# Possible Shooting Victim From The Duck Pond Today



## TAWhatley (Mar 6, 2001)

Things got a little crazy here this afternoon. I had gone to the duck pond around 1 PM today and made my rounds. All seemed to be fine. There were lots of nice people there feeding the birds, and I saw no birds in need of assistance.

I left and went to Petsmart to spend the weekly small fortune on bird and animal supplies and then went on to the grocery store to pick up a few things for the humans around here. Just as I was leaving the grocery store I got a call from a nice young man that lives right on the duck pond. He told me that there was someone in the park shooting the ducks and that people were running around and screaming and that the police had just arrived.

He asked if I could come by to check on the ducks as he was very ill and not able to get out and around the pond and parkland. Naturally, I was off like a shot and was back at the duck pond in minutes. 

There were four police cars and a total of about 6 officers in the park. They had a young man handcuffed and sitting on the curb at the back of the pond. I went up and asked if there were any birds needing assistance, and they responded that they didn't know. I introduced myself and said I would make a check on the birds and do my best to help any that were injured. They responded "fine, but animal control is on the way". I responded "fine, I'll just go have a look anyway".

I found one beautiful gray female that was definitely not right though not necessarily because she had been shot. She was struggling to breathe, making strange quacking sounds, rolling her head, and her eyes were definitely not right. I headed to my duck truck for a net and met up with the first animal control officer to arrive. She was new and had not a clue what to do or how to do it but was very nice. I went ahead and netted the duck after having to wait for the duck to come back close enough to the shore. About that time, a second ACO arrived .. I know her well, and she is very, very nice and very experienced. Actually she was one of the ACO's wading in the flood control channel last Sunday with me! She and I thoroughly checked the duck for wounds and found none. She kindly allowed me to go ahead and bring the duck home.

I don't know what is wrong with this duck, but it is a very strange coincidence that I didn't spot her having a problem on my first trip to the pond today and only noticed her after the shooting spree. Her legs are not broken, but she cannot stand in addition to her other problems. Botulism was suggested by one of the ACO's, but I'm pretty sure that isn't the problem.

This picture doesn't do her justice .. it was already almost completely dark when I took the pic.










Hopefully I will figure out what's going on with her tomorrow and that she will be OK.

Also, hopefully, that young nincompoop trying to shoot the ducks will get what he deserves!

Terry


----------



## Skyeking (Jan 17, 2003)

....I'm just glad that they caught the person who fired the shots.

I'm glad you were able to catch her so you can observe her, I hope she will be allright.


----------



## Maggie-NC (Jun 22, 2005)

That is an evil person who would shoot at innocent birds and he could easily have killed someone who was at the park or lived near by.

Terry, I so hope you can find out the problem with this beautiful duck. I wonder if she could have been traumatized from all the commotion?


----------



## TAWhatley (Mar 6, 2001)

Thanks Treesa and Maggie. The duck seemed some better this morning when I checked her before leaving for work. She was and is acting as if she is hurt in some way. She may have been accidentally trampled on when the park visitors scrambled when the shooting started. I'll post an update after I see how she is doing this evening.

Terry


----------



## spirit wings (Mar 29, 2008)

what a beautiful duck, what kind is she?

what they heck was that guy thinking or not thinking?...that is bizzare. hope he does not target people next......what a freak!

you never seem to have a dull day.


----------



## TAWhatley (Mar 6, 2001)

I don't know for sure what type of duck this is. I will try to research that tomorrow .. definitely a domestic breed, and she is gorgeous. She's about the same this evening .. slightly improved from when I removed her from the park but not all better yet. Hopefully she will be fine. She has a very handsome mate back at the park, and I would like to reunite them when she has recovered.

Here's the handsome guy she hooked up with at the pond:










Terry


----------



## TerriB (Nov 16, 2003)

What a great group of duck pond supporters you have there, that would react so quickly and strongly to the shooter! Sure hope the duck heals quickly. Her mate is a handsome drake!


----------



## Reti (Jul 20, 2003)

So glad they caught the shooter.
I hope the duck recovers completely and can be reunited with her handsome mate.

Reti


----------



## TAWhatley (Mar 6, 2001)

Here is a much better picture of this beautiful duck:










Terry


----------



## TerriB (Nov 16, 2003)

Beautiful feather patterns - love the blue bill!


----------



## Dezirrae (Oct 6, 2007)

I couldn't scroll fast enough through the thread to find out how the duck was doing - she's beautiful!! Thank goodness she wound up with you Terry 

I don't understand people and guns these days  Glad they caught the guy and I too hope he gets what he deserves!


