Advice Regarding Duck with Old Injury/Deformity

[DuckDuckJuice]

Hi, I’m hoping someone can offer some helpful insights regarding our duck, aptly named Ducky. Ducky is a five month old male Pekin with a bum leg. We aren’t sure if his leg was injured at some point or if it’s a deformity, but he has walked with a considerable limp since we got him at approximately two weeks old. His left leg sticks out to the side, angling at the area where his feathers stop and leg starts. He’s never seemed too bothered by it, other than being slower to reach the food bowl than his buddies, but it’s recently taken a turn with the cold weather. His limp has worsened significantly and he seems to prefer not to walk at all. He’s always been very sweet, but extremely skittish. Lately he just rolls to his side when approached, rather than stand up and run away, presumably because standing is too painful. We brought him inside for most of the day today to warm up and relieve his pain a bit, but he was very anxious being away from the other ducks and I’d like to find a way to help him that doesn’t involve an increase in stress. Has anyone dealt with a leg issue like this? Should we try to splint it? I already tried all the vets in our area months ago, when we initially noticed the limp, and none will treat a duck, so we’re on our own. Thank you for any suggestions.

 

[Isaac 0]

My initial concerns with a Pekin suffering from an angulated leg would be that the previous owners weren't feeding the duck a nutritionally complete diet, to be more specific a diet lacking in niacin (B3). Most feeds, besides Mazuri, do not reach the niacin requirements a Pekin duck needs, which frequently results in angulated leg/s, that tend to get worse as they age.

Deep tramua is possible, so a video, or picture of the duck walking may be good, but I would suspect a niacin problem as of now. Having this problem for so long, it's unlikely the legs will be able to be corrected with some dramatic measures such as surgery done by a vet. There are several things that can be done to improve his life, but if it gets to the point where the duck looks to be living in pain, euthanasia may be best.

You have not specified the diet you're feeding, but a feed formulated for ducks, or all poultry such as Purina Flock easier, All flock feed, or Mazuri is perfect. Niacin is responsible for several leg functions, so consider adding a supplementary source, such as nutritional yeast, or B complex powder over his feed for some supplementation. Laying down as he is, is not uncommon for a duck with a leg deformity, but if not maintained, other secondary problems will develop such as wet feather, hock sores, or sticky eye. To prevent those from occurring, you'll want to get the duck bathing in clean deep water at least every few days - doing that will maintain good feather quality, but also allow the duck to exercise the legs.

When out of water, emphasis should be put on providing a soft bedding material to prevent hock or leg sores from developing. Simply putting down extra bedding will work, or if you'd like to go further, some people make "slings" for their ducks - you may do a good search on that.

 

[DuckDuckJuice]

My initial concerns with a Pekin suffering from an angulated leg would be that the previous owners weren't feeding the duck a nutritionally complete diet, to be more specific a diet lacking in niacin (B3). Most feeds, besides Mazuri, do not reach the niacin requirements a Pekin duck needs, which frequently results in angulated leg/s, that tend to get worse as they age.

Deep tramua is possible, so a video, or picture of the duck walking may be good, but I would suspect a niacin problem as of now. Having this problem for so long, it's unlikely the legs will be able to be corrected with some dramatic measures such as surgery done by a vet. There are several things that can be done to improve his life, but if it gets to the point where the duck looks to be living in pain, euthanasia may be best.

You have not specified the diet you're feeding, but a feed formulated for ducks, or all poultry such as Purina Flock easier, All flock feed, or Mazuri is perfect. Niacin is responsible for several leg functions, so consider adding a supplementary source, such as nutritional yeast, or B complex powder over his feed for some supplementation. Laying down as he is, is not uncommon for a duck with a leg deformity, but if not maintained, other secondary problems will develop such as wet feather, hock sores, or sticky eye. To prevent those from occurring, you'll want to get the duck bathing in clean deep water at least every few days - doing that will maintain good feather quality, but also allow the duck to exercise the legs.

When out of water, emphasis should be put on providing a soft bedding material to prevent hock or leg sores from developing. Simply putting down extra bedding will work, or if you'd like to go further, some people make "slings" for their ducks - you may do a good search on that.

Thank you for your response, Isaac. I will try to get a picture or video of him moving, but the ducks are all huddled together and being very stubborn. We feed them Purina and have always supplemented with lots of peas, as an additional source of niacin, in addition to other fresh fruits and vegetables.

As far as water access is concerned, they currently have a large tub to swim in, but we will be digging out a filtered pond for them as soon as the weather warms up. They sleep in our detached garage, as added protection from the elements, with a 3-5 inch layer of clean pine shavings at all times. I’m considering adding a rubber mat under the bedding for extra cushion, though.

I did some research on slings and they seem pretty straightforward. My only concern would be keeping him in it. He’s pretty flighty and might panic if put in something like that and injure himself more. Though, I guess we’ll never know until we try.

Would you recommend attempting to splint/brace the leg at all? Even if it’s beyond correction, could a brace offer additional support and ease the pain a bit? Of course, I don’t know how that would effect his ability to swim. That, or we’ve considered amputating the leg and 3D-printing a prosthetic. That would obviously be a last resort option and only done if we were absolutely certain it would work. I don’t know if anyone on here has attempted that before or what the results were.

If his quality of life continues to worsen, we will absolutely consider euthanasia. I can’t stand the thought of him suffering so much. I would like to see how he is in the spring first. If he’s just experiencing added pain due to the cold weather, that’s something we can probably manage. If it’s due to his leg becoming more deformed, that’s a different story.

