Deformed Bill on Call Duckling

[Miss Lydia]

So sorry for your loss.

But have to say those are precious little ones you have there, that little Runtamonk is so tiny

 

[MontanaChickDoc]

If they are all in a pen you could yell “stupid crooked spoons” to get them to come inside for the night.

I know, my neighbors must think we're nuts. I talk to my birds a lot and I'm sure it must sound funny. "Cummon Stupid. I know your brain is really really small but try and use the one neuron you have" I wonder if they think I am talking to my kids...

 

[casportpony]

I tucked her in with my sweet Welsummer broody last night, after trying to get her to eat and drink a little (she didn't really seem interested - I think she could either breathe or eat, but not both). This morning I found her dead So I guess it wasn't meant to be. The little call duck hen had one more egg that never hatched - I opened it - the chick was dead and had the same bill malformation as the other. So I guess this hen has something genetically wrong. I won't try to hatch any more of her eggs. She started with 4, 3 dead in shell, 1 hatched with deformities. So sad At least I have little Runtamonk - from the same drake but a different call duck hen (not that she's really runty, but she's so much smaller than her hatch mates that my daughter calls her that). I'm hoping it's the hen's genetics, not the drake (none of my 3 calls are related). Runtamonk was hatched by my genetically defective (cause she has no crest!!) surrogate mother Spitz hen we call "Cookie" because she looks like cookies and cream

So sorry for your loss.

 

[MontanaChickDoc]

Thank you for the sympathy. None of us likes to lose a bird...but it’s something that happens sometimes. Sigh.