sick duck

[Bird Woman]

I have a female duck, approx. 4 months old... found her about an hour ago making moaning noises with each breath. Her crop looks distended and is extremely soft, almost puffy. Clear liquid drips from her nostrils. She walks around OK and does not seem to be in any pain... when I put her in my lap and stroke her neck, she stretches is out and lays her head down... and she makes no noise, but when she raises her head, the wheezing/rails/moaning noise starts again. Her bill is extremely hot...
For lack of anything else to do, and not knowing just what is wrong, I have secluded her, put her in a cage, and supplied her with Tetracycline dosed water.
Anyone know anything for me to do?
Thanks,
Carol

 

[buff goose guy]

@Miss Lydia can help and so can @Amiga

 

[Amykins]

Putting just one dose of antibiotic in her water won't do much, and unless you continue dosing her for at least a week or so all it will accomplish is developing antibiotic-resistant bacteria and she will be even harder to treat! Please do me a favor, hold her up and smell her breath as you gently squeeze her crop. Emphasis on gently! Is there a sour smell to it?

The hot bill also has me really worried. Usually when a duck shows signs of lethargy like that, along with a fever, it means that they're close to succumbing to a nasty infection. If there's any way you can, please get her to a vet!

 

[Bird Woman]

Yes, thank you. I really hesitated to start the Tetracycline because I know it's for a 10 day run. She has no odor from the crop. She made it thru the night, I listened to her all night after I went to bed at 3 this morning. I have replenished her liquids and cleaned her cage. Nothing much interesting there. She is still making the noises, but not as often per minute ( respirations have slowed some). She is up and walking around the cage and waddling her tail back and forth like a happy duck, just making the noise. On phone to vet's office right now as I type this...

 

[Amykins]

Excellent, I hope the vet is able to give you good advice! I'm not saying administering tetracycline was bad, it was a good call, I just meant that once you've started it's best to keep giving it to her. The vet will let you know for how long, or if you need to come in and get a different type of medicine. Please keep us posted, I hope she makes a full recovery!

 

[Bird Woman]

Have a 4 o'clock appointment, thanks

 

[Bird Woman]

Home with the duck. The vet has no experience treating ducks or any type of "exotics". He did an exam concentrating on the lungs, tho. Made several phone calls and there is no one within an hour's drive from here who does have experience. He suggested that if I wanted to make the drive, A&M has a facility where their students rotate thru, but, if they were not making it their specialty, I might not be any better off, or some words to that effect.
He seems to think it might be Aspergillosis simply because of all the rain and the fact that she sometimes hangs out in the goat shed where the bedding is hay, and her lungs seem to be irritated. He did advise me to keep giving the Tet as a precautionary measure to a secondary infection, tho. and he is going to try to find someone who has the antifungal to treat the lungs, just in the chance that that's what it is...
He doesn't think she is contagous, but if it is fungal, where ever she got it is, of course.
He really didn't offer me much encouragement, but did say that they usually go down pretty quick.
Will try to keep you updated, if you want.

 

[Amykins]

Aspergillosis can be very serious! If it is, there are treatment options, but it is a lengthy and potentially expensive process. There are fungal cultures to test for it, but if there's no one that treats birds (seriously, no one in an hour's distance treats birds, what?) I'm not sure what to tell you. :/ An obvious first step is to close off any area where fungal spores may be growing and clean, clean, clean!

 

[Amiga]

Here is some information in the story of Laddy

http://www.majesticwaterfowl.org/mmissue121.htm

 

[Bird Woman]

Thanks for the article. I did not know that Aspergillosis was so debilitating. Since reading this I hope she only has a slight lung infection. thanks again, carol