Advice for Disabled Duck

[sarahgray18]

Hi everyone, I'm seeking advice or insights about my duck, Mikey. He's a 7-month-old Welsh Harlequin drake. I have read through countless forums but I haven't found anything that directly relates to his specific situation.

I got Mikey along with his three siblings in May 2024 when they were just a couple of days old. Initially, they were fed a Chick and Duck Starter, which I now know isn't ideal, but finding duck-specific feed in Canada has been difficult. When Mikey was about 1-1.5 months old, we noticed he had a slight limp. One of his hocks also seemed slightly warm to the touch. To address this, I started adding brewer's yeast to their feed, which seemed to help a little. Occasionally, I added a niacin tablet to their water instead of the brewer's yeast. When they were 2-3 months old, I switched them to Purina Duck Pellets, which is their current diet.

Around the time Mikey was 2 months old, we noticed his wings were drooping. It wasn't the characteristic outward angle seen in angel wing cases, and I was told it might be that his feathers were growing rapidly and were heavy for his muscles and that it would likely correct itself. However, his wings didn't improve. I tried wrapping them, which provided temporary improvement, but the droop returned after a few hours or by the end of the day. By the time Mikey was 4-5 months old, his flight feathers began dragging on the ground. This seemed to be uncomfortable for him and they got very dirty, so we decided to trim the feathers. This helped keep them cleaner, and Mikey seemed more comfortable afterwards.

Around the same time his wings started drooping, Mikey also became wobbly and unsteady. I still occasionally supplemented their diet with niacin, but I didn't see any improvement in his balance. At 7 months old, this unsteadiness seems to be his "normal." He doesn't use his wings for balance, even before we clipped them, but often appears wobbly or "drunk" when standing still. He uses his wings only if he falls, which doesn't happen too often. I've noticed his unsteadiness is worse after baths, although he really enjoys them. I think this may be due to him trying to dry himself off. Occasionally, he stands upright with a hunchback posture for a couple of seconds and looks as though he's trying not to fall backwards.

In November 2024, I brought Mikey inside because the colder weather seemed to make him uncomfortable. He was isolating himself from the flock and staying inside while the others foraged. Once I brought him inside, I noticed he had developed wet feather, which I believe is due to his inability to properly preen himself because of his balance issues. When Mikey tries to reach his preen gland, he becomes very unsteady, and when he tries to preen his chest or stomach area, he often falls back onto his hocks. His back feathers still repel water and look healthy, but the rest of his feathers don't look great. I did not notice the wet feather sooner because Mikey never went crazy for the outdoor pool they have access to and didn't go in very often. He seems to prefer the bathtub inside where his feet can touch the ground.

Despite these issues, Mikey doesn't seem to be in pain, and I believe he has a good quality of life. He enjoys exploring my duck-proofed room, pecking at me for attention, being held or petted, and sleeping by my feet at my desk when he's tired. He also enjoys playing with some of the dog's toys. I bring in one of the outdoor ducks for a week and alternate them to ensure they stay acquainted. He also enjoys playing with them and causing trouble. He has a huge appetite and absolutely goes crazy for peas and mealworms. I would love for him to join his friends outside when the weather gets warmer but I am also okay if he ends up being a permanent house duck.

I was wondering if anyone has experienced something similar and might have advice on how to help Mikey. I want to ensure he's as comfortable as possible. I'd love any suggestions or ideas to make sure Mikey has the best life possible. Please let me know if you need any more information. Thank you so much for your help in advance!

 

[My15Ducks]

have you tried dosing him with vitamin b complex? You can get it from tractor supply. It’s an injectable for cattle but it can be given orally to ducks. It’s a lot more concentrated than nutritional yeast and would be better for correcting a possible deficiency. The dosage is here on the forum, if you can’t find it I can look it up. It needs to be given daily.

 

[Jenbirdee]

1 ml per day it can take months to see improvement don’t give up. Put it in a small dish of a favorite treat such as mealworms something you know, he will eat all of it. I know it says injectable, but we give it to ducks orally. If he won’t eat the dish of treats with the B complex liquid, you can give it to him with a syringe withOUT the needle, of course but you have to be careful when you put it in his mouth. You don’t just squirt it in because he can choke on it. Here is a link showing how to give medicine to ducks.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...dications-to-all-poultry-and-waterfowl.73335/

 

[Jenbirdee]

Could also give some “ rooster booster, poultry cell” liquid vitamins, now this stuff taste pretty bad so you would have to give it orally with a syringe you can give one ML, I would only give that once maybe twice a week for just a couple weeks it’s pretty strong stuff but the B complex you can do every day.
In fact, I have one of my ducks molting and freezing weather is coming, so I just gave her a syringe full of the rooster booster poultry cell, but I did more like 3/4 of one ML because it is pretty strong stuff and since your duck is young, perhaps just do three-quarter ML maybe 1/2 ML of that. You can follow the directions on the bottle. It says they have one ML but I still think it’s pretty strong and since you’ll be doing the B complex too, that should be enough.

 

[Quatie]

Can you share some pictures or videos of him? I have an idea of what is going on, but I want to be certain.

