Are my muscovy ducklings healthy??!??

brandy21410

Songster
Feb 26, 2016
216
12
101
Apple Valley (high desert) , Ca
Iam brand new to duck keeping and before I bought these ducklings I inspected the mother and drake and they were in good health, but I know chickens can be asymptomatic and carry disease. My babies are pure muscovy and were born jan.23rd. They sneeze on occasion, but no other symptoms. I have them in a small rubbermaid box now, but they are getting moved to the full sized brooder today for more room. My question is do my ducklings look healthy? Is it normal for them to sneeze? And how do I know if they are healthy? TIA sorry Iam so lost.
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I'm not a duck expert, but they look perfectly healthy and happy to me. Sneezing on occasion is fine, and since their eyes look clear I'd say that they're fine.

Have fun with your new babies!
 
They look perfectly healthy and adorable as ever. They do sneeze occasionally but their eyes are clear as another person said in a different post. I would say the one thing to look out for is if their legs start looking weird like their boat out they made me niacin in their food. That's really the only problem I've ever had with any of my ducks and I know a lot of people don't know that. But it's very important to give them niacin supplements if that starts to happen. And once you do notice something wrong with their legs immediately go get it because it will save their life
 
They look perfectly healthy and adorable as ever. They do sneeze occasionally but their eyes are clear as another person said in a different post. I would say the one thing to look out for is if their legs start looking weird like their boat out they made me niacin in their food. That's really the only problem I've ever had with any of my ducks and I know a lot of people don't know that. But it's very important to give them niacin supplements if that starts to happen. And once you do notice something wrong with their legs immediately go get it because it will save their life

Okay, I was planning on supplementing the niacin with brewers yeast, do you think that would be good enough or would I need a higher concentration? Thank you for the info!!
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Beautiful babies!

A sneeze now and then is normal, based on my Runner babies (now seven years old).

At the same time, remember they need to be able to snoot water through their nares to prevent sinus infections and rinse their heads frequently to prevent eye and ear infections. There is a sticky on the Duck Forum (blue link at the top of the page) on Raising Ducklings. It mentions head washers.

If you are feeding chick starter, I would add a tablespoon of brewer's yeast (not baking yeast) per cup of food for their first couple of months. Since ducklings need more B vitamins than chicks, that would be my default.

Enjoy, and I hope you share more about them with us on the Duck Forum!
 
Beautiful babies!

A sneeze now and then is normal, based on my Runner babies (now seven years old).

At the same time, remember they need to be able to snoot water through their nares to prevent sinus infections and rinse their heads frequently to prevent eye and ear infections. There is a sticky on the Duck Forum (blue link at the top of the page) on Raising Ducklings. It mentions head washers.

If you are feeding chick starter, I would add a tablespoon of brewer's yeast (not baking yeast) per cup of food for their first couple of months. Since ducklings need more B vitamins than chicks, that would be my default.

Enjoy, and I hope you share more about them with us on the Duck Forum!

Thank u!! Iam going to start supplementing them right away,as they are on chick start. And they have bowls that are deep enough for their bills. I just dont want them to drown. And I let them swim in the tub daily. I hope Iam not messing them up.
 
Thank u!! Iam going to start supplementing them right away,as they are on chick start. And they have bowls that are deep enough for their bills. I just dont want them to drown. And I let them swim in the tub daily. I hope Iam not messing them up.
I think you have to wait for them to grow in their feathers all the way before you let them swim. In the wild, a mother duck would rub some of her oil onto them so they could float, but if they're hand raised you have to wait for them to produce their own.
 
I had my Runners in a few inches of warm water on day two - - - not swimming, really, and until they were fully feathered, any time I had them in the tub they were supervised every moment.
 

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