montsebirds
In the Brooder
- May 24, 2023
- 5
- 9
- 11
Hello,
A few days ago neighbors found an injured Muscovy duck and brought her to me because I have been raising ducks and chickens in my backyard. However, I have never had a bird with such a terrible injury; the duck seemed to have been bitten by something around her tail area, and the cuts were all infested with thousands upon thousands of small maggots buried into her skin. The duck is a baby, probably only a month or two old (you know the awkward age where they have big bodies but super tiny wings and a combination of baby fluff and new feathers). Neighbors told me she had been laying outside in the same spot for over two days. By the time I got her, she was extremely weak; couldn’t walk, couldn’t eat or drink, and didn’t even have strength in her neck to hold her head up. I thought she was going to die because she was just limp in my hands. However, with help from posts on this website, we successfully got all the maggots out with salt baths, vinegar, iodine, and have been helping the wound heal with coconut oil. She seems to be doing great, she is eating and drinking and when we bathe her she swims around and happily bathes and when we take her outside she runs really fast! She has her strength back! However, around yesterday we started to notice that when she is resting, she breathes pretty heavily and today when we picked her up we noticed her body was pretty hot, she has a fever. It doesn’t make sense to be caused by exercise or overheating because she is indoors in air conditioning, and in a small space where she can’t run. She has a little less energy today, and seems to be trying to sleep a more while heavily breathing. I may be overreacting, but I have been with her through the worst of it that I can’t help but be really concerned that she may still die and that I am doing something wrong. What if she has a bacterial infection? What if she has internal organ damage from the injury? What should I do in a case like this? All the vets in my area either refuse to see her because she is an “invasive species” or estimate I’ll need to pay around of $300-$400, which I do not have. Should I use antibiotics? If so can I get them from my local pet store? Or is it normal for her to have some fever after her injury and maggots? Should I be concerned that she may worsen and die? I just don’t know what to do, and I am very worried. I was so happy to see her regain her strength but now I am concerned about unknown factors that could still kill her. Please, any tips will help, I am desperate.
A few days ago neighbors found an injured Muscovy duck and brought her to me because I have been raising ducks and chickens in my backyard. However, I have never had a bird with such a terrible injury; the duck seemed to have been bitten by something around her tail area, and the cuts were all infested with thousands upon thousands of small maggots buried into her skin. The duck is a baby, probably only a month or two old (you know the awkward age where they have big bodies but super tiny wings and a combination of baby fluff and new feathers). Neighbors told me she had been laying outside in the same spot for over two days. By the time I got her, she was extremely weak; couldn’t walk, couldn’t eat or drink, and didn’t even have strength in her neck to hold her head up. I thought she was going to die because she was just limp in my hands. However, with help from posts on this website, we successfully got all the maggots out with salt baths, vinegar, iodine, and have been helping the wound heal with coconut oil. She seems to be doing great, she is eating and drinking and when we bathe her she swims around and happily bathes and when we take her outside she runs really fast! She has her strength back! However, around yesterday we started to notice that when she is resting, she breathes pretty heavily and today when we picked her up we noticed her body was pretty hot, she has a fever. It doesn’t make sense to be caused by exercise or overheating because she is indoors in air conditioning, and in a small space where she can’t run. She has a little less energy today, and seems to be trying to sleep a more while heavily breathing. I may be overreacting, but I have been with her through the worst of it that I can’t help but be really concerned that she may still die and that I am doing something wrong. What if she has a bacterial infection? What if she has internal organ damage from the injury? What should I do in a case like this? All the vets in my area either refuse to see her because she is an “invasive species” or estimate I’ll need to pay around of $300-$400, which I do not have. Should I use antibiotics? If so can I get them from my local pet store? Or is it normal for her to have some fever after her injury and maggots? Should I be concerned that she may worsen and die? I just don’t know what to do, and I am very worried. I was so happy to see her regain her strength but now I am concerned about unknown factors that could still kill her. Please, any tips will help, I am desperate.
