eventually and just in time, as I found some pullet eggs in the old nests. Won't be long and we'll be up to our eyeballs in eggs again.
This is kind of an automotive question, but is more of a homeowner thing . . . I've owned a truck since I bought my first house over 25 years ago. (Three different trucks, actually, but I've always had a truck is what I mean.) I have lots of gas-powered equipment. I always just fill up my five gallon can, put it in the back of my truck to bring home. I'm considering getting a new vehicle and it may be an SUV. How do you bring the gas home without your whole vehicle smelling like gas, since it's inside the vehicle?
Close the vents on the can. I still wouldn't smoke in the vehicle though. Either that or see if you can get jerry can mounts for the back door. And use jerry cans.
Yeah, I was thinking of the hitch platform idea. And, I probably need a new gas can. And I do have a jerry can. Thanks
I transport 2-3 cans of gas in my SUV all the time. I just keep the windows at least cracked a little. And yeah, I don’t smoke.
I’ve started wrapping up things around here in preparation for Winter, one of the activities on my list being clipping some birds’ wings around here. I should have done it sooner, as tonight all 6 or 7 ducks are nowhere to be found. Normally they’d be somewhere in the small creek along our house but that’s dry still. I’m guessing they took off for a flight, found water, and decided to stay there, at least for the night. If they come back, cool. But if they don’t I won’t be heartbroken. This group of birds have been poor breeders and a pain in the ass in general.
Oh I see. So not your whole flock but a group? You didn't lose all your birds did you? I hope they come home!
Yeah the whole flock, which is only about 6 or 7. No sign of them last I looked, I’m sure they flew off to someplace. I’m not gonna sweat it, they would have gone to auction anyhow. One hen was a piss poor mother and the others almost as useless.