KETCHIKAN — An Alaska family believes someone deliberately dumped oil on their property in an effort to kill the ducks and chickens that neighbors say attract bears.
The family keeps the ducks for their 7-year-old autistic son. The Alaska State Troopers and Department of Environmental Conservation have investigated and filed no charges, but say the oil dumping appears deliberate, the Ketchikan Daily News reports .
“We went out and fed the animals, and here comes my child’s ducks,” Williams said, “and they were all black and smelled horrible.”
The family has had to pen their nine ducks on the front deck of their home because of the oil, which has left most of their 5,000-square-foot property unfit for use.
They also have chickens, which are penned into a corner of the backyard.
State troopers questioned a neighbor after investigating the scene. The DEC has taken over the investigation.
Williams said her son would be distraught if he learns his ducks were harmed.
“Those are his ducks,” Williams said. “The chickens — I can lose a few of those; he would be all right. I can’t lose any of his ducks.”
Kelly Ludwig-Johnson, Ketchikan Gateway Borough Animal Protection Department director of animal protection, said other than losing a few feathers, the ducks should be fine.
Jordan Morales, who works as a veterinary assistant at the Ketchikan Veterinary Clinic, has started a donation box to raise money for the new fencing.
“It seems like she was specifically targeted,” Morales said.
Ludwig-Johnson said Williams isn’t the only person in the area with farm animals.
“I don’t think (the animals are) attracting bears any more than anything else,” she said. “I think people’s garbage attracts bears more.”
Comments (16)
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an idiot would do something like that, I hope they can prove who did it & lock the sob up.
Ketchikan vet clinic 97 Eichner Ave Ketchikan 99801, the checks on its way, hopefully enough is raised to build the fence & help with the clean up
Oily ignorance!
Makes a whole lot of sense to attempt to kill some birds by polluting the environment. Attracting bears? Dead animals attract more efficiently! All this done by some slob who probably has a garbage can full of rotting dinner scraps, steak bones and fish heads. What an idiot!
the person should be prosecuted
but the duck and chicken owner should also decrease their livestock. They are bear bait, pure and simple. They also fly and apparently the family didn't have remotely adequate or any fencing.
5,000 sq ft lot is really small for that many animals-which poop as much as small-medium sized dogs. No matter how diligent you are in cleaning; that many animals will smell. I believe they have at least 9 ducks and God knows how many chickens if he "can afford to lose some of them".
The noise also has to be a real annoyance to the neighbors who have to listen to it while they clean the present left on their cars and property by the flying birds.
All of these animals aren't for their kid either
If they "can afford to lose some chickens", you know all these animals are not the kid's pets. They are egg producing bear bait.
so
what that doesn't give anyone the right to do something like that
my
neighbor has chickens in their backyard pen looks to be 10x12 with a coop on one side. Never be a problem & not in violation of any ordnance. Other neighbor has a pack of dogs 5-6 kept in their yard, never walked, poop all over & bark incessantly whenever they're outside. I might not care too much for the noise but to knowingly cause harm would be BS on my part.
isldandhopper
Very well said!
isldandhopper
FYI to your readers: Ketchikan zip code is 99901. Not trying to be snarky, just trying to help.
M2
Thanks for the correction
Do the right thing,you have
Do the right thing,you have obviously never raised chickens or ducks...Most domesticated fowl are too fat to fly much. It is also a normal practice to clip the primary flight feathers on the wings to further prevent it. And most chicken coops are about that size. Never known anyone raising birds to be any more bothered by bears than any one else. Eagles on the other hand...
You beat me to it KP, I was
You beat me to it KP, I was thinking the same. I didn’t see anything in the article where these people live. Is it in town or out the road? ‘ Do the right thing” needs to purchase a condo somewhere in the middle of the city where it’s quiet and safe.
kpawsuh is right....
we had ducks in downtown Juneau as a kid. Had a coop and a kiddy pool for them, about 4-5 I think. Clipped their feathers, they fertilized the grass and provided delicious eggs, they make a not unpleasant sound, and they ate slugs.
I have several friends with chickens. Dogs are a bigger problem than bears if they are fenced in at night, and the feed is kept secure.
Yes, the neighbors should fence and clip their birds. But you work on that with them, or report them. You don't dump oil on their property or their pets.
As someone who has actually
As someone who has actually been to Ms. Williams house, and know her personally, I can assure you that at least one detail in this news report is inaccurate.
Her lot size is 17,000 sq ft. The 5,000 sq ft. is strictly the area she allows her birds to live in, with plans to extend the fencing to give them a safe area to live in while the oil damage is taken care of.
Secondly, she cannot do this without donations, and a rally from the community, there is a Reward account at Wells Fargo... Account# 8048803004 should you choose to support.
Thirdly-- her yard for the birds is surrounded by a 5 ft chainlink fence, and she clips her birds wings. They CANNOT fly (anyone that knows chickens that well knows they don't fly well either) and neither do the breed of ducks she has... Many breeds of domestic ducks are not like wild Mallard, they don't fly.
Her reference to being able to "afford to lose a couple of those" was in reference to her disabled childs mental well-being. He cannot, mentally, tolerate to lose a duck, but he does not care about the chickens as much.
It is apparent that a user or two that has commented is not familiar with livestock or poultry keeping, and really should refrain from negativity until they know the situation personally, and have personal, or extensive research experience with raising poultry.
Lastly, on this island, the black bears are GARBAGE bears. Bears were raised feasting in the open landfill for decades. Several years ago, they decided to pack up the landfill and begin to ship it south. No more garbage= very hungry bears. They search for more garbage, found in the front yards of about 10-12000 residents. And they continue to teach this garbage shredding habit to their young.
You can be rest assured, every bear on this island that is brazen enough to wander through neighborhoods, down the middle of the street, in broad daylight, is not on the hunt for a chicken meal, or a duck feast... They are searching for GARBAGE.
Personal opinions aside, this family are the victims of a malicious vandalism and attempt to kill off innocent creatures...
Comes down to legality
Raising ducks and chickens in the city limits of Ketchikan is clearly legal. Dumping oil on someone's property is not. The speculation outside of this issue is just noise.
Thanks KristinB for the additional clarification. Hope they catch the offenders sooner than later.
Once they get rid of that oil out of her yard,
they need to save it so they can dump it on the creeps that put it in her yard in the first place. Hopefully it will be mixed with duck and chicken poop for an added bonus.
Not to mention the violator's disregard for the kid's health.
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