Four rogue ducks!
They must've found a weak area in the fence and pushed their way out.
I was able to corral them in the corner made by the trampoline wedged against the goat shed. One squeezed back in through the tiny gap. A chicken got in the mix and she too squeezed through. I figured she could fly up over the fence inside if she wanted to. Side note- she hasn't.
I caught two by the wings (you never carry a duck by its feet; there's a higher chance of breaking them than with chickens) and stuffed them through their escape hole. Did the same with the other one.
One positive from this escapade- I think all four (there for sure) are female ducks based on their quacking. Woo!
I didn't want to cut more chicken wire to patch the hole. Instead, I wove thin wire through to block the hole enough to prevent further escape.
Unfortunately, later in the day another duck escaped. She too found a weak spot and squeezed through (different from the spot I fixed). The duck was captured by my father-in-law and the neighbor's grandson and returned to the trampoline. They set water buckets in front of the hole to block more from escaping.
Why are they getting out now??? The goats love to rub against the chicken wire; it must feel good on their coats. The rubbing breaks the wire holding the chicken wire to the trampoline frame. This is just going to keep happening, the goats rubbing and weakening the the wire. We need to adjust the fencing for the ducks, let them out to forage, give them no reason to escape...
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