Fort Shantok Muscovy Duck Rescue

When a couple of local citizens alerted us about nine Muscovy ducks abandoned at Fort Shantok, they helped us uncover who we needed to contact for permissions in getting them out of there.

Fort Shantok is governed by the Mohegan Tribal Council, which meant we had to get their permission before removing the abandoned ducks. We want to thank Kevin and the Tribal Council for working so quickly to secure that permission.

As many of you know, Muscovy Ducks do not belong in the wild. According to the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, it is illegal to breed Muscovy ducks without special permits and just as illegal to allow for their escape. Majestic contacted the actual law-writer when the restrictions were added regarding Muscovy ducks and we have been told we are operating within the spirit of these laws, when we remove Muscovy ducks from the wild (on a onesy-twosy basis) and place them into homes with full aviary protection at all times.

If you have pet Muscovy ducks, please be sure you are following these guidelines which prevent them from becoming invasive in areas, or from succumbing to the elements (as is commonly the case, here up north).

To learn more about Muscovy ducks Click Here .

Unfortunately, even though Majestic received rapid approval to safely remove the dumped Muscovy ducks from Fort Shantok, someone else came in and captured 7 of the friendly ducks without Tribal approval just two days before our arrival. 

If you have any information about the identity of the person or people who illegally dumped the Muscovy ducks at Fort Shantok, or the identity of those who illegally removed the Muscovy ducks afterwards (it is suspected that these ducks were harmed), please share that information with us, so we can try to get justice for these animals.

If you ever visit the scenic Fort Shantok park (which also harbors burial grounds) and witness anyone disturbing, introducing or removing plants or animals, don't be afraid to immediately call 911 and report them to the police. We need YOUR help protecting this beautiful area. People should not be hunting or gathering from this sacred place.

Mohegan Tribe of Indians of Connecticut Code of Ordinances (Click to view full codes)

ARTICLE VI. -MOHEGAN ANIMAL CONTROL ORDINANCE

This article is established for the management and regulation of wildlife and domestic animals on the Mohegan Indian Reservation. The Mohegan Indian Reservations is home to a variety of wildlife and domestic animals. On occasion, wildlife enters public areas and may become endangered or endanger people, and domestic animals may become lost or homeless. While all means shall be taken to safely remove and relocate wildlife and uncontrolled domestic animals from public areas whenver possible, at times unhealthy or dangerous animals must be managed by other means.

Sec. 8-102 Scope

The following code overns all activities within the boundaries of Shantok. All persons who enter Shantok agree to abide by and are subject to this code. Any person who violates this code may be removed from Shantok, fined and/or subject to prosecution.

Sec. 8-105 Vandalism/Destruction and Carrying off Property

(a) No person shall deface, alter, remove or damage any... vegetation, earth or rock material, trees or fuel wood. No wildlife shall be molested, touched, disturbed or fed.

(b) The Mohegan Tribal Council may grant, upon written application, permission to collect specimens, take samples and conduct other investigations for scientific or educational purposes...

Sec. 8-106 Hunting, Firearms, Exposives, Weapons

(c) Hunting and trapping are prohibited at Shantok.

Sec. 8-108 Pets and Other Animals

(a) Pets and other animals, including but not limited to dogs, cats and horses are prohibited in all areas of Shantok (with the exception of seeing eye dogs, handicap assistant animals).

Bringing a pet into Shantok Penalty:  $50 

Sec. 8-113 Dumping

Disposing of any material in Shantok which was not accumulated during the use of such faciliities is prohibited.

Rescuing Loche & Key from Fort Shantok

Locals, Suzy and David, continued to visit and feed (with Tribal permission) the two remaining male Muscovy ducks and quickly captured Key (who we featured as rescued and adopted in last month's newsletter).

Capturing Loche was not nearly as simple. Desperate to save him, we ordered rescue equipment we've been eyeing since our very inception because it went on sale for 45% off! Yes, our sanctuary finally purchased a net gun! (We will do an article about our net gun selection in an upcoming newsletter.)

After only two pratice shots on a basketball (video on Facebook and Instagram!), we headed out to Fort Shantok where their security team was waiting for us. And now it's time to shout out to all of the amazing security people who helped keep an eye on the Muscovy ducks, alerted us when Loche was present, kept others from disturbing him until we could catch him and who were an intregral part of crowd control during rescue attempts. Thank you!

With Tribal permission we went out to the park again with our net gun (which looks like a flashlight) and Tony nabbed Loche on the first attempt! Safely netted and loaded into the car, we thanked Suzy and David for all of their help. Without them, we could not have rescued these two boys. They didn't just contact us and say, "fix this," they contacted us and said, "this is how we're going to hands-on help you fix this." Amazing!

Loche stayed at our sanctuary long enough to confirm he was parasite free, then we clipped his wings and called his new Momma. She arrived days later and brought Loche to her home to be reunited with his brother Key and the cha-cha-cha'ing and tail wagging between brothers was phenomenal! If you haven't checked out the video on our social media, you're missing out! It was joyous!

