Duck health questions

[rosa1347]

Hey all, i need a little help with my duckie doodles alphonse. He is officially 10 months as of yesterday and he reassembles a mallard but i'm not sure if that is what he is for sure, i got him from orchlens and when i contacted the hatchery they gave me march 15th as his hatch date but he was a hatchery mix pick. He is the sweetest boy and i've tried so hard to do everything in my power to keep him happy and healthy. His female friend i got for him a few months after i got him is a Muscovy, which makes her so much bigger than him lol but she is right as rain and i take pride in the fact i treat all my animals the best i can.

We hit a cold snap the last couple weeks and although i would adore having him inside full time, i simply can't with our dogs and cats, i just don't trust them and i would feel awful isolating him, especially after he has clearly bonded with one of your chickens. (he has some feathers off the back of his neck because he fights the roos to keep away from her, its the cutest little relationship) Anyways, i noticed he started getting gunky eyes and so i started bringing him in more so he had more access to his food and clean water, he got better and then this past week, its been so so cold, and although i have kept bringing him and my girl nibbles in for their water and duck feed, he just started sounding like there was something stuck in his nose. he breathes fine otherwise, its not labored and his droppings are normal and without indication of issue there, he eats and drinks normal and there is no sneezing.

I just want to know what i should look out for. I have a vet a town away that has antibiotic drops they said they could sell me for him but our vets in my area kinda acted off when i called to ask about his health once before when he started to get the sniffles. I have this stuff called VetRX, i've put it on his beak and in the spots he's pulled feathers off from the gunk that built up on his face (he scratched it off, i can't imagine it feels nice) It helped him with the sniffles pretty fast and so i thought it might help him today. He doesn't seem to keep his feathers waterproof well either so i have to make sure he dries all the way before he go's back out to the coop. I just don't want to miss something and him get seriously sick. He is staying in tonight to nurse a sore spot on his foot (not infected just a scrape i think). He means the world to me and to loose him would devastate me. we have a really strong bond, and i love him so so much.

i hope i didn't leave anything out. i thank you for reading and your replies, i'll be checking back tonight. This is my boy in the picture, he's such a sweetheart <3 don't mind my expression, lol my daughter was talking to me when i took this but he's so happy here, its hard to not show it being as its from yesterday.

 

[nuthatched]

Welcome to byc!
I wouldn't recommend to be kissing a duck or chicken, the chance for salmonella is too high.
What is his diet? Does he have a pool? Have you checked for mites?
He should be fine in the cold as long as he's out out of the wind and as dry as duck coop can get.
You will need to seperate him and his girlfriend out from the chickens, when his hormones start going soon he will try to mate your chickens and hurt them. Chickens do not have weiners and ducks do, ducks can internally impale a chicken he tries to mate, and he will.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Bringing them in and out from warmth to cold can cause problems, if they have a secure coop with lots of deep dry bedding and no wind blowing over them they will be fine. They have a nice thick layer of down under their feathers ever slept under a down comforter? or worn a down jacket? Nice and warm.
I do agree with @nuthatched your drake will try and mate your hen and it will not go well for your hen. It would be best to separate them now before the hormones begin to surge.
VetRX is like vicks vapor rub for us humans, place some close to his nares not in them and under each wing. I use a q tip this keep it from running into his nares.