Caring for injured duck - any advice plz??

[Billy Biscuit]

Hi,
I seem to have inadvertently adopted a duck from the local park. I took my dog there for a walk the other day and found him looking a little worse for wear. I took him to the vet and they seem to think that he is quite old and was attacked by the other ducks. They said he just needs a could of days rest and should be OK. He's had his couple of days rest in our dogs crate, nice and quiet, relatively undisturbed except for cleaning and feeding. Problem is he is still unable to walk properly. I've had him in the bath (much to hubby's dismay) and he swims fine but when it comes to bearing weight he struggles. Should I just give him a bit more time?? Also am I doing the right thing letting him swim with it? I figured a little exercise would be good rather than not using his legs at all for days.

We are considering keeping him as I think if he was set upon once it will happen again, we have a huge back yard (for townies anyway) and with somewhere to swim I think he would be pretty happy, we also have a pen for safety at night. So I was thinking about worming him. I've read the thread about it and someone mentioned vinegar in the water... does this actually work??

Thanks in advance for any help.

 

[Eggs4Sale]

I didn't know the vinegar worked for worming.

I think, though, that you have officially adopted a duck!

Dig a whole in the backyard and let the water trickle in and he'll be in hog heaven.

It seems if it hurt his leg too much to swim, he wouldn't. With the home-dug pond, you can have different depths, so he can stay in his preferred depth. If his leg pain is relieved in the deepest part, he'll stay there. And he'll schlep on out into the shallower area if he doesn't like the leg motion.

What's it going to hurt to try? And DH won't be so freaked about the tub!

 

[xke4]

Good Morning,
Sometimes when one of our ducks comes in with a hard landing, they have a hard time moving around for a week or two. They must endure some sort of soft tissue injury which takes some time to heal. They are provided with soft bedding (pine shavings or straw) in something like a big crate and are taken out frequently for aqua-physio in a kiddie's swimming pool. They walk with a bit of a limp for a while once they are on their feet again, but seem to do well. Would you happen to have access to a medicine called Metacam? (Meloxicam) It is usually prescribed as an anti-inflammatory for dogs/cats and we give it safely to our ducks for a few days with good results. Your vet may agree to give you a bit. If you give me his weight, I can let you know how much to give him. Good luck with your ducky. PS. Have never heard of vinegar as a wormer. Did you take a fecal sample in to your vet? He may not have anything. If you do need to worm him, you can use Ivermectin safely.
Carolyn
www.cragganmorefarm.com

 

[rainplace]

Getting him a kiddie pool would be a great idea. I had a duck with a bad limp and she liked to spend a lot of time in the pool. At first she couldn't use the bad leg for direction, but it was so habitual for her that she always tried. It took quite a while for her to get over her limp but she finally did. Make sure he can easily get in and out if he wants to. I even went so far as to throw some towels over the side where the ramps were so that there was something for the feet to cling to.

Give us picutres!

Good luck and welcome to the forums.

 

[Billy Biscuit]

Hi Guys,
Thanks for your help. I was starting to get a bit disheartened as it's day 4 with no real progress on the walking front. But knowing that it takes a bit longer doesn't make me feel so bad. As for the metacam.... I'll talk to the vet, but in order to let you know his weight, I have to get on first and quite frankly I don't really want to do that!!!

Although I guess if he's not walking, he'll probably sit on them himself no worries.
I'm about to head out and look at kiddie pools and set up the pen out the back with straw as I'm getting the hint he is starting to outstay his welcome in the dining room. It's fairly sheltered, 1/2 enclosed, and I think ducky can borrow the dogs kennel as she never uses it anyway, at least until we can organise something better. I just need to convince hubby that he'll have to take him out for swims while I'm at work!
Again thanks for your help and I'll keep you posted on any progress.

 

[catiecutie 123]

Have you ever watched Animal Cops? If so, have you ever seen them work an animal's legs in water? This is getting them to work their legs and begin to bear wieght again. What I suggest is to fill your bathtub so that he can touch the bottom and walk on it but the water is still lifting some of the wieght off of him. Do this for a while and take him back to the vet. Once he is stable conditions, make sure that he is not dependent on humans. Check on him every day once you release him to make sure he's doing okay. If not, take him back in and continue caring for him. Also, make sure he knows how to get his own food. Good luck!

 

[Billy Biscuit]

Hi,
So I've bought a kiddie pool and set him up in the pen out the back. He's in the kennel and seems to be doing ok. I think he is getting a bit of strength back in his leg, he's using it a bit more when he's swimming. I went back to the vet to ask a few questions and, well basically I think they think I'm a bit nutty for worrying about a silly old duck from the park. His eyes are a bit manky, and they just said "it's just yucky old ducks eyes." I'm not sure if that is an official diagnosis or what. Anyway, I'm going to post some pics of his eyes and if anyone can tell me if this is the case or not I'd appreciate it. I was wondering if a wipe with saline or something might help or if it is just yucky old ducks eyes, because I'd be surprised if he can really see a great deal at all. Thanks again...

 

[DuckLady]

If he was being picked on a the park, it is likely he was being mated with by other drakes. Does the back of his neck have bare spots? Mating drakes will hang on by biting the neck or sometimes the eye.

Can you post pics of his legs and feet? Overmating will cause sore legs.

For this guy, I recommend a warm saline water rinse followed by a couple weeks of Terramycin Eye Ointment application. Squeeze out 1/4 inch of ointment onto your finger, open the eye and gently draw your finger across the eye.

Apply twice a day, after a rinse. You can use saline solution for contacts (the big bottle) To warm it, just leave it set in the sun.

Lots of pool time with hisbeing able to float will help. He will paddle gently and that will help his legs.

Good luck and keep us posted!

 

[FenDruadin]

Poor duckie! He's lucky to have you.

One of my geese once injured a leg on a fishing hook--guy left his fishing poles out on the community pond, unattended, and my poor gander got caught up in it and pulled a hook way deep in his leg. We got the hook out and treated it as best we could. The wound healed fine in a week or two, but he continued to limp for months. It seemed like it would never heal, like he was making zero progress. But, over time, it did GRADUALLY get better.

He still limps a bit. I think he must have really pulled some muscles, tendons, and maybe even disjointed his leg a bit trying to get loose of the line.

So, anyway, even if it takes a super long time, he will probably heal. Ducks are pretty tough. Another thing to keep in mind is that their natural body temperature is very high--feverishly high--and as a result, not many pathogens can survive in a duck's body--so they don't get ill very easily.

I think you've gotten great advice for treating his eye, and letting him swim as much as he wants to is great, too.

 

[Billy Biscuit]

Hey,
Thanks again for the replies. Terrielacy to answer your questions his neck is ok, but he had lost lots of feathers from his back. It's not too noticeable until he moves his wings. I was a little shocked when I first saw it because it's quite a large bare patch, poor fella. Although no broken skin, just a really weird hard white bald patch. I'll try with the photos of his feet but hubby is at work and I doubt I could do it by myself. One of his legs seems OK, the other one looks normal but it's quite limp and he won't use it unless he has to. Like when I approach him in the pool and he decides to try and paddle away.
I'll try your treatments for his eyes and let you know how it goes.
Thanks again guys...