I had a baby duck that i saved from a cat. The mother duck didn't want the crippled baby and chased it away. I put it out in the yard in a pen and every night i brought it in. Then i forgot to bring it in one night and the next morning it was gone and only a few drops of blood was there. The pen was lightweight with no bottom so something could have stuck its nose under the wire and lifted the pen, i knew it wasn't that safe that's why i tried to remember to bring the duck in. But i didn't just one time and now the duck is a pile of excretement somewhere. It's bad enough the cat crippled it but then it also had to spend its last moments in terror being eaten by something that that had no business intruding into my lawn. Now i have a trapped house sparrow i'm using as bait inside a cage and i have some #1 3/4 double spring steel traps set around that pen. I hope whatever it is comes back, because however sweet that little duck was it's gonna be twice as sweet when i throw it's carcass to the coyotes.

Plinker

Prob'ly a coon.

My guess would be a raccoon.

'Coons are crafty and will even learn to work a simple latching device to get at fowl.

Check around the bottom edge of the pen for hair. If it had to squeeze under it should have left a few hairs that could be identified by most trappers.

Keep my horse feed at the barn in a metal trash-can with a tight lid to keep the varmints out. There's still a coon that's strong enough to get the lid open. If those things weighed a 100#, they would break into houses while the owner's away, steal everything out of the refrigerators, hide the firearms, and watch TV till they heard the car coming back.

quote:

If those things weighed a 100#, they would break into houses while the owner's away, steal everything out of the refrigerators, hide the firearms, and watch TV till they heard the car coming back.

I had a "Friend" like that once...

Sorry about the duck.

Well, thanks for the replies and sorry to not get back but my nephew borrowed my computer for awhile.

I tried baiting with a sparrow and then with a chipmunk but the coon if that's what it was didn't come back. Now i'm going to set a live trap by the bin where something's been tearing out the trash. Probably catch the coon there. Don't suppose the hides are worth saving in the summer.

Plinker

sorry about that duck 2,but don't rule out mr. Skunk, i'd bet it him or the racoon!!!! regards jjmp

Plink:
Sorry about the duck.

Yrs ago discovered the best bait for coyotes was a siamese cat inside a doubled wire trap tied down good.

They'll yowl forever and not shut up. Dogs will be at it even while you're shooting them. Two of us shot six out of seven one evening in the hay field.

Maybe you should bait with another duck. Nah, I'm sorry!!

George

A Siamese cat got my chicks!! My wifes ex-siamese cat. The same one that crapped in my slipper!!!.......