 

[Isaac 0]

Thank you for your response, Isaac. I will try to get a picture or video of him moving, but the ducks are all huddled together and being very stubborn. We feed them Purina and have always supplemented with lots of peas, as an additional source of niacin, in addition to other fresh fruits and vegetables.

As far as water access is concerned, they currently have a large tub to swim in, but we will be digging out a filtered pond for them as soon as the weather warms up. They sleep in our detached garage, as added protection from the elements, with a 3-5 inch layer of clean pine shavings at all times. I’m considering adding a rubber mat under the bedding for extra cushion, though.

I did some research on slings and they seem pretty straightforward. My only concern would be keeping him in it. He’s pretty flighty and might panic if put in something like that and injure himself more. Though, I guess we’ll never know until we try.

Would you recommend attempting to splint/brace the leg at all? Even if it’s beyond correction, could a brace offer additional support and ease the pain a bit? Of course, I don’t know how that would effect his ability to swim. That, or we’ve considered amputating the leg and 3D-printing a prosthetic. That would obviously be a last resort option and only done if we were absolutely certain it would work. I don’t know if anyone on here has attempted that before or what the results were.

If his quality of life continues to worsen, we will absolutely consider euthanasia. I can’t stand the thought of him suffering so much. I would like to see how he is in the spring first. If he’s just experiencing added pain due to the cold weather, that’s something we can probably manage. If it’s due to his leg becoming more deformed, that’s a different story.

So, unfortunately, with a leg that has been angulated for so long, I strongly feel implementing an external coaptation device (brace/splint) might cause more discomfort than it's worse. However angulated the leg may look, that is its natural positioning, so similar to if we braced or legs to a different angle, we're going to feel some discomfort, and even worse, if done incorrectly can lead to swelling, and rupturing of the vessels that supply blood to that area.

A simple compression bandage to the area, to help provide some padding could be beneficial, but it's something that would need to be done correctly, and monitored to ensure no adverse effects.

 

[4th_Griffin]

Hello sorry to hear about ducky ducky. I am experiecing a similar situation. My duck darkwing was attacked by our goose the night before last. She had lots of feathers missing and blood but when i opened the pen she ran out to me for protection. When i put her down to quickly examine the other birds she ran 15 meters across the yard limping the whole way. I took her to the vet and they did xrays and saw nothing (although they admitred they didnt handle ducks often) since she has returned she has been unable to stand at all. The vet wont return my calls and the admin say i need to check her back into the ER if i have follow.up questions as to why she can no longer walk. Garbage service. Really hope they didnt mishandle her when trying to take xrays.

I did give her a bath today so she could move a little more freely with her bouyancy and she managed to bathe herself. We used the dog water treadmill when our dog was recovering from a stroke which gave me the idea. So i agree with Isaac with this technique. I cant see her real duck vet until friday but i will continue to follow this thread on more ideas on how to ease her mobility until then (she is on painkillers and an oral antibiotic)

 

[4th_Griffin]

Hello sorry to hear about ducky ducky. I am experiecing a similar situation. My duck darkwing was attacked by our goose the night before last. She had lots of feathers missing and blood but when i opened the pen she ran out to me for protection. When i put her down to quickly examine the other birds she ran 15 meters across the yard limping the whole way. I took her to the vet and they did xrays and saw nothing (although they admitred they didnt handle ducks often) since she has returned she has been unable to stand at all. The vet wont return my calls and the admin say i need to check her back into the ER if i have follow.up questions as to why she can no longer walk. Garbage service. Really hope they didnt mishandle her when trying to take xrays.

I did give her a bath today so she could move a little more freely with her bouyancy and she managed to bathe herself. We used the dog water treadmill when our dog was recovering from a stroke which gave me the idea. So i agree with Isaac with this technique. I cant see her real duck vet until friday but i will continue to follow this thread on more ideas on how to ease her mobility until then (she is on painkillers and an oral antibiotic)

Took her to a different emerg vet on wed night beause her breathing was always audible. Turns out she had a collapsed lung. She's been at the vet since on an iv getting with antibiotics, pain meds and antiinflammatory. Cant believe the first vet missed it but very grateful the second clinic.

 

[Isaac 0]

Took her to a different emerg vet on wed night beause her breathing was always audible. Turns out she had a collapsed lung. She's been at the vet since on an iv getting with antibiotics, pain meds and antiinflammatory. Cant believe the first vet missed it but very grateful the second clinic.

Sorry to hear that, but glad you figured stuff out. Did your vet believe her lack of walking was associated with exercise intolerance due to her collapsed lungs or is there also secondary damage to her legs?

 

[DuckDuckJuice]

So, unfortunately, with a leg that has been angulated for so long, I strongly feel implementing an external coaptation device (brace/splint) might cause more discomfort than it's worse. However angulated the leg may look, that is its natural positioning, so similar to if we braced or legs to a different angle, we're going to feel some discomfort, and even worse, if done incorrectly can lead to swelling, and rupturing of the vessels that supply blood to that area.

A simple compression bandage to the area, to help provide some padding could be beneficial, but it's something that would need to be done correctly, and monitored to ensure no adverse effects.

Took her to a different emerg vet on wed night beause her breathing was always audible. Turns out she had a collapsed lung. She's been at the vet since on an iv getting with antibiotics, pain meds and antiinflammatory. Cant believe the first vet missed it but very grateful the second clinic.

Oh, no! I’m so glad you took her somewhere else and they caught it in time. I’m amazed she made it that long with a collapsed lung. I hope she gets better soon. It’s great you’re willing to do so much to help her. Please keep us updated on her progress!