RobA
Platinum Member
Snapping turtles have taken full grown ducks from my pond. I don't think turtles have to be huge to grab a duck from underneath and pull it down.
Ducks!
- Thread starter dooleysm
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Flatheadyoungin
Veteran Member
put you some turtle jugs out and you find out:thumbsup:
i've seen turtles pull the jug under water for what seemed like a long time and then pop up somewhere else......put the lid on a 1 gallon jug and go push it down in some water...hard to do........turtles must be crazy strong and if you are "feeding" them, they probably are good sized
i've seen turtles pull the jug under water for what seemed like a long time and then pop up somewhere else......put the lid on a 1 gallon jug and go push it down in some water...hard to do........turtles must be crazy strong and if you are "feeding" them, they probably are good sized
Thought I'd give an update on my duck house project. I got around to it last weekend. I ended up using all scrap material I had on hand. The only things I bought were 3 hinges for the lid, and a handle for the hinged portion of the lid. The house is 3'x9' and about 2' tall. The roof and 3 sides are covered in metal. One 3' side is open and there's no floor. I dug an area out in one corner of the pond and about half the house sits on land and the other half sticks out into the water. I've got 2 2x6 posts nailed to the end over the water, going down and resting on the bottom. It was a quick job and it's not the prettiest thing in the world.
I took the ducks' food away Friday evening and built most of the house then. I finished it Saturday morning and we moved it down to the pond and got it in place. I put a bowl of food in the house and moved the ducks down there. They were hesitant to stay in the house at first, but we stayed on the bank and kept them from coming up on land anywhere but in the house. They now spend most of their time in the house. They seem to be doing great. They have taken to the water and seem to be gorging on all the algae. I've spent all spring fighting that stuff with chemicals and the ducks have almost totally eliminated it in just a couple days. I wish I had known this sooner.
So far, so good. Keeping my fingers crossed!
I took the ducks' food away Friday evening and built most of the house then. I finished it Saturday morning and we moved it down to the pond and got it in place. I put a bowl of food in the house and moved the ducks down there. They were hesitant to stay in the house at first, but we stayed on the bank and kept them from coming up on land anywhere but in the house. They now spend most of their time in the house. They seem to be doing great. They have taken to the water and seem to be gorging on all the algae. I've spent all spring fighting that stuff with chemicals and the ducks have almost totally eliminated it in just a couple days. I wish I had known this sooner.
So far, so good. Keeping my fingers crossed!
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jinman
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Nice! If it works to keep your ducks safe long-term, even nicer.:thumbsup:
Flatheadyoungin
Veteran Member
That's a beautiful looking pond! I saved it under my "Pond Ideas" folder. Do you have any more to share?
That pond I was talking about would get little itty bitty looking lilly pads. I always heard it called duck weed. It would take over the pond QUICKLY! We would take rakes and pull it up on the bank. We would, of course, would miss some. When we came back the next day and over the next week, we lost all ground we had gained. My aunt and uncle got some ducks and they would tear through it in a couple of days and keep it clean. When I watched them eat it, it didn't seem like they swallowed it....almost like they chewed on it and then spit it back out.....but I could be wrong.
Thanks for giving us an update.....
That pond I was talking about would get little itty bitty looking lilly pads. I always heard it called duck weed. It would take over the pond QUICKLY! We would take rakes and pull it up on the bank. We would, of course, would miss some. When we came back the next day and over the next week, we lost all ground we had gained. My aunt and uncle got some ducks and they would tear through it in a couple of days and keep it clean. When I watched them eat it, it didn't seem like they swallowed it....almost like they chewed on it and then spit it back out.....but I could be wrong.
Thanks for giving us an update.....
My pro tip for ponds is to find someone who knows what they're doing. I thought I had, but last minute they sent out a different dude to dig the pond. My dam leaks. Knowledgable people I've talked to say that my soil was too rocky to build a proper dam.
It looks nice when it's full, and it stayed full last summer, but we had an unusually wet summer. We'll see how it goes this summer.
It looks nice when it's full, and it stayed full last summer, but we had an unusually wet summer. We'll see how it goes this summer.