- May 3, 2013
- 3
- 2
- 9
I wondered if anyone here would be able to help me. I have tried to find any information about the problems I'm having on the Internet and have drawn blanks. I have two goslings that I hatched about a week and a half ago that have become ill. I had nine fertile eggs, one of one breed and the others from a different breed, from entirely different sources. The single egg of the first breed hatched on time, perfectly normal hatch, healthy, normal gosling. Of the other eggs, only one made it past internal pip, although at least five of the others were fully developed and with heads turned into position (may be related, may not, some of the air cells looked proportionally small even though humidity was 30-45% throughout incubation). This one egg pipped externally but upon candling was lying on the pip hole, so I made another hole so it could breathe. >48 hours after external pip it was not making progress, so I dismantled the egg over several hours. The gosling was weak and did not seem to be able to sit in a normal position or hold up its head. It bled and I expected it to die, but kept it warm and put sugary water in its beak with an eye dropper, and it recovered.
Both goslings went out into the brooder in the shed, under a heat lamp. I moved house recently so there have not been birds in this location before. Up until they were about a week old, they were doing fine. They are eating crumbs specifically for goslings and ducklings and chopped-up grass with some grit scattered on the towel. The first one got very big quickly but the runty one didn't grow so fast, but both were active and running around.
Then I went into the shed one morning to find the runty one collapsed on its back, away from the heat lamp. I immediately took it back in the house thinking it was having a setback, and put sugary water and gosling food into its beak as it didn't seem to be eating. It could not stand or walk, and when turned into the proper position just flung itself over again. The next day the fat, healthy gosling had collapsed in the same way. I took both geese to the vet. The vet was not much use, said he did not know much about avians, said I could either take them to a university in the next city (too far), send one for necropsy (I only had two and they are both rare breeds, so no way), leave them and see what happens, or try an antibiotic. So I opted to try the antibiotic and have been giving them Baytril with a syringe. That was the day before yesterday.
As of today, the runty gosling is eating again and can stand up if turned in the right position, although it soon falls over when it tries to walk and cannot right itself. Most of the time I tape its feet to a piece of card in a sitting position and tape the card to the floor of the box it is in because I cannot be there all the time to keep picking it up -- and it usually poos all over itself and I am getting dermatitis from constantly washing my hands. The fat one (the vet weighed them and it's more than twice the size of the runty one) is too big and heavy to tape down, and lies on its side flailing its legs. Its neck is bent into a peculiar position. It continues to eat and drink normally, although sometimes it has to be held so it can do so.
My most immediate problem is this: I have twenty duck eggs candled developing, today day 9, in an incubator. I need to know what this disease is so I can do something to stop it affecting the ducks when they hatch. Does anyone have any ideas what might be going on with my geese?
Both goslings went out into the brooder in the shed, under a heat lamp. I moved house recently so there have not been birds in this location before. Up until they were about a week old, they were doing fine. They are eating crumbs specifically for goslings and ducklings and chopped-up grass with some grit scattered on the towel. The first one got very big quickly but the runty one didn't grow so fast, but both were active and running around.
Then I went into the shed one morning to find the runty one collapsed on its back, away from the heat lamp. I immediately took it back in the house thinking it was having a setback, and put sugary water and gosling food into its beak as it didn't seem to be eating. It could not stand or walk, and when turned into the proper position just flung itself over again. The next day the fat, healthy gosling had collapsed in the same way. I took both geese to the vet. The vet was not much use, said he did not know much about avians, said I could either take them to a university in the next city (too far), send one for necropsy (I only had two and they are both rare breeds, so no way), leave them and see what happens, or try an antibiotic. So I opted to try the antibiotic and have been giving them Baytril with a syringe. That was the day before yesterday.
As of today, the runty gosling is eating again and can stand up if turned in the right position, although it soon falls over when it tries to walk and cannot right itself. Most of the time I tape its feet to a piece of card in a sitting position and tape the card to the floor of the box it is in because I cannot be there all the time to keep picking it up -- and it usually poos all over itself and I am getting dermatitis from constantly washing my hands. The fat one (the vet weighed them and it's more than twice the size of the runty one) is too big and heavy to tape down, and lies on its side flailing its legs. Its neck is bent into a peculiar position. It continues to eat and drink normally, although sometimes it has to be held so it can do so.
My most immediate problem is this: I have twenty duck eggs candled developing, today day 9, in an incubator. I need to know what this disease is so I can do something to stop it affecting the ducks when they hatch. Does anyone have any ideas what might be going on with my geese?
