Help! Casey (My Duck) has a prolapse! First time treatment for me.

[Tevyes Dad]

You're a pro! Listening for that is one of the things I do, but that is super hard to explain to people. Tubing - part science, part art...

-Kathy

Take any tapered bottle and slowly fill it with water from the sink... Hear that sound at the top...

 

[casportpony]

Quote: You're so clever!

-Kathy

 

[Tevyes Dad]

You're so clever!

-Kathy

I can hear the sarcasm from here.

I just had a flashback to my physics professor staring at me, arms crossed, foot tapping for me not getting it quite right... OK, the taper has nothing to do with it. A sound is made (from movement of the added liquid whether splashing or not) in an enclosed cavity which resonates at a specific frequency making the noise louder than it otherwise would have been. As the level rises, the volume of the cavity diminishes causing the resonant frequency to rise. This causes the upward swing in pitch. The taper only comes into play because it leads to a relatively small opening. This further concentrates the sound levels in that particular direction so that if you happen to be above the opening the sound is louder than it might otherwise be.

 

[casportpony]

No sarcasm! You are the first person that has commented on being able to "hear" when the crop is getting full.

-Kathy

 

[Tevyes Dad]

Casey got her evening meal. It is what I would call near perfect. I coaxed her out of the crate, opened her mouth, got the hose in, fed her, let her go and she walked back into the crate directly but calmly and I shut the door. She still struggled a bit, but either she's getting better, I'm getting better or a little of both. The entire time out of the crate was approx. 1-2 minutes. That is what I want for the "business" releases. Later, I will let her out for a bath and spend some time with her. I want to keep those things separate so she's not afraid when she's out that I might grab her and feed her.

I bought two door mounted bowls so she can have food and water available 24/7 and pick her own times to eat without spilling them. Maybe she will get started that way. By the way, the two stacked boxes you can see behind the door each contain 22 lbs of dried meal worms... Spoiled ducks!


I also got her a parrot toy in case she gets too bored. It has a bell inside it and I hung it where she can get to it and ring the bell, but it's not in her way. So far she hasn't decided that it isn't evil yet, but we'll see. She can now eat, drink, poop or ring the bell. The green over the air holes are bath towels to keep most of the light out and the red glow is from the poop-demon who is possessing her.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Casey got her evening meal. It is what I would call near perfect. I coaxed her out of the crate, opened her mouth, got the hose in, fed her, let her go and she walked back into the crate directly but calmly and I shut the door. She still struggled a bit, but either she's getting better, I'm getting better or a little of both. The entire time out of the crate was approx. 1-2 minutes. That is what I want for the "business" releases. Later, I will let her out for a bath and spend some time with her. I want to keep those things separate so she's not afraid when she's out that I might grab her and feed her.

I bought two door mounted bowls so she can have food and water available 24/7 and pick her own times to eat without spilling them. Maybe she will get started that way. By the way, the two stacked boxes you can see behind the door each contain 22 lbs of dried meal worms... Spoiled ducks!


I also got her a parrot toy in case she gets too bored. It has a bell inside it and I hung it where she can get to it and ring the bell, but it's not in her way. So far she hasn't decided that it isn't evil yet, but we'll see. She can now eat, drink, poop or ring the bell. The green over the air holes are bath towels to keep most of the light out and the red glow is from the poop-demon who is possessing her.

She may never want to fo outside again. It's like spa living. other than having a tube pushed down the throat. lol

Sounds like you have become a pro and now when Casey eats and drinks and poops she can let everyone know by ringing the bell just in time for New Years!!

 

[Tevyes Dad]

So far no bell ringing...

Casey weighed 3lbs, 11.6oz today! Up 1.6oz

Yesterday she ate about 1/4C of worms, 2 hands full of peas and a couple pieces of duck food (maybe a tablespoon total). So she is getting more of an appetite, but still not a full one.

At this morning's feed, I was interrupted between nuking the water and blending the food, so it was somewhat cooler when I blended it. As a consequence, the food didn't absorb the water as quickly and had some pieces in it that were firmer. When I tried to syringe it in, it balked a second and I increased plunger pressure a bit. This caused the mix to go in too fast once the blockage broke free and bounce back out and/or come out where the tube separated from the syringe (too fast to know for sure.) My finger that holds Casey's mouth open also makes it impossible for her to swallow the tube since the top of it goes out the left side of her bill. I let Casey go right away and she was fine, it doesn't appear that she inhaled any of the food or was distressed, but it made quite a mess and I doubt I got any more than 10 ml into the duck. I guess that will be a bonus feed and I will try again in a couple hours. This time with well softened food. Sorry Casey, still learning. I'm glad this lesson didn't have dire consequences.

 

[Tevyes Dad]

I gave Casey her second breakfast

. Much better than the first. Later Yvonne gave Casey a bath and I spent some time with her while she was preening. When she is preening we have a little game. Her feet are alway cold after swimming so I lay my hands over them to warm them up. Casey appreciates this but wants to be in charge of her feet so she yanks them out from under my hands and puts them back down over my hands. There now she can warm her feet and not have them be covered.

At this point she usually pays some attention to my face. She puts her bill on my forehead or nose or plays with my mustache like so (sorry for the nasal spray, but this was an impromptu photo session.)

(You can't even tell that she's on my hands here...)

Then I lift her up a bit and she balances on my hands... Completely unfazed and still engaged if I talk to her.


Today, she went a step further. She moved over onto just one hand, so I took the other one away.


She's such a sweetheart

She could be an indoor duck in a heartbeat, but she has too many friends outside and we don't want the eternal diapers

. Additionally, she is too much of a trouble maker. Remember that she was the duckling that stole the earring out of Yvonne's ear. She's the duckling that was eating Latte's toe in her super cute picture. And she's the duckling that mopped up our back yard with Kaine before she decided to be a "girl". She would be eating jewelry, coins, screws, shoe laces, knives, poisons, bullets and chocolate if she was an "indoor" duck. Best to leave her with the flock.

 

[Tevyes Dad]

Silly me, there are webs being touched here... @Julie Bird

 

[Tevyes Dad]

Casey got her evening feed. I should get a new tube in a day or two, then I can try feeding her between my knees instead of sitting like this. I had cut this tube off shorter because I was thinking of how I had to medicate her with the small syringes and this tube is pretty soft and floppy making it more difficult to guide with one hand. It can be challenging to control the bird and the food at the same time. Sometimes she is more cooperative, sometimes less so this is probably about average now. The only audio on this was Yvonne asking me a question out of the blue and Casey pooping. I figured neither were things anyone wanted to hear, so you get a music track.

Be gentle with me Kathy