Sleepy duckling not eating much HELP!

[picklestheduck]

I copied and pasted from Emergency thread to try to get as many answers asap.

Hey yall I got two ducklings that were supposed to be khaki campbells from tractor supply on staurday. They are in a rubber-made tote in my garage with a heat lamp and food and water. They are TEENY TINY and are supposed to be about a week old by now. The ones I got happened to be like the smallest ones there. Their names are Sage and Nutmeg. Nutmeg is feistier and is running around nibbling everything in sight like ducklings do and climbing in the water dish and biting my fingers and picking at random spots on the side of the tub and etc. But Sage is eating less and seems to have less energy. She kinda lays and wants to sleep alot. She will follow Nutmeg around, and she will eat some and drink some, but not as much as I would like. I even soaked some feed in my hand and tried to gently push her beak into it so she could see she needed it and although it works some....she still isn't really eating as much as I think she should be. They are on Purina Flock Raiser and just today I bought Dumor Duck crumbles for them and have been mixing it in. Should I scramble an egg and try to feed her that? Should I bring her in the house for a night? HELP!!

 

[picklestheduck]

I cooked a scrambled egg and tried to give them some, but it was a really weird texture and they didn't eat much but I did sprinkle some nutritional yeast on their food. Also Sage is smaller than Nutmeg and Nutmeg bosses her around a bit

 

[citymeetscountry]

Do you have pictures? When Sage does stand and move around does she seem to have any issues (bow legs, spradle, curled feet, etc)?

 

[picklestheduck]

I don't have pictures of her right now. I have some from yesterday I will attach. No. She seems to walk fine and has straight legs and feet. Shes the one on the left in both pictures I think.

 

[picklestheduck]

Oh I did find some from today, but they aren't super good ones. Shes on the right in both those I think.

 

[citymeetscountry]

Hmm switching to the duck crumbles was a good call. She is smaller but does she seem to be growing (you said they’re about a week old, how long have you had them). I know when we first got ducks last year our khaki Campbell (May she RIP) grew slower than our others (Rouen and pekin), but I think that was more bc of her breed.

If she seems to be growing (maybe track her weight) then she could just need a little time.

You could try something like save-a chick/nutridrench electrolytes/sugar water t see if that helps boost her energy. Maybe let them have some “swim time” in shallow water too (supervised and ready to get warmed up quickly) and see how they she does.

 

[picklestheduck]

Hmm switching to the duck crumbles was a good call. She is smaller but does she seem to be growing (you said they’re about a week old, how long have you had them). I know when we first got ducks last year our khaki Campbell (May she RIP) grew slower than our others (Rouen and pekin), but I think that was more bc of her breed.

If she seems to be growing (maybe track her weight) then she could just need a little time.

You could try something like save-a chick/nutridrench electrolytes/sugar water t see if that helps boost her energy. Maybe let them have some “swim time” in shallow water too (supervised and ready to get warmed up quickly) and see how they she does.

Thank you! It hasn't even been 48 hours yet. I haven't been able to tell if shes growing yet. I also don't have a scale. Yes I will put some save a chick electrolytes in there. They "swam" in some shallow water yesterday and Nutmeg cleared her nares out but Sage did not.

 

[citymeetscountry]

Thank you! It hasn't even been 48 hours yet. I haven't been able to tell if shes growing yet. I also don't have a scale. Yes I will put some save a chick electrolytes in there. They "swam" in some shallow water yesterday and Nutmeg cleared her nares out but Sage did not.

If it’s not even been 48 hours I’d give the duckling some time. Realize they have gone through a lot. Shipping TO TSC and then being there and then traveling to your house and being in a new environment. Hopefully the little one will perk up and do just fine. But just like chicks sometimes they just don’t make it. Hoping for the best

 

[Miss Lydia]

Thank you! It hasn't even been 48 hours yet. I haven't been able to tell if shes growing yet. I also don't have a scale. Yes I will put some save a chick electrolytes in there. They "swam" in some shallow water yesterday and Nutmeg cleared her nares out but Sage did not.

The water they swam in was nice and warm?

 

[picklestheduck]

The water they swam in was nice and warm?

Yes it was. Sage has been doing a little bit better. I've found she only really wants to eat egg though... She will gobble up the scrambled egg (From my Cayuga) for a bit and then stop and just stand there and look around. Sage sort of sways back and forth a bit and when she turns her head to groom herself she usually falls onto her bum. She clearly doesn't have good balance and that worries me. I've also noticed when they eat they fling their heads back and forth and then launch some of the food or water out of their mouths. I remember my other ducks doing that when they were younger too. I don't know why though! They have very small crumbles and teeny tiny pieces of egg. But Sage won't eat crumbles from me...and I'm not sure maybe she's been eating while I'm not there but there's no way to tell. I can't watch them for too long since I'm a bit sick and the cold garage isn't helping me. Thats another thought. Its 40 degrees Fahrenheit here and its been snowing and raining all day. The garage doesn't have any drafts but its cold. I have a heat lamp in there for them, but should I do anything else or bring them in the house? I don't exactly want to bring them in though since there is a huge mold issue in the house. Not sure what to do.