70 ducks, other critters stink up apartment

The Capital Times ^ | May 6, 2004 | Staff

[Akira]

GERMANTOWN (AP) - More than 70 ducks in a basement pen were only part of the menagerie authorities found in a Milwaukee area apartment after other residents complained of the stench coming from the unit.

"The smell was just unbelievable," said William Mitchell, a state conservation warden who found the ducks in the pen with droppings covering the floor. "It was really stinking. ... It made my eyes water."

Others among about 200 live creatures in the apartment included snakes, rats, turtles, a pair of alligators, toads and scorpions.

Animal carcasses were in a freezer, and decaying carcasses were in an adjacent garage. Among the dead animals were raccoons, rabbits, opossums and squirrels.

Jamie L. Verburgt, the apartment resident, was given two state citations in connection with possession of game animals out of season, Mitchell said.

"She said they were car kills," Mitchell said. "I warned her that it is illegal to take dead animals off the side of a road.

"The dead animals were used to feed the live animals, and some were given to flesh-eating beetles," he said.

The live animals were seized by the Washington County Humane Society, pending investigation by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Mitchell said.

The humane society was called about 10 p.m. Tuesday and didn't finish gathering up the ducks until 3 a.m. Wednesday, said executive director Marnie Brown.

Mitchell said federal wildlife officials plan to investigate those who sold animals to Verburgt via the Internet.

"She intended to sell the animals to pet stores," he said.

John Walters, Verburgt's boyfriend, was prosecuted in 2000 for mistreatment of exotic animals. At that time, police found a female cougar, female leopard, silver-tailed fox, monitor lizard, two caracals, a coatimundi, chinchilla and a reticulated python in Walter's apartment in Greenfield, another Milwaukee suburb.

He pleaded guilty to five charges of mistreatment as part of a plea agreement that ordered him to refrain from possessing any more animals.

Verburgt agreed Tuesday night to vacate the apartment immediately, said Tracy LaLonde, whose husband, Michael, owns the building. Verburgt will be allowed to return to claim her personal possessions, she said. A formal eviction order is pending, she added.

She said Verburgt moved into the apartment three months ago.

Verburgt's telephone number was unlisted when The Associated Press attempted to call her for comment Wednesday night.

[Akira]

I hope that more than these 2 measly citations are forthcoming. Holy crap.

[joesnuffy]

The joys of owning rental property....

[glock rocks]

sheesh. Sounds like you can't even fill your apartment with road kill anymore without Big Brother coming down on ya...

[GaltMeister]

70 ducks ... all I can think to say is AFLAC!

[GaltMeister]

sheesh. Sounds like you can't even fill your apartment with road kill anymore without Big Brother coming down on ya...

I hear ya, bro. I guess I better take off early today, go home and do something about that dead moose in the guest bedroom.

[ChefKeith]

MRDUCKS
MRNOT
MRDUCKS
NRNOT
SMR CMWINGS
LIB

[ken5050]

Dumkofp!.. The ducks are alligator food...

[Akira]

one for just damn...

[Thinkin' Gal]

What I want to know is...

Did they talk to the animals?

[BlueLancer]

70 ducks?!!

Have you ever tried to herd ducks?

[myprecious]

I have 10 baby chicks in my kitchen right now. It is a little chilly to keep them out in the pen at night, so they are spending a few days in a storage tub. I have a heating pad draped in the corner to keep them warm. You eventually get used to the "cheap, cheap".....

[tubebender]

She was raising them for Fuee Grass...

[Akira]

And you recently told me you wanted ducks???

[afraidfortherepublic]

I hatched 3 wild ducklings in my laundry room a few years ago -- they were really messy and had to be moved outside to a large pen when they were about 1/4 grown. Finally I had to move them down to the river and let them go. Trouble was, the other wild ducks didn't like them and pecked at them. I'm sure they didn't survive the winter.

It's not nice to fool with Mother Nature!

[Eaker]

I hear ya, bro. I guess I better take off early today, go home and do something about that dead moose in the guest bedroom.

Why?

Did it bite your sister or eat all your cheese??

[lilylangtree]

Take a look at this comical critter fest:

http://media.euniverse.com/funpages/cms_content/1956/squirrel_revival1.swf

[GaltMeister]

Did it bite your sister or eat all your cheese??

Even worse - It bit my sister's cheese.

It needed killin' - So I kilt it real good.

[blue-duncan]

This is nothing. You think this is bad, just wait 'till you see the Fleet Center in Boston in July 26-29. That's when you will really see a large room filled with stinking critters!!

[TexasRepublic]

I'll bet that brain-damaged woman is a Democrat.

[Akira]

Very nice. Looks like my backyard. ;-)