(WSVN) - She loves to feed the ducks … loves to see them grow from chicks to large Muscovy ducks. Her neighbor is not fond of the ducks, or rather the duck droppings. Can she keep feeding or can she be forced to stop? It’s why she called Help Me Howard with Patrick Fraser.
Yelina and animals … you don’t have to say much more.
Yelina Diaz, loves the ducks: “I love. ‘Like’ is not the word. With all due respect Patrick, I love animals.”
Loves the animals inside her home and the animals outside which she calls….
Yelina Diaz: “My duckies, well, they’re not mine. That’s not correct to say. It’s the duckies.”
Everyday the Muscovy ducks from the neighborhood come to Yelina’s driveway.
Yelina Diaz: “I tell them good morning. They go, ‘Quack, quack, quack’ in their own language and they are saying good morning back to me. And they make me happy, they make me happy.”
Yelina has fed the ducks for 34 years, from the time they are hatched ’till they are grown. She knows them all…
Yelina Diaz: “I will show you Fatso, I will show you American Airlines. He was born with a little defect on his wings. He cannot close his wings.”
After she feeds the ducks, she washes off her driveway and for a long time, washed her next door neighbor’s driveway.
Yelina Diaz: “I offered when he was being nice about it, I offered to clean his yard.”
Then her neighbor got tired of the Muscovy ducks … well specifically the Muscovy manure.
And Yelina had to make a choice … upset a neighbor or stop feeding the ducks.
Yelina Diaz: “The duckies to me are worth more than he is.”
The neighbor apparently complained to the Bent Tree Association, which sent Yelina a letter with these words in bold print, “Neighbors are complaining … you must not feed the ducks.”
Oh yes I must, said Yelina…
Yelina Diaz: “They would go hungry because there isn’t enough food around here to feed.”
Yelina says many of her neighbors also feed the ducks, and like her, don’t want to stop.
Yelina Diaz: “There is something beautiful about animals, no matter where you see them, because animals are innocent. They love you and care for you no matter if you are ugly, fat, rich, poor, sick or healthy — they just don’t care.”
Well Howard, can Yelina or anyone feed wild Muscovy ducks?
Howard Finkelstein, 7News legal expert: “Yes you can, unless your city or association forbids it. If they don’t have any rules against it, you can feed the ducks. Yelina’s association does not have any rules against it, so she can feed them. If her neighbor doesn’t like that, he would have to sue her.”
The property manager at Bent Tree is one of the nicest I have ever talked to.
Joe Sordia from Joenso Properties told me he loves animals. He does not like the manure they leave behind, but he wanted to find a way to work this out.
Joe met with Yelina and her neighbor. He suggested Yelina feed the ducks behind her townhouse, and not use so much food to attract fewer ducks.
Yelina still wants to feed them in front though to make it easier to wash off. Joe will meet with her again to try to find a solution, but Yelina did plant a hedge to deter the ducks from going on her neighbor’s property…
Yelina Diaz: “He saw the trees, he thought that was a great idea.”
Yelina and her neighbor will never see eye to eye, but Yelina is happy because right now she can continue to her eye on the ducks…
Yelina Diaz: “I am more than happy. I am grateful. Why? Because it saves them from being killed and taken away, telling me they’re gonna put them someplace else and all they are going to do is put them six feet under.”
Some of you will say, “Stop feeding the ducks.” Some will say, “Leave Yelina alone.” It’s like feral cats. Some hate them … some love them. And there is no solution that will make everyone happy.
Someone who is a real quack bothering you? Fed up with them? Contact us. We can’t spread our wings and fly in, but we can walk over with a solution.
CONTACT HELP ME HOWARD:
Email: helpmehoward@wsvn.com
Reporter: Patrick Fraser at pfraser@wsvn.com
Miami-Dade: 305-953-WSVN
Broward: 954-761-WSVN
Copyright 2024 Sunbeam Television Corp. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.