Duck goes missing from Grove Gardens

MISSING: A friendly white duck that answers to the name Quackers. Last seen at Grove Gardens in Clinton, this Pekin duck’s family misses her.

Quackers cannot fly. She is not used to living in the wild. She needs to be returned to her home.

A $500 reward is being offered for any information about the Bousquet family’s missing pet duck.

“Somebody out there knows something,” said a Clinton resident who is offering the reward. She has requested anonymity.

“I just don’t know why they’re not talking,” the 64-year-old said. “I thought the offer of some money would help them find their conscience.”

Quackers and her sister, Peanut Butter, were welcomed into the Bousquet home in April when they were just a day old.

Lauren Bousquet, 21, said the ducklings became members of her family, along with her parents, Lisa and Gary, sister, Chloe, 19, and brother, Jack, 14, and Cody, their golden retriever.

At about 10 weeks old, the ducks were moved to a secure enclosure at the family landscaping and garden business, Grove Gardens.

Two weeks later, a raccoon got into the corral, killing Peanut Butter and seriously injuring Quackers. Subsequently, Quackers has a scar above one eye and a bald patch where she is missing feathers on her back.

After her recovery at the Bousquet home, she was returned to her enclosed pen, along with two other newly acquired ducks.

On the evening of July 25, Quackers disappeared from her home at Grove Gardens. She has not been seen since. And, her family has become quite attached to her.

“They’re the most loving, compassionate creatures,” Lauren Bousquet said. “Quackers would literally come up and sit with you and cuddle with you.”

“We would take them outside, they would swim in the pools, we would wash them and feed them little snacks like blueberries and watermelon,” she said.

“They really just loved being outside,” she added. “They always wanted to be with us, which is super important to me because it just leaves a mark on you when an animal does care about you as much as you care about them.”

This is exactly what spurred the reward offer.

“It’s a family pet and there are children involved,” said the anonymous donor. “I have a dog and I cannot imagine not knowing what happened to him. To have him just disappear from my sight and not know what happened to him, I just can’t even imagine that.”

The case of missing Quackers is an open case with the Clinton Police Department.

“During my investigation, through some leads through social media, we were able to develop a few suspects currently that are still being spoken with in regards to the duck actually being taken from the property and then released,” said Officer Glenn Smith.

According to Smith it is unknown at this time how many individuals were involved with the alleged theft.

“There’s multiple suspects at this point and different degrees of what they were involved with or what they may or may not have known,” said Smith.

The duck allegedly was left at Heser’s Pond at the corner of Airline Road and Old Nod Road.

“The whereabouts of the duck currently is unknown based on the fact that it’s a domesticated animal and it has not been located,” said Smith. “It’s presumed to have either flown away or maybe met its demise potentially by an animal.”

While it is unknown at this time what the charges could be, Smith said they possibly could include larceny, a misdemeanor, and trespassing.

“We’re waiting to see, based on the statutes of the law and what people are telling us,” said Smith.

“I’m trying to do this delicately to get as much information for the family so we can close this out and they can at least have some sort of closure,” he added.

Smith added that he appreciates all the leads that have come in from the family and local residents. He expects an arrest.

“This has been very important for a lot of people in town because they all have pets and it hits home,” he said.

“That’s why we’re working on this diligently and we’re going to hopefully wrap this up and have the people that are involved answering for their misdealings in stealing the duck and they’ll have their day in court,” he said.