I live in Cypress and my lot backs up to a lake. Since the Tax Day flood a few years ago, the lake has been home to Muscovy ducks. Now the ducks are nesting and ruining my yard while digging to find food.

Running them off of the property has proven to not be effective. I have also spread a granular "Repel All" product, but the ducks don't seem to be affected.

Any ideas on how to manage keeping the ducks out of my yard?

Thanks.

INGREDIENTS
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• 3 tablespoons salt
• 4 cloves garlic, smashed
• 1 shallot, peeled and sliced
• 6 sprigs thyme
• Coarsely ground black pepper
• 4 duck legs with thighs
• 4 duck wings, trimmed
• About 4 cups duck fat

[/ol]PREPARATION
[ol]

[ol]

1. Sprinkle 1 tablespoon of salt in the bottom of a dish or plastic container large enough to hold the duck pieces in a single layer. Evenly scatter half the garlic, shallots, and thyme in the container. Arrange the duck, skin-side up, over the salt mixture, then sprinkle with the remaining salt, garlic, shallots, and thyme and a little pepper. Cover and refrigerate for 1-2 days.

2. Preheat the oven to 225F. Melt the duck fat in a small saucepan. Brush the salt and seasonings off the duck. Arrange the duck pieces in a single snug layer in a high-sided baking dish or ovenproof saucepan. Pour the melted fat over the duck (the duck pieces should be covered by fat) and place the confit in the oven. Cook the confit slowly at a very slow simmer just an occasional bubble until the duck is tender and can be easily pulled from the bone, 2-3 hours. Remove the confit from the oven. Cool and store the duck in the fat. (The confit will keep in the refrigerator for several weeks.)

[/ol][/ol]

I'll give you the same advice I gave some idiots in our subdivision who wanted to spend a couple thousand of the HOA's money to relocate a bunch of ducks off of 2 lakes: if you don't want to be bothered by ducks, don't live on or near a lake, others will come no matter what you do.

Get a dog?

aggiedent said:

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I'll give you the same advice I gave some idiots in our subdivision who wanted to spend a couple thousand of the HOA's money to relocate a bunch of ducks off of 2 lakes: if you don't want to be bothered by ducks, don't live on or near a lake, others will come no matter what you do.

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This is kind of what I was thinking. Living on a lake and complaining about lake dwelling animals being on the property is the epitome of ^H^H^H^^H (trying to be nicer). If you don't want wildlife, stay in the city.

TxFig said:

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aggiedent said:

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I'll give you the same advice I gave some idiots in our subdivision who wanted to spend a couple thousand of the HOA's money to relocate a bunch of ducks off of 2 lakes: if you don't want to be bothered by ducks, don't live on or near a lake, others will come no matter what you do.

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This is kind of what I was thinking. Living on a lake and complaining about lake dwelling animals being on the property is the epitome of ^H^H^H^^H (trying to be nicer). If you don't want wildlife, stay in the city.

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they aren't native here. a little different than complaining about whitetail eating your roses.

Mr. AGSPRT04 said:

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Get a dog?

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my parents live on 17 acres and have a large stock tank on the property. A few years ago 5 of these ducks decided this body of water would be a great place to live,

My dad has a blue heeler who barks at anything and kills snakes when they invade her yard.

These crazy ducks will fly into the yard and sit next to that dog and they all just get along, it is just so funny to watch.

No, they are not native. Neither are folks of European decent. But guess what......we're all "native" now.

bcschae said:

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I live in Cypress and my lot backs up to a lake. Since the Tax Day flood a few years ago, the lake has been home to Muscovy ducks. Now the ducks are nesting and ruining my yard while digging to find food.

Running them off of the property has proven to not be effective. I have also spread a granular "Repel All" product, but the ducks don't seem to be affected.

Any ideas on how to manage keeping the ducks out of my yard?

Thanks.

