Advice needed for pekin duckling

[AConk81]

So we got this little pekin duckling, who was being taken care of by someone who didn't really know anything about ducks but was just trying to keep it alive when his son brought it home and said he found it along the road. He was feeding it cornbread and water and bringing it outside to "swim" every day. We brought the little girl or guy home yesterday, and the eyes are a bit odd. They look almost like they're wet. Yesterday the eyes looked bright but this morning they looked a little swollen. We put some veterycin ophthalmic gel on them this morning, which seemed to help for a while.

It's walking around fine and acting fine, but I can't get it to eat the starter crumbles I bought. It will only eat thawed peas. I've tried cut up frozen carrots, smooshed strawberries, blueberries, grapes, banana, corn (which it will eat a few kernels), meal worms, and smooshed hardboiled egg. I was trying all these things since I can't get it to eat crumbles, but it won't eat any of this stuff either. It tries it, but then spits it right back out and runs and drinks water. I tried crumbles dry and wet...it won't eat them either way. It drinks water well though.

What can I do to make it eat anything other than peas??

Here's a few pics of her eye, does it look like something I should be worried about or should I just keep using the veterycin?

 

[Miss Lydia]

So we got this little pekin duckling, who was being taken care of by someone who didn't really know anything about ducks but was just trying to keep it alive when his son brought it home and said he found it along the road. He was feeding it cornbread and water and bringing it outside to "swim" every day. We brought the little girl or guy home yesterday, and the eyes are a bit odd. They look almost like they're wet. Yesterday the eyes looked bright but this morning they looked a little swollen. We put some veterycin ophthalmic gel on them this morning, which seemed to help for a while.

It's walking around fine and acting fine, but I can't get it to eat the starter crumbles I bought. It will only eat thawed peas. I've tried cut up frozen carrots, smooshed strawberries, blueberries, grapes, banana, corn (which it will eat a few kernels), meal worms, and smooshed hardboiled egg. I was trying all these things since I can't get it to eat crumbles, but it won't eat any of this stuff either. It tries it, but then spits it right back out and runs and drinks water. I tried crumbles dry and wet...it won't eat them either way. It drinks water well though.

What can I do to make it eat anything other than peas??

Here's a few pics of her eye, does it look like something I should be worried about or should I just keep using the veterycin?

Keep using the Veterycin awesome stuff, and it's amazing the lil one is still alive living on cornbread and water, can you get some Poultry Nutri Drench and add some to it's water, can also be given straight into mouth but only right at front of bill so it doesn't accidently go into the lungs, it goes straight into blood steam to help when deficient from not eating properly. As for food, your going to have to be persistant, make a mash of feed, meal worms and peas. using warm water and a smidge of ACV at this point more peas than the other 2 then as it starts eating this mix begin to drop off the peas, but keep putting them in because they have niacin which the duckling also needs. I am thinking if you can get the poultry nutri drench and begin using it even straight you'll see a big difference in this lil one. a bit of info
http://www.bovidr.com/poultry.html

 

[Amiga]

I agree with Miss Lydia. You are doing right by this duckling. You might also consider poultry vitamins, mix it up in water according to directions, and then wet the pea mash with it. Mercy.

 

[duckins]

You've been given excellent advice. Vitamins are very benefical. It's amazing she has survived she's sounds like a lil trooper.

 

[AConk81]

Thank you so much for the advice everyone. I will definitely try making a mash mixture tomorrow. I did get her to eat some meal worms tonight, and I was really relieved and excited about that. I'll keep up the veterycin gel and see if I can get some vitamins to put in the water too. I'm really hoping that since she's alert and active that she'll be ok.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Thank you so much for the advice everyone. I will definitely try making a mash mixture tomorrow. I did get her to eat some meal worms tonight, and I was really relieved and excited about that. I'll keep up the veterycin gel and see if I can get some vitamins to put in the water too. I'm really hoping that since she's alert and active that she'll be ok.

Please keep us updated on the lil one. great news about the mealworms. Mine love them.

