mommaducksweet
In the Brooder
- Jun 24, 2015
- 16
- 0
- 22
Hello all!
I have a 15-month-old mallard drake named Peep. He is going through his second molt, the first since he got his breeding colors, and appears to be toward the end of it. His gray feathers on his back are starting to come back in. Yesterday my mom said she'd noticed his quack was very soft so I went to check on him and he was indeed hoarse and is still so today, if not slightly worse (by worse I mean more noticeable). He has had the occasional hoarse peep; every now and again one or two quacks will come out sounding strange but I can't recall a time when it has lasted this long? Is this a product of him molting? Does he just feel yuck, like when humans have a cold? Or is it something I should be more concerned with?
His activity level is still the same. He appears to be eating and drinking plenty. His nostrils are clear and his eyes are bright and alert. On a typical day, he socializes with a lame chicken, a couple of rabbits and a few dogs, and lives in the yard with three Pekans and a smattering of chickens that he chooses to stay away from. He pretty much sticks to the porch and the adjacent garage although most days he is on the porch by now and my dad says he has stuck to the garage today (not unthinkable for him, just unusual) but in the garage, he is still mobile and social with the other animals who live in there.
Anyone else had a duck go hoarse on them? Just to know that he's not getting sick would ease my mind a lot!
I have a 15-month-old mallard drake named Peep. He is going through his second molt, the first since he got his breeding colors, and appears to be toward the end of it. His gray feathers on his back are starting to come back in. Yesterday my mom said she'd noticed his quack was very soft so I went to check on him and he was indeed hoarse and is still so today, if not slightly worse (by worse I mean more noticeable). He has had the occasional hoarse peep; every now and again one or two quacks will come out sounding strange but I can't recall a time when it has lasted this long? Is this a product of him molting? Does he just feel yuck, like when humans have a cold? Or is it something I should be more concerned with?
His activity level is still the same. He appears to be eating and drinking plenty. His nostrils are clear and his eyes are bright and alert. On a typical day, he socializes with a lame chicken, a couple of rabbits and a few dogs, and lives in the yard with three Pekans and a smattering of chickens that he chooses to stay away from. He pretty much sticks to the porch and the adjacent garage although most days he is on the porch by now and my dad says he has stuck to the garage today (not unthinkable for him, just unusual) but in the garage, he is still mobile and social with the other animals who live in there.
Anyone else had a duck go hoarse on them? Just to know that he's not getting sick would ease my mind a lot!
