Duckling not acting right

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MandBducks

MandBducks

Songster
5 Years
Apr 18, 2016
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This morning I went out to let the ducks out and Beatrice, who is normally the most flighty, just laid there. I took her out and put her on the ground and she just sat there staring at me. I let the others down and she is following them around but is not eating and is just sticking her face in her water. She also continually readjusts her wings and ruffles her feathers. I didn't really see any injury on her. Any ideas?

ETA they are 6 weeks old and yesterday we had record temps of 117. She seemed fine yesterday though and they hung out under misters all day and in their pool. I kept a close eye on them.
 
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MandBducks said:
This morning I went out to let the ducks out and Beatrice, who is normally the most flighty, just layer there. I took her out and put her on the ground and she just sat there staring at me. I let the others down and she is following them around but is not eating and is just sticking her face in her water. She also continually readjusts her wings and ruffles her feathers. I didn't really see any injury on her. Any ideas?

ETA they are 6 weeks old and yesterday we had record temps of 117. She seemed fine yesterday though and they hung out under misters all day and in their pool. I kept a close eye on them.
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What about their house what did the temp get in it? You might try some electrolytes in their water or put some ACV into their drinking bucket. Then see how she is doing the rest of the day. That is extreme temps for Animal or human. I use a fan for my coops But I have electricity not everyone does. ACV 1-2 Tab to 1 gallon of fresh water.
 
Thanks, the temps got down to 70 last night. We have a pretty good breeze and they didn't seem to be panting at all. I'm actually concerned that it could be that she ate some of her shavings last night. This is a picture of her stance. Her crop area looks large but I can't tell if it's just how she is standing.

How quickly would coccidiosis hit? Is that a possibility?

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I did give her some nutridrench drops on the tip of her tongue and brought them all inside for today.
 
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MandBducks said:
Thanks, the temps got down to 70 last night. We have a pretty good breeze and they didn't seem to be panting at all. I'm actually concerned that it could be that she ate some of her shavings last night. This is a picture of her stance. Her crop area looks large but I can't tell if it's just how she is standing.

How quickly would coccidiosis hit? Is that a possibility?



I did give her some nutridrench drops on the tip of her tongue and brought them all inside for today.
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I wouldn't think at 6 weeks she'd eat shavings, that is usually a newly hatch duckling that hasn't figured out what feed is yet. She does look like something is bothering her
Nutri drench is good stuff. Could she have eaten anything else plant wise or non plant material. Does she have any problem swallowing? Cocci usually shows itself in bloody poop
 
She hasn't had access to any other food or non food material (other than her bedding). I'm pretty paranoid about that kind of stuff.

I'm hoping this is all just the extreme stress from yesterday's heat.

I don't think she is struggling with swallowing. She did take a few meal worms and will dunk her head but not drink.
 
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MandBducks said:
She hasn't had access to any other food or non food material (other than her bedding). I'm pretty paranoid about that kind of stuff.

I'm hoping this is all just the extreme stress from yesterday's heat.

I don't think she is struggling with swallowing. She did take a few meal worms and will dunk her head but not drink.
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If she is dehydrated from the heat then the only way she'll get back to normal is to rehydrate. Try dropping some meal worms into her water bucket and see if that will encourage her to drink. They have been stressing that alot, where the heat has been so high to keep plenty of water handy. So best thing will be to try and get her to drink. if she likes lettuce you might even try chopping some up and putting in a water bowl. What ever you can think of to get her drinking if she is dunking her head she might be getting water then too. If you notice other symptoms then you might want to consider a vet if possible.
 
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Thanks for the help. I'm at work right now so I'll check in on her when I get home. Hopefully her and the others are cooling down right now. I didn't want to further her stress by separating them all.

I had three swimming tubs and three additional waters out for them yesterday and checked on them regularly. They have a shade cloth, are under a shade tree, and have misters. It only got to about 105 under there area. Kicking myself thinking I should have just brought them in. I'll keep you posted. Thanks for all your help.
 
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MandBducks said:
Thanks for the help. I'm at work right now so I'll check in on her when I get home. Hopefully her and the others are cooling down right now. I didn't want to further her stress by separating them all.

I had three swimming tubs and three additional waters out for them yesterday and checked on them regularly. They have a shade cloth, are under a shade tree, and have misters. It only got to about 105 under there area. Kicking myself thinking I should have just brought them in. I'll keep you posted. Thanks for all your help.
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Sounds like you did the best you could so hopefully once you get home she is back to normal.
hugs.gif
 
Jut got home. She is about the same. I got a picture of her poop for reference.

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Found the problem. B's wing underside was maimed somehow. I can't tell if she got it stuck or what.
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I used a compress to clean what I could and then sprayed it with Vetericyn. Should I let her back outside where she is happy and clean it daily or should I keep her in?
 

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