Can an utter lack of common sense be a symptom?

[elizabethbinary]

My baby ducks hatched ELEVEN of the TWELVE eggs!!! One died a day after it hatched, unknown causes.

One of them is WAY behind the rest, even the ones that hatched later. It's smaller and really really...not smart. It will follow everyone and when everyone leaves it'll just sit in the middle of the empty yard and not do anything. Not even cry. It'll sit there until one of us picks it up and puts it back with the ducklings then it runs around with them again... only to do the same thing in a corner - where it'll face the corner. And if we pick it up and TURN IT AROUND it'll run off and follow the others. It's CONSTANTLY going missing and then reappearing quite a few hours later in different conditions - one time soaked to the bone and shivering. Right now I can count all but ONE of the ducklings hiding under the awning because it's raining. The not bright one is off by itself staring while sitting. It can see. Maybe it can't hear?

Edit: It's about 4 days old but the 2 day old ducklings are bigger and doing better at running/sticking together than it.

Is something wrong, mentally, with my duck?

 

[Miss Lydia]

Sure sounds like it the poor little thing. too bad you can't get it an friend that can help it when it has one of it's moments. sounds like it needs special attention.

 

[desertdarlene]

It may need special attention. Ducklings in the wild are born with all kinds of "senses" and personalities and it's usually the ones like this one that would be gone before they're 2 days old.

I remember one wild duckling in particular that couldn't keep up with his three sisters and when it was far behind, it would just go and do it's own thing. His mom would call him and he would try to catch up, but would just putter around by himself a few minutes later. Needless to say, he was gone by the time he was 3 days old.

 

[sourland]

Well, in humans over here it has become far more prevalent. The further from the farm the further it seems from common sense.

In the case of your duckling, it does sound like some sort of brain damage. My guess

is that he will become progressively worse. Sorry.

 

[elizabethbinary]

Quote:
Aww, poor thing could be a little special in the head?

It's good, we do have some friends staying with us right now - and she's taken to feeling sorry for the little guy so I'm sure with all of us combined we can make sure the special duck has a nice padded room with safety goggles and gloves and maybe a helmet.

 

[duckyfromoz]

Deafness could be a possiblitiy- as could blindness. Have you checked to see if it can see. I have a blind duck that will walk towards the other when she can hear where they are- but at other times she is just off by helself. Alternatively- it could just not be firing on all pins.

 

[Sir Birdaholic]

Oh, sorry, thought this thread was about my brother.

 

[HorseFeatherz NV]

Being smaller - two things come to mind.

Duckling might have vision/hearing problems

Duckling might have heart defect - thus it just has less energy to get around with the rest, takes it longer to recover.

poor babe. He would never have made it in the wild.

 

[elizabethbinary]

Aww thanks everyone. Special attention it is then!

It doesn't really look like it wants to survive. Or if it does, it goes about the thought the entire wrong way...

 

[gofasterstripe]

Could it be that its BLIND or DEAF...It can hear the other ducks when they are close but if he falls behind he can no longer hear him and just stands and waits or vise versa.