This rescue took many people:  Suzy, David, Kevin, The Mohegan Tribal Council, the Fort Shantok Security Team, adoptive Momma Aimee and all of our donors who helped us purchase the net gun. THANK YOU, EVERYONE!

Matched Fundraiser Results!

The last of the mailed in checks from our $1 for $1 matched fundraiser have arrived including an unbelievable one at the feathery tailed end! Wow!

We raised a total of $7402.04!

We want to thank EVERYONE who donated to our sanctuary and our beautiful rescues!

We especially want to thank our Majestic sponsors who offered up their $5000 for the match, which was the heart of the entire fundraiser. You are such amazing people--thank you and BLESS YOU!

But wait... there's MORE! As a Merry Christmas surprise, our sponsors called us up to tell us that they had decided to match the FULL $7402.04 right down to those last four pennies! WOW! AMAZING!!! Your kindness to our sanctuary (and our family) has always been a source of bright light shining warmly through our hearts! Thank you and Bless you...

TinTin's Tubhouse is OPEN!

We want to thank TinTin's family for donating our new tubhouse and the bathtub inside! You have been so supportive of our rescues and Winston is thriving in this warm new winter set-up!

We'd also like to thank Tony Phalstaf for all of his help building the interior waterproof walls and window frames, as well as constructing the two overhead storage shelves, the tub base AND the outside predator proof wire window frames for all of the four windows (including an extra one that allows for the placement of an air conditioner in summer). Are we forgetting anything?! If so, thank you so much for that too!

The duck duct tape over the door is only temporary to cover a slight draft. The building is guaranteed for life and someone is coming out soon to adust the doors for us.

It's very difficult for a Momma Duck to hold a camera while also chaperoning a special needs duck in the tub, or while drying him afterwards, so here's photo of Winston tidying up his dry feathers in the blow drying station afterwards!

You can see Miracle splashing around in the tub instead:

Miracle is staying in the Tubhouse with Winston, so he has company. We carry her over to our big Courtyard pond for outside swims in the enclosure every few days as well.

We still have a few final touches including a very special sign for the outside of the door and a new heater. This new one will be able to run even more safely, which means it can stay on as needed 24/7 (on a thermostat setting of 60 F).

Winston's Blow Dryer Station Mats

We found these wonderful 20' x 30', Gorilla Grip, super soft Chenille, machine washable, indoor mats! We ordered three of these (in different colors!) for Winston, so he always has a clean one ready for use. They work great! They help soak up the water from his tummy while we blow dry--much better than constantly replacing towels as they get soaked. And, he can get a good grip on them, even with his bum foot and easily stand up. Fantastic!

FOUR Special Gift Tubes! 

We have a FOUR very special gift tubes leftover from our matched fundraiser! Although colors may vary, each one contains a square duck pillowcase, a pair of rare ducky webbed feet socks, a duck snowball maker, a duck ruler, a duck eraser, 2 duck keychains, 5 multi-colored fairy ducks, a set of Pekin duck earrings, a crafty transparent picture booklet with beautiful little drawings (there is a duck on one of the pages!), a goose zipper bag, fun face gems and a temporary tattoo. Please note:  the duck air fresheners (in the ziplock bags) and the fake eyelashes would NOT fit into the tubes and are NOT included in the tubes).

We have TWO gold tubes raising funds for Majestic Waterfowl Sanctuary and we have TWO blue tubes raising funds for Pacific Waterfowl Rescue (our west coast friends!).

If you are interested in one of these fundraising gifts, please email us to confirm availablity before you donate (director@majesticwaterfowlDOTorg).

These tubes can ship anywhere in the continental USA for a minimum donation of $45.00!

Great Items for Momma & Poppa Ducks and Geese!

For more thorough information on pet ducks and geese, check out The Ultimate Pet Duck Guidebook and The Ultimate Pet Goose Guidebook, which are both available in b&w and color versions on AmazonSmile. Each is over 400 pages and contains hundreds of helpful (and fun!) photos and diagrams.

The Ultimate Pet Goose Guidebook (b&w):  $24.99
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1517238951/ref=ox_sc_act_title_2?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&psc=1

The Ultimate Pet Goose Guidebook (color):  $64.99
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1508497621/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&psc=1

The Ultimate Pet Duck Guidebook (b&w):  $26.99
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1517238951/ref=ox_sc_act_title_2?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&psc=1

The Ultimate Pet Duck Guidebook (color):  $64.99
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1501043803/ref=ox_sc_act_title_3?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&psc=1

Majestic Waterfowl Sanctuary makes no representation, warranty, or guarantee in connection with any guidance provided on this website. Majestic Waterfowl Sanctuary expressly disclaims any liability or responsibility for loss or damage resulting from its use or for the violation of any federal, state or municipal law or regulation with which such guidance may conflict. Any guidance is general in nature. In addition, the assistance of a qualified professional should be enlisted to address any specific circumstances.

© Majestic Waterfowl Sanctuary 2021