Duck paralyzed legs - botulism?

[kwik-kwak]

Hi there,

I just saw that one of my ducks suddenly had some kind of paralyzed legs. He lay on the ground and tried to move by crawling on the ground with his wings. I lifted him up and checked and saw no damage to his legs. He felt a little weak when I held him, but he could move his paws slightly. When I put him on the ground with his paws normally, he was able to take a step again, but then fell over again. He seemed to be sneezing slightly too.


I've been with them for a while to observe him and to change the coop and he kept trying to follow me, after a few tries it seemed to get a little better. He eventually went into the night loft himself. He also ate food with water and extra vitamins, no loss of appetite.

It has recently become a bit colder here, could it also be that he became a little hypothermic when he lay on the ground? I thought that was not so likely with ducks?

I have put a bottle with warm water in the coop so that he can seek out some extra heat, I hope this isn't a bad idea?

There are currently no vets open here, tomorrow I could go to a vet. There are just no vets here with experience with ducks as far as I know. I think we are welcome but I would like some advice on what I can do now and what I might ask a vet tomorrow.

Hope someone can help him!

 

[Miss Lydia]

How old is your duck?
What temps are you experiencing?
What feed are you feeding is it specific for ducks or all poultry?
If he is sick he'd be better off inside with you so he doesn't get hypothermic.
Here is some info on what to do if you have one sick. https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...d-supportive-care-updated-01-17-2021.1048620/
If you have poultry vitamins or access to a B complex you could offer for nutritional support.
Was he chased by anything?

 

[kwik-kwak]

It seems to be going much better. He now stands on his own and the wings are no longer hanging. I'll check again later and give some food and water.

I just gave him extra water, he wasn't really thirsty. I left the water in the coop so he can drink if he wants. Later tonight I'm going to bring some food and see how it goes.

Is botulism also something that arises so acutely? I went to have a look at them today around four o'clock and then there was nothing visible and two hours later he could no longer stand on his legs. Now a few hours later he can stand and walk independently again and is a lot more alert. But I can still see from his appearance that it is not quite right yet...

Indeed, he can choose whether he lies against the hot water bottle or not.

I'd rather not bring him in because I'm afraid that will cause him extra stress. I have two ducks, so the other one would have to come in too or be left alone. I'm just afraid that it disrupts them too much.

The temperature is currently around freezing, so not really extreme, it is warmer during the day.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Do you have an idea what he may have gotten into?
Here is some good info about toxin removal
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/flushes-for-aiding-in-toxin-removal.700526/

 

[kwik-kwak]

How old is your duck?
What temps are you experiencing?
What feed are you feeding is it specific for ducks or all poultry?
If he is sick he'd be better off inside with you so he doesn't get hypothermic.
Here is some info on what to do if you have one sick. https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...d-supportive-care-updated-01-17-2021.1048620/
If you have poultry vitamins or access to a B complex you could offer for nutritional support.
Was he chased by anything?

He is now about 6 months old. He gets all poultry feed supplemented with vitamins and free ranges a few hours a day. When I saw him like this, I did indeed gave extra vitamins.

Three days ago we had a polecat in our garden. The duck run is not covered, the night coop is predator proof. The day before yesterday in the evening the light in the run went on (with motion sensor) when I ran outside there was nothing to see, maybe this was the polecat again. So there is a possibility that it would have returned to the coop. That was also my first thought when I saw him lying there but he seemed otherwise unharmed.

Could it be that he was in complete shock from an attack? Isn't it strange that the polecat leaves without any damage?
It does not explain the sneezing, but that could of course also be a coincidence.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Well I had to look up polecats because here in the south of the USA Skunks are called polecats but in your neck of the world a polecat is a wild ferret. So maybe the polecat scared him enough he was in shock. How is he doing now?
Ferrets are in the weasel family I believe so it could probably do serious damage to your ducks if it got hold of one.

 

[Pierre duck drake]

Hi there,

I just saw that one of my ducks suddenly had some kind of paralyzed legs. He lay on the ground and tried to move by crawling on the ground with his wings. I lifted him up and checked and saw no damage to his legs. He felt a little weak when I held him, but he could move his paws slightly. When I put him on the ground with his paws normally, he was able to take a step again, but then fell over again. He seemed to be sneezing slightly too.


I've been with them for a while to observe him and to change the coop and he kept trying to follow me, after a few tries it seemed to get a little better. He eventually went into the night loft himself. He also ate food with water and extra vitamins, no loss of appetite.

It has recently become a bit colder here, could it also be that he became a little hypothermic when he lay on the ground? I thought that was not so likely with ducks?

I have put a bottle with warm water in the coop so that he can seek out some extra heat, I hope this isn't a bad idea?

There are currently no vets open here, tomorrow I could go to a vet. There are just no vets here with experience with ducks as far as I know. I think we are welcome but I would like some advice on what I can do now and what I might ask a vet tomorrow.

Hope someone can help him!

Could be have frostbite? What breed is he? If he's a pekins than he's probably getting to big to walk. Give him baths and keep a really close eye on him. It sounds like it could be not enough niacin.

 

[kwik-kwak]

Good news, he seems to have made a full recovery. He is actively walking around again and can even run again. He's just a little dirty because he hasn't had a bath yet. Since it is quite cold I leave the choice to him when he takes a bath.

He is probably a cross between muscovy and pekin. I don't think he is too heavy to walk since both ducks are always very active and can sprint quite well.

I did indeed mean the animal related to the weasel (Mustela putorius). I know these can be very dangerous for ducks. Usually they are active at night but this happened just before dark. Tonight they will go to the protected night area earlier.

As for the frostbite, I couldn't find any visible damage. He did curl his legs backwards, which I also see in the pictures of frostbite. Maybe a mild form that made him lie down and get it even colder.
Still, healthy ducks should have no problem with temperatures around 32 degrees (0°C) and slightly below that, right?

Anyway, thank you all very much for your thoughts and help!

 

[Miss Lydia]

I wouldn't think 32* would be a problem, when it's that and colder here mine just lay around on their feet and legs, a few will even get in the pool at 32 even if there is a thin layer of ice.
Great to hear he has recovered.
Love to see some pictures of your ducks when you get time. We love pictures. Your avatar is adorable

 

[kwik-kwak]

some quick phone photos on request. The duck with the light beak is Karel, he was the sick one.