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Round-Up

TxFig said:

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aggiedent said:

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I'll give you the same advice I gave some idiots in our subdivision who wanted to spend a couple thousand of the HOA's money to relocate a bunch of ducks off of 2 lakes: if you don't want to be bothered by ducks, don't live on or near a lake, others will come no matter what you do.

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This is kind of what I was thinking. Living on a lake and complaining about lake dwelling animals being on the property is the epitome of ^H^H^H^^H (trying to be nicer). If you don't want wildlife, stay in the city.

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like living in Houston and complaining about homeless people.

Just for the record, if you like duck, Muscovy is dam good. Maybe one notch below tree duck but a lot bigger. Not too far from sandhill.

We had about 30 of those settle in a pond in our community in the DFW area, and on a daily basis they crapped all over three homeowners' yards. I had the great misfortune to be on the HOA board at the time. You would not believe the fighting that took place over those $#@& muscovy ducks. The board voted to spend the obscene amount of money to have them drugged and re-homed outside of town. In jest, I offered a 12 gauge solution, and received a tongue lashing.

There was one board member who vehemently dissented over the relocation plan.

Day comes for relocation, and the lone dissenter had used food to draw most of the ducks away from the pond. And less than half of the ducks were caught. One of the impacted homeowners (I can't imagine who) spread (est.) 50 pounds of bird seed over the dissenter's yard, attracting hundreds of pigeons who roosted in said location.

I resigned from the board shortly thereafter...

I dont trust ducks that dont migrate. All houston burbs are infested with them.

Over the years we've had the occasional Muscoveys and the white ones with orange bill on our canal and adjacent yards in Flour Bluff. As we aren't permanent residents, it never ceases to amaze me that somehow, after a month or two hiatus, we'll return and the ducks have magically disappeared.

aggiedent said:

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No, they are not native. Neither are folks of European decent. But guess what......we're all "native" now.

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This is quite the nonsensical response.

After you confit the legs and make stock from the leftover carcasses, make seared duck breast. https://andrewzimmern.com/2017/01/05/sous-vide-crisped-duck-juniper-port-recipe/

Well then it fits in the thread quite well.

If you would like me to break down my meaning for you, I'd be glad to.

Muscovy ducks (like House Sparrows, European Starlings, Feral Hogs, and Chinese Tallow Trees) are not native. But once introduced they thrived as good if not better than local species.

We will never get rid of them. They are here to stay. Hence, they have become native.

JosephMarcus said:

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bcschae said:

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I live in Cypress and my lot backs up to a lake. Since the Tax Day flood a few years ago, the lake has been home to Muscovy ducks. Now the ducks are nesting and ruining my yard while digging to find food.

Running them off of the property has proven to not be effective. I have also spread a granular "Repel All" product, but the ducks don't seem to be affected.

Any ideas on how to manage keeping the ducks out of my yard?

Thanks.

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Round-Up

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That will just give them cancer and it will take 10-15 years before the die off.

And in the interim, there will be lawsuits filed on their behalf.

For legal purposes, they ARE considered native to far South Texas.

Glen Lakes by any chance?

If it was, that was the biggest cluster I ever dealt with when I was with TPWD. Both sides had more money than sense, I would swear everyone was an attorney, and everyone was friends with a TPWD commissioner (not kidding). I had to bow out when they lawyered up.

Not Glen Lakes.

The HOA situation I suffered through never got so far as going nuclear with the attorneys, but I heard rumblings about threats of lawsuits between a few homeowners.

The day my house sold in that neighborhood was one of the best days in my life since college.

And now, my family lives in the country. No neighborhoods. No HOAs. Just peace and quiet.

Kill them.

Quote:

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Birds not protected by any state or federal law include European starlings, English sparrows, feral rock doves (common pigeon), Egyptian geese, Muscovy ducks (only outside Rio Grande Valley counties) and Eurasian collared-doves; these species may be killed at any time, their nests or eggs destroyed, and their feathers possessed.

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SSS