Getting things like duck diapers may be worth it for you. You can get him and some friends some. That way they can move more freely around the house without getting poop everywhere. Creating a more sheltered area outside for him during the rain would also allow him to be out more and not have to worry about the wet feather being an issue.

My runner has a leg injury that will never fully heal. She has couple call duck friends that keep her company when she has to be locked in a pen or needs to come in doors. We had the same issues with wet feather at first, when she issues properly preening. I have given her warm baths inside when she has had issues. She would shiver in cool water.

The issue your boy has may be something neurological or happened when he was developing in the egg. Or even bad genetics. It isn't always the diet growing up. The vitamins others have suggested are good to use and try out. I use a lot of them myself to give my sick ducks an extra boost. It doesn't sound like just a niacin deficiency going on, but I could be wrong.

 

[sarahgray18]

Thank you all for your replies!

I have been using the Rooster Booster Poultry Cell since the beginning of December, so about a month now. I have being giving him 1 mL about 2 times a week. I was unaware that most ducks found it gross since it doesn't seem to bother him at all when given with mealworms and peas.

I have looked into the Durvet Vitamin B Complex before but decided to try the Poultry Cell first since I was unable to get the B Complex in Canada. I do live decently close to the border though so I will try to find time in the next week or so to cross over and purchase a bottle at Tractor Supply. Just to confirm, I would give 1 mL of the B Complex daily and then continue with the Poultry Cell around 2 times a week?

I have looked into the diapers before and will likely be buying some for him. My only concern is that they will bother him or since he is affected by wet feather near his bottom that it will make him super dirty. As of right now we wear slippers in the room and I mop every night once he gets put to bed in his pen.

I will attach photos and a link to a video of him walking. The photo of where they are younger he is on the left next to his sister who is sitting on the bag of pea gravel/stone and you can see his wings drooping, this was taken in July 2024. The other photo was taken in September 2024 before we made the decision to clip his wings. The video is him after his bath a couple of weeks ago where he is super unsteady and wobbly. He is usually at his worst after baths since he is trying to dry himself off and preen. After the video was taken I towel dried him and used a blow dryer on a very low setting from a distance, I just wanted to have a video of his instability. I can try to get a video of him to show how he is normally/when dry. Sorry for the quality of the video, I am unsure what happened in the process of uploading. Please let me know if you have any issues viewing any of the attachments. Sorry if there are any issues, this is my first time trying to upload photos/videos on here.

 

[My15Ducks]

I don’t think it’s super similar but I had a disabled duck I hatched out, Speck. She had wet feather, some balance issues, leg issues, eye problems, and when she was a duckling, neurological issues. I tried the vitamin b complex, poultry cell, vitamin e, selenium. I think it helped solve some of her more acute issues when she was a baby but the rest of it she had for life. I think she had a good life though and was a happy little duck. Sadly she died rather abruptly after a super brief illness when she was 8 months old. Normal in the evening, sick in the morning, dead by afternoon. Hopefully your duck will have a much longer life.

 

[sarahgray18]

I don’t think it’s super similar but I had a disabled duck I hatched out, Speck. She had wet feather, some balance issues, leg issues, eye problems, and when she was a duckling, neurological issues. I tried the vitamin b complex, poultry cell, vitamin e, selenium. I think it helped solve some of her more acute issues when she was a baby but the rest of it she had for life. I think she had a good life though and was a happy little duck. Sadly she died rather abruptly after a super brief illness when she was 8 months old. Normal in the evening, sick in the morning, dead by afternoon. Hopefully your duck will have a much longer life.

I'm so sorry for your loss. They become a part of our hearts and families so quickly. I think he will likely be like this for his entire life but I am willing to try anything that could help him improve slightly or make him more comfortable.

 

[sarahgray18]

I was able to get a video of him preening and then falling backwards, I have linked it below. I tried to get a video of him standing still but it doesn't show up well on camera. When standing still he very slightly sways back and forth.

 

[ruthhope]

I think you little one has a neurological issue affecting balance rather than niacin deficiency. It will not harm to use Durvet 1ml daily, but may not help. It's worth buying 1 bottle at Tractr Supply when you next cross the border.

As @Quatie stated, ducks can develop congenital neurological problems and this is likely what is happening with yours. They are adaptable creatures and he doesn't seem distressed by his balance issues. You are doing great bringing him into the house while it is cold but keeping him socialized with the other ducks. If you have to bath him to keep his feathers clean, he will get used to being handled. You might consider blow drying him in cold weather after an initial towel dry.

I had a special needs pekin drake that went off his legs over just 2 days, and had to come in the house and be cared for in a ducky wheelchair. He couldn't move the wheelchair but it suspended him out of his poop and so was a boon to hygiene. He had water physiotherapy followed by a blow dry every day for nearly 6 months. He clearly enjoyed life--and the blow dries--and had a huge appetite. He died suddenly and unexpectedly about 6 months after he stopped walking, and appeared to have a pelvic tumor protruding by his vent at his death.

Your little one may not get better, and may have a shortened life span, but enjoy him while he is enjoying life! He's lucky to have you to care for him.