Dropped wings

[duck rangler]

Has anyone experienced a duck not being able to hold her wings up after she has molted? Every second she flicks it up, only to have it drop down again. I should point out that this duck survived a severe raccoon attack this spring, having all the skin eaten from her back, and some muscle wounds, but not on this wing. She was fine until she molted.

 

[Amiga]

Ducks seem to do this from time to time, mine will splash in the pool then spend the next while letting their wings droop, pulling them up, then letting them slide back down. I think it is to dry their backs.

Has she been in the pool? Since she had a back injury, the nerves in her back may not feel right. Does she occasionally give the "I'm okay" wing flap?

 

[Kevin565]

. X2 on Amiga's questions. It sounds like the injury could be playing a part in this.

 

[duck rangler]

She doesn't like to go in the pond now. I think her old feathers were lighter from age. She has yet to grow her long finger tip feathers which will help her hold her wings across her back. She does a small, short wing flap, it's rather silly, kind of like a baby duck. I'm pretty sure it's the injury. A friend suggested I try supporting the wing somehow.
She mostly acts ok, except she's not leading my other 2 girls around the yard as much. They spend most of their day at their "outside" pond, and she (Ginny, a 2 year old Rouen), takes occasional sponge baths. She doesn't even like to lay down, because the wing dropping bothers her.
I'm going to try some high energy food (cat kibble) with electrolites to see if I can give her a nutritional boost.

 

[Amiga]

Some of the best things we can do for our ducks is pay close attention and go with our instincts. Sounds like you have a good plan.

 

[duck rangler]

She inhaled the food. Animals often instinctively know what they need. She also swam and bathed in the pond. She may never regain normal usage of this wing, but she can flap it, so that should help build muscle. Out of my flock of 6 Rouens, 2 survived, but she was horribly wounded, and only survived because of a lot of work on my part. My girls now spend their nights in a raccoon proof shelter. Since I live in town, I was hoping that after 3 years of having free range yard ducks was an awesome deal. So did the raccoon.

 

[Miss Lydia]

She inhaled the food. Animals often instinctively know what they need. She also swam and bathed in the pond. She may never regain normal usage of this wing, but she can flap it, so that should help build muscle. Out of my flock of 6 Rouens, 2 survived, but she was horribly wounded, and only survived because of a lot of work on my part. My girls now spend their nights in a raccoon proof shelter. Since I live in town, I was hoping that after 3 years of having free range yard ducks was an awesome deal. So did the raccoon.

We can never let down our guard, which you found out the hard way.

 

[Enchanted Sunrise Farms]

i'm so sorry about the raccoon attack. Glad this girl made it. i'm thinking two things on the wing. Could be that the new feathers coming in are heavier, as they are more full of blood. But she could also have a break. i had one duck that all of a sudden began dragging her wing. When i took her into the vet, they found she had a break. i have no idea how it happened. My vet wrapped the wing, similar to the way you would wrap for angel wing. It eventually healed and you can't tell now that it had been broken. You may want to try wrapping that wing for couple of days to a week, just to take the pressure off.