Duck and chickens - intro

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DenverDucky said:
Out of curiosity, what language were you speaking?
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Slovenian
I basically first explain how I prepared the "pea soup" treat, encourage the duckling to eat it and then comfort her when Bim (the cat) comes to check out if there's anything edible for him in the bowl.
 
I think my duckling is not feeling so great at the moment. She outgrew her water bowl and I only realised that after 2 days so I made her a new one with a larger hole. The day before I made it for her she also didn't have her regular bath. Her nose got a bit snotty and she was sneezing and panting quite a lot. It got better with the new bigger waterer and I put her in the tub a few times a day so she could really dunk her head. No sneezing but she still pants occasionally if she runs around. I don't think she's sick but I have a feeling she's getting quite chubby and maybe she gets tired quickly because of that. She eats a LOT of food, a medium sized bowl a day. She drinks a lot too, makes a mess quickly so I have to change it at least 2x a day

Is that a normal thing with ducklings? Is this some sort of a phase they go through where they basically gain so much wight quickly and their bodies have a hard time keeping up?

Then today we had an accident. She was in my office, walking around the chair... I moved the chair a bit and she screamed in pain. I pinched her foot and now she has a pea sized hematoma on the webbing. No damage on the surface of the skin and the joints on her toes seem to be okay, not broken. I can't notice any limp.

Do I need to provide her with some sort of first aid or take her to the vet?

She's about 3-4 weeks old now and the last couple of days she's been acting a bit strange, fussing a lot, not sure what she wants, sometimes she loves my attention, other times it looks like I'm freaking her out, she makes these high pitched peeping noises often, not settling down. If I take her out of the box she sometimes looks a bit confused, doesn't know whether to follow me or do something else.

Do I have a duckling who's going through a tantrum phase?
 
Thanks for keeping us up to date with the duckling
big_smile.png


If you can get vet care, that is good. Aside from that . . .

A few things are going on. With the hematoma, I would put Epsom salts compresses on it three times a day. Don't let duckling ingest any of the salts, it is a laxative.

Ducklings need food 24/7, along with fresh water. It keeps duck momma's hopping!!! So that's normal.

Panting may indicate she is too warm. What's the temperature in her brooder, and can she move to a cooler spot?

At her age, it is normal for her to develop a fear of all things taller than she is, including you. This phase can take weeks to pass, and you need to be patient, and as calm, quiet at low as possible. Treats can help, but mostly your understanding is what's needed.
 
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Also with her growing so fast you might want to add some plain niacin to her water or buy Brewers yeast and sprinkle some on top of her feed, especially since being Pekin she is gaining weight which puts alot of strain on her legs and hips and the niacin will help with that. And reg chick starter does not have the adequate amt of niacin a growing duckling needs.
http://metzerfarms.blogspot.com/2011/03/are-my-ducklings-leg-problems-due-to.html
 
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She has food and water available 24/7. She's got a bowl of food, I sprinkle some brewers yeast on top every day. Then next to the bowl she has her home made waterer which now has a bigger hole in it so she's able to stick her head in. She eats every couple of minutes... a bit of food, a bit of water, make a mess, play with water of course, splash around, make a mess, then poop a lot :) She's literally stuffing herself with food. She's developing a big fat belly and has fat puches on the side of her body. The growth rate is tremendous.

I don't have a lamp for her in her box because we live in Australia and it's super hot summer here. Temps from 25-35* celsius, average about 28*. Humidity goes up to 80% but there's really not much I can do about that, it's just the subtropical climate we live in. She'll start panting if she walks... waddle around for a bit and she's all huffing and puffing.

I woke up this morning and she was super happy to see me. The leg looks like it's healing too. The hematoma shrunk a bit overnight.
 
Duh, it's spelled bill... not bile.
Filled up the bath tub for her and put some duckweed in it, so much fun.
Here's another video:

(S)he, still not sure about the gender, started producing some quacking sounds for brief periods. Just a quack every now and then. What an awesome creature, love her to bits
 

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