Duck always asleep and hardly eating

[Quack55]

Hi there I just got a new female duckling called whiskey, she is a mallard and is always running around until a few days ago. She is now always sleeping and hardly moving nor eating and I want to know if she is sick or unwell. Please help me and my duckling

 

[Canadian Wind]

Hi, and

Do you have any pictures of her? How old is she? What have you been feeding her, and what is her set-up? Is she an only duck? Is she laying yet?

These will help us figure out what could be bothering her.

 

[BelovedBirds]

Hi there I just got a new female duckling called whiskey, she is a mallard and is always running around until a few days ago. She is now always sleeping and hardly moving nor eating and I want to know if she is sick or unwell. Please help me and my duckling

how old is she? Is she feathered? Is she still in the brooder?

 

[Quack55]

So this is my duckling here. I feed her worms and fruit and she is about 2 weeks old. I actaully found her out in the wild so im just guessing. she is the only duckling i have so yeah. Do you know what is wrong

 

[BelovedBirds]

So this is my duckling here. I feed her worms and fruit and she is about 2 weeks old. I actaully found her out in the wild so im just guessing. she is the only duckling i have so yeah. Do you know what is wrongView attachment 3267680

if you're only feeding her worms and fruit, then yes I think I know what is wrong.

Important question, are you supplying her with grit, and do you have a heat source for her?
Does she walk with her feet pointing inwards or overlapping?

Ducklings NEED really high levels of niacin in their food, otherwise their legs will grow defromed, they will become lethargic and they can die. It's a very common problem with them.
If she is only eating worms and fruit, not only is high amounts of fruit dangerous, but this wont have the balance of vitamins that she needs.
She needs duckling food. Or if you absolutely cant get any, she needs unmedicated chick starter crumb supplemented with Nutritional yeast.

If she is already showing signs of a niacin deficiency, I would start her on Vit B complex (by Durvet, Cattle injectable B complex given orally, 1ml over a bit of food daily until improvement) or Niacin capsules (flush effect NOT flush free, you can get them online or over the counter, 100mg capsules broken open and powder mixed with 1 gallon of water- use this as the drinking water).

If she is alone, she will suffer too, have you given her a mirror, or a plush toy, for company?
Depending on her breed, which looks like Mallard to me, keeping her may not be legal, could you look into wildlife rehabilitation centres near by? Otherwise what do you plan on doing with her? She can't be alone forever, and if imprinted she wont do well in the wild.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Please look for a waterfowl or wild life rehabbers in your area. Call your local shelter or a vets office and ask if they know of one. This duckling needs someone who knows how to care for it properly. It's not legal to have this duckling since it's wild. It's wonderful you rescued it but it really needs to be where it can eventually be released back into the wild. Rehabbers know how to do this please turn it over to your local DNR or a rehabber before it's too late.

 

[Quack55]

Thank you so much guys for helping me. She did have a mirror and a teddy in her little room but she was still alone and I never knew it was legal either so i'm glad you guys told me. I gave my duckling to a friend of mine who has a lot of ducks and cares for them and she said that Whiskey has just had a little to much fruit but she can get her back on track. So thanks guys for telling me because as sad as I am to see her go I know that she would of died with me. I still get to see her often so were all happy.

 

[Miss Lydia]

That is great news. Hopefully, it will thrive now.
Since you get to see her often keep us updated on how she is doing.

 

[Quack55]

Yeah I will make sure to