A pet duck who disappeared when her homeless owner died this month is safe and sound, the Hawaiian Humane Society said Monday.
Daisy the duck is being cared for by a homeless woman, said society spokeswoman Jacque Vaughn.
"She seemed to know how to take care of the duck," said Vaughn, adding that the duck appears happy and healthy.
With the death of former owner Michael Hubbard, known widely as "Duck Man," his mother feared that Daisy fell into the wrong hands or met with foul play.
Hubbard "had a lot of enemies because they were jealous of the duck," said his mom, Pat Craft, from her home in Lady Lake, Fla., on Monday. "He was a charmer. He had that much gab about him and told stories about her that people would go crazy over that duck."
Before the 54-year-old former merchant seaman’s death on March 6, Daisy often sat atop his shoulder as he walked around Waikiki, Kailua and Honolulu. She would poke her head through the top of his backpack as they rode the bus. She even went to church and sat quietly next to him.
After Hubbard’s death, Daisy’s whereabouts were a mystery. But numerous sightings of the distinctively marked black-and-white duck, who wore a colorful fabric lei, were reported to the Honolulu Star-Advertiser after a story about the duo ran Thursday following his death.
A man who visits a homeless friend at Thomas Square spotted the duck there with a homeless woman.
"It looks like a stuffed animal," he said. "It’s really tame and docile. It seemed sad because it lost its owner and companion."
David Gregoire, who frequents Thomas Square, said the homeless woman is often at Thomas Square. He said Monday he believes she "has it stashed somewhere."
"There seems to be a lot of interest and controversy surrounding Daisy," Gregoire said.
Someone made a welfare complaint to the Humane Society, so it sent investigators to make welfare checks at Thomas Square. They have made three to four checks so far, and found a homeless woman has been caring for Daisy.
An investigator went out Monday, but neither duck nor woman was seen.
"We had a relationship with this duck," Vaughn said, because Hubbard would bring the duck to the Humane Society when he had to go to the hospital.
Daisy was taken to the Humane Society 22 times, and "each time it was a big dance for us," Vaughn said. "Cats and dogs, we know what to do with. A lei-wearing duck that likes to snuggle posed a challenge for us."
She added, "The bond that Daisy had with her owner was heartwarming. The owner had a deeply troubled life. Daisy kept him together. So keeping those two together was a priority for us."
Craft said, "I imagine she misses my son. He said, ‘Mom, she’s so close to me, she cuddles up to me and never flies away or anything.’"
Hubbard was particular about whom he left his duck with when he couldn’t care for it.
Craft hopes to place the duck with either the Wild Bird Rehab Haven or Hubbard’s good friend, who duck-sat for Hubbard and agreed to take the duck.
Kathy Gumpel, former director of the Wild Bird Rehab Haven, said she found Daisy a temporary home in 2012 when Hubbard went to jail for four months after he defended Daisy by throwing a rock at a man who hit her with a stick.
"Ducks have very specific needs," she said.
Gumpel worries the homeless woman would be unable to care for a duck.
"I’m sure she grabbed the duck for the duck’s own good," she said. "She has no income and can’t take it to the vet. She can’t feed the duck."
Craft will fly to Honolulu to scatter her son’s ashes out at sea mid-April outside Honolulu Harbor.
She said the medical examiner is awaiting test results before determining cause of death, but said her son’s arteries were clogged, and there appeared to be no foul play.
She hopes to finally meet Daisy.