 

[AConk81]

Well, so far more good news this morning. Her one eye is looking great, the fuzz around it all looked clear and dry, though it's a bit darker there than in other places. The other side the eye looked clear but still a little like the fuzz was wet. (Though it's not wet and when I touch it it feels stiff...same for the hair on her back between her wings, it looks wet but it's dry and stiff there.) I gave her a few meal worms on top of her crumbles when I changed her water this morning..and she ate the meal worms right away and then went back and ate a little more crumbles. Plus, I am pretty sure there were less crumbles in there this morning than I left last night, so I think she ate more overnight. I'm going to give her a few peas later and I'm going to try just putting them on top of her crumbles like I did the meal worms and see if that will get her to come back for more crumbles again. It seems though like she's slowly learning to be a duck and eat duck food!


Regarding her feathers on her back, the fuzz feathers look stuck together, and they're darker and stiff like glued together. At her skin everything looks ok, it doesn't look like anything is infected..though it is a little pink there..and when she washes herself she seems to go for that area pretty rough. Any idea what would be causing that or how to fix it? I tried giving her some time in a little bowl of lukewarm water..thinking maybe she just needed to wash it off, but she didn't like that very much and wanted to get out pretty quickly. I made sure to dry her well, first in a towel and then putting her under her lamp, and I think that might have helped her eyes but the back still seems the same. I don't know how much water the back got though since she wasn't really wanting to be in the water. I did splash a little over her back to try to wash it, but I didn't want to force the issue in case it wasn't the right thing to be doing anyway.

Overall though, I'm pretty impressed with her progress over the last few days and I'm hopeful that she'll continue to do well, and I'm sure she'll be excited when she finally gets big enough to go outside with the two big pekins. She likes her little vinyl duck friend, but I think some live company will be preferred LOL

 

[Miss Lydia]

Well, so far more good news this morning. Her one eye is looking great, the fuzz around it all looked clear and dry, though it's a bit darker there than in other places. The other side the eye looked clear but still a little like the fuzz was wet. (Though it's not wet and when I touch it it feels stiff...same for the hair on her back between her wings, it looks wet but it's dry and stiff there.) I gave her a few meal worms on top of her crumbles when I changed her water this morning..and she ate the meal worms right away and then went back and ate a little more crumbles. Plus, I am pretty sure there were less crumbles in there this morning than I left last night, so I think she ate more overnight. I'm going to give her a few peas later and I'm going to try just putting them on top of her crumbles like I did the meal worms and see if that will get her to come back for more crumbles again. It seems though like she's slowly learning to be a duck and eat duck food!


Regarding her feathers on her back, the fuzz feathers look stuck together, and they're darker and stiff like glued together. At her skin everything looks ok, it doesn't look like anything is infected..though it is a little pink there..and when she washes herself she seems to go for that area pretty rough. Any idea what would be causing that or how to fix it? I tried giving her some time in a little bowl of lukewarm water..thinking maybe she just needed to wash it off, but she didn't like that very much and wanted to get out pretty quickly. I made sure to dry her well, first in a towel and then putting her under her lamp, and I think that might have helped her eyes but the back still seems the same. I don't know how much water the back got though since she wasn't really wanting to be in the water. I did splash a little over her back to try to wash it, but I didn't want to force the issue in case it wasn't the right thing to be doing anyway.

Overall though, I'm pretty impressed with her progress over the last few days and I'm hopeful that she'll continue to do well, and I'm sure she'll be excited when she finally gets big enough to go outside with the two big pekins. She likes her little vinyl duck friend, but I think some live company will be preferred LOL

once she is completely over the trauma of where she lived and was taken care of and you feel good about it, take her out to meet the other 2 ducks maybe in a lil pet carrier so they can all meet and the lil one won't get attacked, you just never know how the resident ducks will react to the new kid on the block, sometimes not so good, Bathing may help with this problem with her feathers too, start with a small amount of water like you did and just let her stand in it then gradually add more till she is floating she'll get the hang of it after all she is a duck

But it does take time and your her mama duck and showing her all the things she needs to learn to be healthy. Washing their faces is very important and could be the issue with her eyes, glad to hear they are looking better and I'm thinking with continued use of the veterycin they will be fine. And she is finding out the feed is good too, great news. if you have regular veterycin spray maybe use it on the feathers on her back or just take a damp warm water wash cloth and wash them, I don't know what could be causing the feathers to stick together, but once she gets use to water and bathing she'll start preening more and these baby fluff feathers will come out too and be replaced. Thanks for updating I'm sure she is one spoiled duckie.