My Muscovy ducks are dying with no apparent symptoms

[RugenerGooser]

Thanks for responding. No I haven't brought any new poultry of any kind on the place. Praise God, as of this morning so far they are all still alive and acting normally. What ever this is must have the symptoms quick and then instant death. I thought maybe pear seeds could be the culprit, since I have been feeding the geese whole pears from our trees. They don't get many and I don't even know if the ducks pick up any of them since they don't have the teeth to do so. Just in case, I will core my pears from now on. The ones that fall from the tree way up high , the goats, horses or donkey usually eat them. I knew about apple seeds and always core apples, but last night I did some research and it was really maybe yes and maybe no on the pear seeds, but I won't take any more chances. I really don't think it's that anyway, but I will let you know what the test results are. I am really sick at losing my breeding drake, he was such a pet and just the best daddy. H is sorely missed.

I find it rather interesting that it seems to only be affecting males. I am going to look into that. Strange. Let me see what I can find.

January

 

[RugenerGooser]

It's been a rotten day in more ways than one. My pet goose died this morning.

Hubby had gone out and let all the poultry put and fed the other livestock, I went out to water and let the geese go graze(even though it was sleeting). I noticed Little Britches was laying down in front of the goose house with Alex standing over, thought that unusual since she always goes out with everyone and hates to be left behind. When I got up to her she looked at me and i reached down and petted her.m I knew she was sick. I just love her, she's always been my baby and if I ever had a goose living in the house it would of been her. I had raised her because she was hurt as a baby. I used to bath her and wrap her in a towel and feed her in the rocking chair. Anyway, I got hysterical and couldn't stop crying, why her. Hubby had left to take someone to town for groceries so I put clean hay down moved

her in more and layed down with my arm around her and my coat to keep her warm, all the time just bawling. Alex was very agitated and tried to get her up. I pushed him away and he attacked me and drew blood. I just stayed there and kept bawling. He seemed perplexed and moved away and just watched. The gaggle of geese came running by talking. She lifted her weak little head , put it down and was gone.

Some of you might think I'm crazy for loving her so much, but I couldn't help it. I had so many errands today and was just a zombie. I called the Ag dept, because I hadn't gotten any news back on the duck and I know they have to test them right away. They didn't have any news back, so she assumed it wasn't an infectious disease as they would have already been out here to cull everything. The vet was on a call but. she said she'd try and get a hold of him and have him call me back. He did in fact, call me a few hours later. He said the lab couldn't really find anything out of the usual. No parasites and nothing that seemed like and infectious disease.
They are going to take more tissue samples and have different labs check them out too. He said it sounds like a toxin of some sort. I was thinking botulism, because of the mud hole but he didn't think that unless there was a dead animal somewhere and we had some water runoff. But he did agree to dry up that spot and see if anything changes. If anything else dies between Monday and Thursday, he said they'd pick them up and see if anything could be found different, I didn't ask him about pulling blood. Since Little Britches is the only one I found dying, I should have pulled some blood, but with her my head wasn't on straight. All I could feel is grief. Anyway, that's all the update I have.
Little Britches you;ll always be in my heart and memories.

I am so sorry to hear about the loss of your goose, and I had just commented on the oddity of the males being affected. A viral enteritis could be quite possible. Since the Almighty created 70% of our immune system in our gastrointestinal tract, I would start them all on some vitamins and electrolytes and probiotic(Probios, perhaps?). Gastrointestinal viruses have a nasty habit of messing with the lining and wiping out all good and bad flora. Maintaining good flora is essential, and the vitamins, electrolytes and probiotic won't hurt them.

 

[RugenerGooser]

I am so sorry to hear about the loss of your goose, and I had just commented on the oddity of the males being affected. A viral enteritis could be quite possible. Since the Almighty created 70% of our immune system in our gastrointestinal tract, I would start them all on some vitamins and electrolytes and probiotic(Probios, perhaps?). Gastrointestinal viruses have a nasty habit of messing with the lining and wiping out all good and bad flora. Maintaining good flora is essential, and the vitamins, electrolytes and probiotic won't hurt them.

And you are absolutely not crazy for loving your baby kids so much!