----------



## Reti (Jul 20, 2003)

She is so pretty.
How is she doing today?

Reti


----------



## j_birds (Sep 8, 2008)

Thanks Terry for all you do to help these beautiful ducks. The hen looks a lot like a histrionicus h. histrionicus (Harlequin) Male is for sure a mix breed. Hen is probably a mix also. Very lovely though. Jim


----------



## TAWhatley (Mar 6, 2001)

*She Died Today ..*

I am very sorry to report that this beautiful duck died during the day today while I was at work. I saw her and took care of her this morning and while she was still not using her legs well, she did eat and drink for me. What can I say .. I'm very sad.

Terry


----------



## MaryOfExeter (Sep 30, 2007)

I'm sorry to hear that Terry  She was a very pretty duck! She was lucky to have you looking after her  You said she could have gotten trampled, that sounds very likely. She could have had some internal injuries you wouldn't have been able to help.


----------



## Reti (Jul 20, 2003)

I am so sorry this beauty didn't make it.

Reti


----------



## Grim (Jul 28, 2007)

What kind of gun was this scum bag using? If it was a pellet or BB gun maybe it's penetration into the duck would be such a small wound it would be undetectable especially through down feathers which would probably keep the duck from bleeding much. Sorry the duck died but at least it died in a safe place.


----------



## Skyeking (Jan 17, 2003)

I'm so sorry...


----------



## Margarret (May 3, 2007)

Terry,

I'm sorry this little duck didn't make it. What a pretty guy he was. 


Margaret


----------



## Dezirrae (Oct 6, 2007)

Sorry to hear that Terry  You did your best and at least she was in a loving place for her final breath.


----------



## TAWhatley (Mar 6, 2001)

Thanks for the condolences, everyone. Dr. Lee is going to do a necropsy on her today. Grim, the shooter was using a pellet rifle, and yes, it would be very difficult to detect a wound because of the dense feathering. I did look very carefully several times and didn't find anything. I have asked Dr. Lee to take some x-rays to see if any pellets do show up in the body.

Terry


----------



## maine123 (Sep 21, 2007)

Sorry to hear about the loss. Happy that she had you to look after her though.


----------



## TerriB (Nov 16, 2003)

So sorry this lovely duck didn't make it. Thank you for providing excellent supportive care. Sure hope Dr. Lee finds something that will be helpful in the prosecution.


----------



## maryjane (Jul 15, 2006)

I'm also sorry to hear that the beautiful duck didn't make it. At least she was comfortable during her last days.


----------



## TAWhatley (Mar 6, 2001)

The necropsy and x-rays found nothing significant. There were no pellets in the body and no obvious cause of death.

So very, very sad .. another in the seemingly endless number of the unfortunate.

Terry


----------



## spirit wings (Mar 29, 2008)

....................


----------



## naturegirl (Nov 7, 2005)

I'm sorry Terry. Sometimes as hard as we try our hard isn't good enough. At least you gave her support while she was with you. You are so kind and guess that is why we all love you so much here. Will her mate go on to find another mate or will he stay by himself?

Cindy


----------



## TAWhatley (Mar 6, 2001)

naturegirl said:


> I'm sorry Terry. Sometimes as hard as we try our hard isn't good enough. At least you gave her support while she was with you. You are so kind and guess that is why we all love you so much here. Will her mate go on to find another mate or will he stay by himself?
> 
> Cindy


Hi Cindy,

Her mate would have gone on and found himself another girl, but I found him dead at the pond a few days after this incident. His body was laying on the sidewalk near the edge of the pond. There were no obvious injuries, no signs of illness, and he was dry (meaning he didn't get drowned by the other hormonal males). 

Terry


----------



## Reti (Jul 20, 2003)

What a sad ending for this poor couple.

Reti


----------



## FloridaLuv (Dec 19, 2008)

Reti said:


> What a sad ending for this poor couple.
> 
> Reti


Or, A very Happy begining in Heaven! 

They are together again and perhaps it was all meant to be.....  I hope they had a secluded place to glide over the colorful waters, under the rainbow bridge and sailed off into the shimmering sunset together!


----------



## UncleBuck (Dec 23, 2008)

Just as a follow-up: Do you know what happened to this guy who did the shooting? Did he ever explain why he thought it was OK to shoot a duck in a city park?

(Wouldn't it be nice if we could stand him in the open and take shots at him with a pellet gun? Not enough to penetrate the skin, but enough to make him realize he really pissed some people off?)


----------

