A Viscountess’ horror as a dog walker strangles her beloved duck Quackers to death on a country estate

A Viscountess has been left horrified after her beloved pet duck was strangled to death by a dog walker.

Quackers, a white runner duck aged more than 10 years, was attacked by a terrier dog in the grounds of Mapperton House in Dorset.

Julie Montagu, 50, owned Quackers and two other pet ducks. The birds are a popular tourist attraction at the estate.

A gardener who witnessed the incident reported seeing the dog drop the duck before its owner picked it up by the scruff of the neck.

She was then seen strangling Quackers before dumping his lifeless body into the tall grass.

The woman, who had ignored signs telling her to keep her dog on a leash, left the property without informing any staff member about the incident.

Lady Montagu, whose husband Luke is the Earl of Sandwich’s eldest son, said: “This is an absolutely shocking and appalling incident.

‘We had Quackers for 10 years and he was one of the most popular animals on the farm.

‘The duck was chased by a small brown and white terrier type dog and the owner saw this happen and the duck was flapping around and she took the duck in her hands and strangled it and threw it into the tall grass.

“It took us over an hour to find her because the dog’s owner ran out, she got in her car and drove away.”

Now he is asking the dog walker to come forward to offer an apology and an explanation.

The Viscountess said: ‘We are deeply upset, the whole team here is upset. The Duck Runners are part of Mapperton.

‘We have two other similar runner ducks who have been missing their friend. They were our three musketeers and the other two have been running around looking for him.

‘The fact that she took matters into her own hands, literally, to do something so inhumane is appalling.

‘We want to appeal to her so we can talk to her and get an explanation and an apology.

“Many of our employees have been affected by the incident and some have been reduced to tears.”

Mapperton House has 1,900 acres of land, which is home to cows, chickens, ducks and other animals. It has recently been carrying out a wildlife restoration project.

There are signs around the estate reminding the 15,000 annual visitors to keep their dogs on a leash.

Quackers has since been buried in the garden.

Lady Montagu said she would not involve the police or the RSPCA because she only wanted an apology.

Mapperton House is a Jacobean mansion and will be open to the public from 31 March to 30 September.

It has been the setting for numerous films, including the 2021 remake of Rebecca, starring Lily James, and the 1995 film Emma with Gwyneth Paltrow.

It houses gardens, a café, a wild play area and a self-guided safari.

It was voted Historic Homes’ 2020 “Garden of the Year” and “Best Mansion in the Country” by Country Life.

Lady Montagu has created a YouTube channel called “American Viscountess” documenting her life on the estate. It currently has 223,000 subscribers.