January

 

[hotcurltr]

Thank you all for responding. I have started them on fast track, but I can get some probios. Talking with the state vet, he just didn't think it was an infectious disease from what the labs had reported. They are still sending out tissue samples to other labs, but they said nothing seemed abnormal in the necropsy.. I locked them out of the garden spot where I thought maybe a contaminate could be and so far so good, I have noticed some funny colored poop. It's green, but a funny different green, almost like a flourescent. Sorry, not the best speller.
Is this freezing weather giving everyone a lot of extra work. It sure is for me, I only have two electric waterers, so the rest have to be changed several times a day. Plus I've been rebedding with hay to make sure they stay a little warmer, but the geese seem to like being in the snow. I still ache for Little Britches. It seems so hard not to see her and hold and feed her and yes kiss her on the beak. If the labs ever get some positive results on anything, I'll make sure I let everyone know.

 

[laughingdog]

You could try offering activated charcoal, red clay (sold as grit and detoxifier for racing pigeons), and there was another suddenly i cannot think of.. anyway all seem to be pointing to chemical. Anything that the stronger male scovy and goose could get mouth around or reach just slightly better than rest? my males get at and swallow then chuck back up, stuff the female generally cannot. any rodents possibly gotten into garden that neighbors may have poisioned or. could be gnawing on old pipes ect? I'm not saying you have rodents or would have not thought about old metal ect they could be mouthing, and know geese generally don't get into the same stuff, but could she have been eating appealing green feces even? have you thought of asking any neighbors within two miles, if you could have ground dwelling rodents that maybe treated from garden, lawn chemicals, pesticides, or rodent poison? cats will eat only the head or only the body of rodents, and then selectively eat or not eat some parts or organs, due to some poisons the local rodents are exposed to. old time vets, exterminators and others would ask and check testing pest animals when i was a child, and was how found some problem from old complex across the street from me as a child in city up north, when neighbor children were getting something that hard to show except concentration built up in bodies of rodents ect, but would make cats sick to die if ate that half part ect (i forget probly most important part, but was very young and remember mostly only my grandparents showing me, and telling about why the place was sealed off ect and had to do digging ect and set traps all around to test more).

 

[laughingdog]

Just putting up possible things to rule out at least.. not trying to do more really than bump thread till something found, as if it could help you/yours, it could help ours. RIP your "little britches"again.

 

[Going Quackers]

I am sorry to hear of the loss of your goose, i hope they can give you some answers with their testing.

 

[peter123]

any updates on this problem? did the testing ever turn up anything? any more mortality? thanks for your thread.

 

[Joyful_shay]

It's been a rotten day in more ways than one. My pet goose died this morning.

Hubby had gone out and let all the poultry put and fed the other livestock, I went out to water and let the geese go graze(even though it was sleeting). I noticed Little Britches was laying down in front of the goose house with Alex standing over, thought that unusual since she always goes out with everyone and hates to be left behind. When I got up to her she looked at me and i reached down and petted her.m I knew she was sick. I just love her, she's always been my baby and if I ever had a goose living in the house it would of been her. I had raised her because she was hurt as a baby. I used to bath her and wrap her in a towel and feed her in the rocking chair. Anyway, I got hysterical and couldn't stop crying, why her. Hubby had left to take someone to town for groceries so I put clean hay down moved

her in more and layed down with my arm around her and my coat to keep her warm, all the time just bawling. Alex was very agitated and tried to get her up. I pushed him away and he attacked me and drew blood. I just stayed there and kept bawling. He seemed perplexed and moved away and just watched. The gaggle of geese came running by talking. She lifted her weak little head , put it down and was gone.

Some of you might think I'm crazy for loving her so much, but I couldn't help it. I had so many errands today and was just a zombie. I called the Ag dept, because I hadn't gotten any news back on the duck and I know they have to test them right away. They didn't have any news back, so she assumed it wasn't an infectious disease as they would have already been out here to cull everything. The vet was on a call but. she said she'd try and get a hold of him and have him call me back. He did in fact, call me a few hours later. He said the lab couldn't really find anything out of the usual. No parasites and nothing that seemed like and infectious disease.
They are going to take more tissue samples and have different labs check them out too. He said it sounds like a toxin of some sort. I was thinking botulism, because of the mud hole but he didn't think that unless there was a dead animal somewhere and we had some water runoff. But he did agree to dry up that spot and see if anything changes. If anything else dies between Monday and Thursday, he said they'd pick them up and see if anything could be found different, I didn't ask him about pulling blood. Since Little Britches is the only one I found dying, I should have pulled some blood, but with her my head wasn't on straight. All I could feel is grief. Anyway, that's all the update I have.
Little Britches you;ll always be in my heart and memories.

the same thing is happening to me right now

 

[Isaac 0]

the same thing is happening to me right now

I'm very sorry @Joyful_shay . If you don't mind sharing, what happened?