Seizing duckling?!?

[Miss Lydia]

So I gave the ducklings some outside time yesterday since it was so nice and warm. Between all the handling of moving them back and forth between pens there was no seizure activity!! It must have been a niacin deficiency. Between vitamins in their water and brewers yeast in their food there was no escaping niacin! Thank you all for your input! Fingers crossed that they continue to remain healthy!

That's great news!! Now when do we get to see some pics? I know they have grown.

 

[drosenkranz]

How long did it take for you to see improvement? Mine have been on all the supplements for 5 days now. Still shaking in my bigger duck. However, he is standing and moving about more than he was. I read it can take a week or two. Just wondering if that was the case with yours.

 

[CarlieO]

How long did it take for you to see improvement? Mine have been on all the supplements for 5 days now. Still shaking in my bigger duck. However, he is standing and moving about more than he was. I read it can take a week or two. Just wondering if that was the case with yours.

It took mine about a week. I was LIBERAL with the supplements though. Like, probably too much but it scared me to think they were so deficient that they might not make it. I would change their water multiple times a day and add a huge scoop of powdered vitamins to their water. I started with one scoop per gallon then added more since they spill so much. I would also add TONS of brewers yeast (like cover their food with it) since they would scratch and spill their food. I went through a 2 pound bag of brewers yeast in a week and a half. Now that they're better I've cut back quite a bit.

I hope yours make a quick recovery!!

 

[HollyDuckFarmer]

Please don't throw them outside! I think that was a joke, but just in case it isn't, please don't. Yes, ducklings are messy, but as they get older, its worth it. Promise.

 

[Duck Drover]

It took mine about a week. I was LIBERAL with the supplements though. Like, probably too much but it scared me to think they were so deficient that they might not make it. I would change their water multiple times a day and add a huge scoop of powdered vitamins to their water. I started with one scoop per gallon then added more since they spill so much. I would also add TONS of brewers yeast (like cover their food with it) since they would scratch and spill their food. I went through a 2 pound bag of brewers yeast in a week and a half. Now that they're better I've cut back quite a bit.

I hope yours make a quick recovery!!

I start my ducklings on moistened Flock Raiser shortly after hatching. When I spoke with Dave Holderread last week he said that the Purina Flock Raiser was the most complete of the feeds but he orders his own special blend for his ducks and has it delivered. I actually feed Flock Raiser to everything except chicks, which start on medicated Chick Starter before they switch over to Flock Raiser with everyone else. If you use the right feed for your ducks, you won't have to over compensate with vitamins.

Once ducklings are feathered they can go outside, assuming you have acclimated them off heat as they are feathering out. Ducklings feather from the bottom up instead of from the top down like chicks so ducklings get their wing feathers last while chicks get them first. Once the ducklings are outside, they are much easier to keep clean but they will get their water dirty. Someone once told me that ducks make mud but really dirt and water make mud and the ducks just like to mix the two together.

I have found that ducks bred for meat, with the exception of Muscovies, are not the best pet ducks. They are bred to live a short life and then die. The "ornamental" ducks seem to make better pets and my favorites are the bantams bred to be "functional" ducks and not "toy" ducks. They earn their keep around here with their foraging and egg laying.

 

[CarlieO]

I start my ducklings on moistened Flock Raiser shortly after hatching. When I spoke with Dave Holderread last week he said that the Purina Flock Raiser was the most complete of the feeds but he orders his own special blend for his ducks and has it delivered. I actually feed Flock Raiser to everything except chicks, which start on medicated Chick Starter before they switch over to Flock Raiser with everyone else. If you use the right feed for your ducks, you won't have to over compensate with vitamins.

Once ducklings are feathered they can go outside, assuming you have acclimated them off heat as they are feathering out. Ducklings feather from the bottom up instead of from the top down like chicks so ducklings get their wing feathers last while chicks get them first. Once the ducklings are outside, they are much easier to keep clean but they will get their water dirty. Someone once told me that ducks make mud but really dirt and water make mud and the ducks just like to mix the two together.

I have found that ducks bred for meat, with the exception of Muscovies, are not the best pet ducks. They are bred to live a short life and then die. The "ornamental" ducks seem to make better pets and my favorites are the bantams bred to be "functional" ducks and not "toy" ducks. They earn their keep around here with their foraging and egg laying.

Thank you for your feedback on this. I switched them to Flock Raiser and they did very well after that. I had been misinformed by the seller about the type of feed they should be started on. They have since become fully feathered and have been released into our pond with our other ducks where they are thriving. They love it. I had no idea they feathered from the bottom up. I thought it seemed to take so much longer for them compared to chicks. I'm just happy to be done with the daily muddy mess they were making in the brooder. So, how old are they when they start laying eggs then? I have no idea who's a drake and who's not. Hopefully that will be discernible soon.

 

[Duck Drover]

The Australian Spotted ducks mature at 4 months old but I am not sure about meat breeds. They are probably old enough to voice sex now. The hens quack and the drakes sound like croaking frogs. You can also vent sex ducks if you know what you are looking for once they are big enough and these would be big enough to vent sex. Of course drakes get the tail curl but usually it is obvious by other means before that happens.