Drake Prolapse Amputation: Yea or Nay?

[Luv Ducks]

Poor Bob seems to be struggling today. He is also shivering a bit, as if he is in pain, and panting. (We noticed some of the panting yesterday). He is trying to retract his penis and pumping his tail, so that is probably causing some of the discomfort. He did seem very miserable the day before his prolapse receded the first time. The Baytril is probably making him jittery, as well. We gave him a little Meloxicam, to help him out.
I hope he feels better soon, and that we've been doing the right thing for him. I don't think the Baytril itself is making him feel bad, as I didn't see many side effects listed on PoultryDVM. But I hope that he is getting better, and the infection didn't spread.

That's the only reason that I was able to amputate the end of my Little Call Duck's Penis. When I read that the infection could spread through the whole body that gave me the courage. I hope that yours will be alright. I have never dealt with any medication other than the spray that I used on him which worked great. I don't like to take medication myself so I would not want to be giving it to any of my ducks. That is why I have no experience in that area. I get terrible side effects from most drugs so I just don't take them.

 

[boopsqueak]

Bob seems to be doing better now. It looks like he was just trying to contract, after all, which is a relief. I finished giving him a soak a little while ago, and the swelling has gone down quite a bit, which indicates that the Baytril is doing its job.
The concern I have about amputating is that (from what I can see, but I'm not really sure) is that I might be near the base. On PoultryDVM, a case was described in which a drake's entire penis was removed, and the article mentioned that when the whole organ is amputated, the drake can, though not always, suffer from chronic pain or straining after that.
I completely agree with your stance on drugs, though. I would not use antibiotics unless necessary, we usually use gentler methods when treating our birds. I almost never take drugs myself, either. It's not that I have any trouble taking them, but they just don't seem necessary in most cases. I would almost rather be sick and get over it than be loaded up with medications. The same with vaccinations.

 

[Luv Ducks]

Bob seems to be doing better now. It looks like he was just trying to contract, after all, which is a relief. I finished giving him a soak a little while ago, and the swelling has gone down quite a bit, which indicates that the Baytril is doing its job.
The concern I have about amputating is that (from what I can see, but I'm not really sure) is that I might be near the base. On PoultryDVM, a case was described in which a drake's entire penis was removed, and the article mentioned that when the whole organ is amputated, the drake can, though not always, suffer from chronic pain or straining after that.
I completely agree with your stance on drugs, though. I would not use antibiotics unless necessary, we usually use gentler methods when treating our birds. I almost never take drugs myself, either. It's not that I have any trouble taking them, but they just don't seem necessary in most cases. I would almost rather be sick and get over it than be loaded up with medications. The same with vaccinations.

Bob's penis is about 7.9 inches long so unless you have cut a lot off he still has quite a bit. They say it is about the size of half of their body for a Mallard Duck. I too would not want to cut all of it off but it is quite long if you should happen to have to amputate anymore of it.

 

[boopsqueak]

The swelling has continued to go down. Wow, 7.9 inches! I had no idea that a drake's penis was that long! I checked again tonight, and this time I was able to pull more out of the vent. It was too swollen before, and I didn't want to pull too hard anyway, so that is why I thought we had reached the base.
I have a jar of food fermenting, in order to provide probiotics for Bob once the Baytril treatment is over. Depending on how well he's doing, we may stop tomorrow.

 

[boopsqueak]

Bob is looking better and better. He is still prolapsed, but at least the penis looks normal. He was very happy to be able to go outside today, and bathed vigorously. We gave him only one dose of Baytril today.

 

[boopsqueak]

Update! The prolapse has receded completely today! Hopefully everything will stay in place. He seemed relatively chipper today, except when he was trying to contract his vent muscles. He was quite feisty this evening.
Bob is currently getting probiotics and apple cider vinegar in his food and water, which will help keep any yeast infections resulting from the use of the Baytril under control. I made some fermented feed for him yesterday, but he didn't want it (his appetite didn't seem that good then).
Unfortunately, during his outings over the last few days, he has been showing interest in the girls. I was hoping that he wouldn't have to be isolated, but it looks like he will have to be now. Thank God he is looking better, though!
On Wednesday, we let the birds out for their free-ranging time. Bobbie, Nelson, and Magnolia took off and flew around the house. Bobbie and Nelson came around, but Magnolia had disappeared without a trace! We looked everywhere for her, and the drakes were looking for her too, getting very upset and flying here and there calling her. We looked all over our yard, in the woods across the street, up and down the road. After a long search, we discovered her, relaxing in our garage. Who knows what she was doing in there. We were so relieved, and the drakes were so happy to see her that they just stared at her and quacked and quacked. Magnolia can be quite mischievous, but she can "cute" her way out of anything.

 

[Luv Ducks]

Update! The prolapse has receded completely today! Hopefully everything will stay in place. He seemed relatively chipper today, except when he was trying to contract his vent muscles. He was quite feisty this evening.
Bob is currently getting probiotics and apple cider vinegar in his food and water, which will help keep any yeast infections resulting from the use of the Baytril under control. I made some fermented feed for him yesterday, but he didn't want it (his appetite didn't seem that good then).
Unfortunately, during his outings over the last few days, he has been showing interest in the girls. I was hoping that he wouldn't have to be isolated, but it looks like he will have to be now. Thank God he is looking better, though!
On Wednesday, we let the birds out for their free-ranging time. Bobbie, Nelson, and Magnolia took off and flew around the house. Bobbie and Nelson came around, but Magnolia had disappeared without a trace! We looked everywhere for her, and the drakes were looking for her too, getting very upset and flying here and there calling her. We looked all over our yard, in the woods across the street, up and down the road. After a long search, we discovered her, relaxing in our garage. Who knows what she was doing in there. We were so relieved, and the drakes were so happy to see her that they just stared at her and quacked and quacked. Magnolia can be quite mischievous, but she can "cute" her way out of anything.

When my Mallard left me she went down the street and around the corner to another house that had ducks. She then proceeded to chase their dog that had killed 6 of their own chickens around! Another neighbor found he and brought her back to me as he knew I had Mallards. After that she got clipped. I live in a no fly zone as neighbors have big dogs and I was glad she held her own and did not get eaten. I am glad you found yours and that Bob is doing so well.

 

[boopsqueak]

When my Mallard left me she went down the street and around the corner to another house that had ducks. She then proceeded to chase their dog that had killed 6 of their own chickens around! Another neighbor found he and brought her back to me as he knew I had Mallards. After that she got clipped. I live in a no fly zone as neighbors have big dogs and I was glad she held her own and did not get eaten. I am glad you found yours and that Bob is doing so well.

Wow, what an adventure your Mallard girl had! That's funny how she was able to intimidate the dog!
Fortunately, Magnolia can't fly that well (she is a tubby little Rouen, and not as aerodynamic as a Mallard or Call would be), and usually only does one lap around the house. But that last episode was one of those times when I wonder whether their wings should be clipped...

 

[Luv Ducks]

Wow, what an adventure your Mallard girl had! That's funny how she was able to intimidate the dog!
Fortunately, Magnolia can't fly that well (she is a tubby little Rouen, and not as aerodynamic as a Mallard or Call would be), and usually only does one lap around the house. But that last episode was one of those times when I wonder whether their wings should be clipped...

I only clip one to throw them off balance when they try to fly. That works well for me. Almost all of the males I ended up selling as ducklings have flown away from their new owners. One even had them for almost 3 years before they decided to fly away. They were being fed good and they had plenty of girls for them. They were shocked when they left and contacted me to make sure they did not return here since they were born here but they did not.