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Humane Society captures abandoned domestic ducks

Posted at 4:16 PM, Nov 14, 2017
and last updated 2017-11-14 18:45:24-05

The Nebraska Humane Society is warning people about domesticated ducks that are being abandoned across the metro.

NHS says they've received a number of calls by people concerned about domesticated ducks being left at Omaha lakes, ponds, and lagoons. Two of them were recently captured from Standing Bear Lake.

The Humane Society says most pet ducks cannot fly like other fowl to escape the cold weather, and they can't fend for themselves.

Geese and mallards are commonly found at lakes, but if you see one that is all white with an orange bill, it could be domesticated.

“I think people let them go at the beginning of the summer thinking that they’re going to be happy not realizing once the cold weather moves in they can’t fend for themselves and we have some issues,” said Kelli Brown, NHS director of field operations. “So by the time we get a call on them, they want nothing to do with people, and then they see us coming they go out to the middle of the lake and nobody can reach them. In the wintertime, the lake freezes over, and then we run the risk of putting our people at risk walking out onto the ice, so we can’t do that. So it takes a lot of man hours, a lot of patience.”

The Humane Society says if someone is caught doing this, they could be cited for animal abandonment.

If you have a duck or pet you can’t take care of call the Nebraska Humane Society at 402-444-7800, Ext. 1.