A fox tried to take my Abbey

Ive been wondering if you have pics of your flock up somewhere?
you can go to my profile page scroll down to near the bottom there are all kinds of pics there, you'll be sick of me and flock by the time your through.
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Now my girls always look rough around the edges when mating season has been going on for some time, just par to the course. But I think someone who has Calls would be able to talk to you about Leelu I heard someone say recently and I think it was GoingQwackers that her Calls aren't big layers. As for the unusual shape I'm not sure, but if she has been acting more normal the last couple days hopefully it's not an infection. So many things can play into it, weather, mating, laying. Lacrystol has Calls she has quite a few maybe PM her and pick her brain. I have Muscovy Amiga has Runners and Buffs, I think each breed is unique unto itself and when there is something that comes up it can help to talk to some one who has the specific breed we have. Your flock is beautiful. But I can see Leelu is looking a bit worn. I'm going to PM Lacrystol and see if she'll look at your thread about Leelu.
 
He actually looked a bit lumpy today, but he's so very happy Im not too worried. I keep a close eye on him but I think because the neck is so mobile he aggravates it a little when he's foraging and such.

Im starting to worry about Leelu a bit. She's always gone off by herself but lately she's been moping and hiding, her feathers look dull and she doesnt seem excited about food or swimming. Because she was sulking in her nest yesterday I worried she was egg bound and put her in a warm bath with a few drops of oil. She did not like this! I felt around, couldnt feel any eggs blocking her up. After that she put on a big show about being a 'healthy duck' and went swimming and foraging. Im just keeping an eye on her for now, but she's so tiny Stormy may be her only child. She obviously has problems with laying.

She sounds depressed??? DId she just recently lose her mate? hang on let me read more..
 
Gotcha, tonight I'll read over the rest, got to get some work done..
Thanks for jumping in! Leelu's 'mate' is a drake that I have been assuming since I got my little flock was the mother duck
https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/938715/the-call-duck-mystery

And you can read about that little mess there. She has even shunned his company recently. She loves to go off by herself, like LOVES it. Since the day I dragged her out of her nest and examined her and gave her a warm bath, she's been hanging out in the pen which is really strange for her.

The day after I handled her, She and Mel (her fave duck) got out, crossed the road and waited under some trees for me to come and get them. They werent out long but I thought Id mention it. I think it was her revenge on me for keeping her in the pen.

This morning she still looks rough, but charged out with the flock, went for a free range, came back up for feed and water and swim. The only other thing thats changed is that I started locking up the boys at night and she is used to having them around her like an honour gaurd. I started leaving her fave out as he doesnt do much damage, and last night left them all together hoping it might cheer her up. The boys arent in a mating frenzy anymore so I felt it was ok.

Im getting poultry wormer today, she'll be wormed this afternoon or tomorrow morning.

Oh, I know the fox will be back. My precious Abbey is marked as prey. My partner tried to save a bat from the cat, after he released it the cat picked it out of its friends like it was lit up. Once its been in their mouth they never forget it. I keep a very close watch now!
 
Here she is today



She's just had a swim and she's doing the little wing ruffles I only associate with very happy birds (any species) the 3 big girls look rough and you would easily say Syanne the pure pekin looks a lot rougher than Leelu, but she copped a real beating from the drakes. I never saw Leelu get it as badly as the big girls did, she is very good at hiding herself. Leelu also limps slightly on her right leg. She always has, ever since she was a duckling. Ive never seen an injury.

When the big girls look rough, usually worming sorts them out, sometimes its calcium. They get a fair amount in the pellets and Im wary of using extra after losing Piper and making Wist sick, BUT Wist and Piper are wild and cant process a lot of the stuff domestic ducks need. Had to learn that the hard way. However the big girls have not layed so much this year, I usually get 3 giant eggs a day, this year usually only 2 a day and on the small side.
 
Hmm ok I wormed them. There arent instructions for drenching poultry with this stuff only pigs but I usually hand drench so I KNOW they got a dose. If I put it in the water they wont drink it. This is the stuff I use
http://www.vetsense.com.au/product/vetsense-kilverm/

And there are some concerning facts to be read here
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Levamisole

Most notably, that if Leelu has an infection Ive just done the worst possible thing to her. You literally cannot buy any other wormer for poultry around here. I usually give every bird about 1ml, a little more to the big birds. I can get ivermectin for the horses, but not for the birds. I can get this
http://www.vetnpetdirect.com.au/Vetafarm-Wormout-Gel-for-Birds#.VJVxNF4B1A

And Ive used both active ingrediants on horses before. I use Vet n Pet for all my horse supplements and such because they have better products than our local stores (who seem to be 20 years behind) If anyone could tell me if these products would be useful on ducks I would appreciate it

http://www.vetnpetdirect.com.au/OXYMB#.VJVvh14B1A

http://www.vetnpetdirect.com.au/aristopet-sulphadim-antibiotic-for-birds#.VJVv-14B1A

http://www.vetnpetdirect.com.au/vetafarm_triple_c_antibiotic_powder#.VJVwVF4B1A

I can usually have products from here delivered within a few days. Christmas will throw it out but Im still likely to have it by the end of the week.I had always meant to research my wormer I wish I had done it sooner.
 
I haven't had a duck molt yet, but could that be it?

What's her breathing like, any tail bobbing when she's laying down? That is sometimes a sign that the issue is egg related, in which case I'd try a little extra calcium.

Also, here in the states there are vet offices around that will do fecal tests so that you can at least try to confirm some suspicions, particularly worms. That way you're not doing as much guess work. It's a good way around the high cost of actually taking the bird in for an office visit.

These are just ideas. You know the duck best. Hopefully you see some results with the deworming.
 

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