Night Is When Duck Keeping Is Won or Lost
A Khaki Campbell cannot fight, cannot fly meaningfully, and does not roost out of reach, so nearly every serious loss happens between dusk and dawn. The non-negotiable is a proper night house: solid or fine-mesh construction a fox cannot bite through or reach through, a floor or an apron that stops digging, ventilation high up where paws cannot follow, and a door you actually shut every single evening, ideally latched against clever paws. Chicken wire keeps ducks in but does not keep predators out; welded mesh is the standard a Campbell's life depends on. Put the house inside the run rather than at its edge if you can, so a breach of the outer fence is not instantly a breach of the bedroom.
The Daytime Run: Digging, Climbing, and Wings
Daytime security works on the other directions of attack. Skirt the run fencing outward at ground level or bury its edge, because digging under takes a fox minutes in soft soil. Where sparrowhawks, buzzards, or owls hunt, a netted or wired roof over at least part of the run gives the ducks somewhere to dash under, and shrubs or shelters inside the run serve the same purpose; Campbells know their vulnerability and stress visibly in a bare, open pen. These ducks are light and surprisingly athletic for their size, and a startled Campbell can flutter over low fencing, so run sides need real height or a covered top near roads and neighbours' dog-owning gardens. Gates should be self-closing if human memory is honestly assessed, and the whole run deserves a weekly walk looking for the gap at ground level you cannot see from standing height.
Water Safety and the Garden Itself
Ducks need water deep enough to submerge their heads to keep eyes and nostrils healthy, but water is also a hazard to design. Ponds and troughs need gentle ramps or shallow edges so a duck, especially a young or exhausted one, can always climb out; steep-sided containers that are easy to fall into have drowned more ducks than predators in some gardens. Keep the swimming water reasonably fresh, site it where spilled water does not turn the run entrance into a skating rink of mud, and fence off garden chemicals, slug treatments, and treated timber offcuts from the run entirely. Dogs, including your own, must be supervised around Campbells until proven genuinely indifferent over months, not minutes; a single playful chase can injure a light duck or stop lay for a week through stress alone.
If Campbells Scatter or Stray
A frightened flock flushes in every direction and then freezes in cover, so a calm, methodical search of hedges, sheds, and neighbouring gardens, listening for the hen's unmistakable loud quack, finds more ducks than a rushed one. Herd survivors back with boards or outstretched arms at walking pace, check boundaries before assuming theft, and count beaks at dusk for several nights, because a duck hiding out rarely survives long alone. Near roads or water, speed matters most, so alert neighbours immediately rather than after your own search fails. With KinsLe, the Lost Pet Alert System sends a free alert to nearby Circle of Love members, and a neighbour who finds a khaki duck sheltering under their hedge can message you directly, reuniting a sitting duck with her flock before nightfall.