adult pekin female with splayed legs and difficulty walking -- ideas, advice?

[CoriM]

Nice work duck mama!

 

[micaelasducks]

That is awesome. So happy to see her up walking. Let us know what happens once you take the splint off I have a feeling it is going to take time for this to heal but you are keeping it stable while it is.
Keep us updated.

I have read several posts saying that splinting can have unintended consequences like exacerbating swelling, decreasing circulation etc, but seeing how quickly it provided her support definitely seemed to improve her quality of life immediately (able to give herself a good preen of those belly feathers!) so I hope there are no negative effects. I am half convinced she'll have chewed it off by morning too... but it put a pep back in her step so it seems like the right move. If she needs some orthotics forever to be happy, we are ok with that!

https://imgur.com/a/R5HqcYf

It is just her and her one buddy -- who is a ten year old indian runner who is old as dirt and has survived against all odds!! -- so she can take it pretty easy.

 

[micaelasducks]

This morning she was not easily bearing weight on the splinted foot like she was last night, so I decided to unwrap it for the day. Not sure if she was just tired/sore, if the splint exacerbated the problem, or (this is what I think/hope) her foot slipped out of the stable position we had it in last night. I am wondering if we need to somehow tape the foot out flat. Going to let her relax for the day without it, do some water therapy this afternoon and give the splinting another try!

 

[micaelasducks]

attempted to re-splint this afternoon but I was alone and just could not wrangle a 10 pound duck and stabilize the foot without an extra set of hands, so settled for some deep pool water therapy and a little "pt" on the ground. she is showing some modest improvement -- able to stand up off the ground independently and take some hesitant steps. She struggles if she gets her foot stuck behind her body, but seems to be able to rotate that hip(?) joint slightly better today. she is looking a little rough/dirty, I think just because it is hard for her to balance and preen, so I washed her little face for her and she is looking a bit brighter! still cautiously optimistic... I don't necessarily think her legs are entirely fixable but hopefully can keep her quality of life adequate.

https://imgur.com/a/bG4hFw3

 

[CoriM]

Aww, poor girl. She is blessed to have you as her duck keeper though. It's clear you love her and really care and are willing to put in the effort to help her and make her happy. It's so hard to see them suffering and not know how to help.

 

[micaelasducks]

Hi all, thought I would pop in with a quick update but there is not too much to say. Rose is about the same... some good days, some bad. Continuing with meloxicam 2x a day and liquid vitamin b (which is in her little cup here). We got her some turf because she seems to do best with grass areas and their protected run is mostly dirt. She still does best on the actual grass. We are still not 100% sure about whether splints are good and bad, and it is a two person job to get on her, but we did get some 3d printed splints for her that we are going to try. Currently, lefty (the injured leg) seems stronger muscularly, but it tends to get stuck behind her or folded up so she tries to walk on her "knuckles". Right had historically been weaker and sometimes it seems to slip out from under her... But, look at how sweet she is? She is still feisty and wants to do regular duck stuff, so we are just keeping on keeping on...

Any other ideas or things to try, we are open to it!!!

 

[CoriM]

I'm sorry it's not getting better. I'm glad you're able to make things as good as possible for her. You just don't want her suffering . I can tell you love her!

 

[micaelasducks]

Unfortunately it really has not trended in the direction we have been hoping. Rosie's "Bad" leg is no longer as floppy, but she seems even more "splayed" than she was before and even with help she struggles to get up on her feet and stay there. so I made an appt for a vet -- it is a vet we credit for saving the life of Rosie's pal when she had a reproductive infection and was near death -- so I really want to see her if we need to see a vet. Nearest appointment was monday. So we will keep on trucking until then. She is still very happy and feisty, but her leg is very much contracted into this position:

 

[CoriM]

You've given her a wonderful life and I'm sure she feels your love! It's so hard, but you're doing right by her. I'm sorry!