Duckling - Naval Infection or Pasty Butt?

[Searsmom]

Epsom salt is a laxative - soaking his bottom in it is one thing, but I try to remember to let people know E.s. is a laxative.

I should have specified. I soaked him in Epsom salts. No drinking it!!

 

[Amiga]

I was a little tired and every now and then someone misses that fact. Shew. Relief.

 

[Searsmom]

Still alive, soaking again.

 

[Amiga]

 

[Lacrystol]

Can you send me a picture..

 

[Lacrystol]

I would avoid soaking him to much he's gonna get cold and sick very easy. I would get to the store walmart or where ever get your self some polyvisol, it has allll the vitamins in it. He needs to drink otherwise he'll die of dehydration. Give him two drops of polyvisol without iron, he's not going to like it at all. Don't force him just hold the drop to his beak let him shake his little head as much as he wants but look for swallowing, as long as he swallows some you good to go.

Now if he has an infection your best bet is to spray some blue cote on it, this stuff is like a miracle cure. I would like to see the vent first though..

He could have ecoil if he does you have two options getting some baytril in him or letting him past because it's a tough one to cure, sorry if that seems cold or heartless but there's not a whole lot that can be done with it.

The important thing right now is getting the little bugger to drink, they need there water, you could soak his food so much so that is it watered down then you can take droppers to get him to take it, you'll hit two problems in one, he'll get water plus some food. Baby ducks usually don't care for scramble eggs at that age,,

 

[Searsmom]

These are not the greatest pictures. In the first, you can see how much smaller he is than his hatch mates. He's the one to the far left.


This is not great either, but I can see his vent now and there is poop coming out!!! It's sticky looking no doubt because of poop residue, but also from the bacitrin to keep it moist. I wish I'd taken a picture last night. It was like a stiff gel curly twist - like the kind you see sticking straight up on a baby, and I could not pull the feathers apart, even when it had been soaked. There was no poop in, on or around it. Just a solid-feeling twisted down-mass. I was afraid that he was male and sticking out and stuck dry.


He's also appearing more alert. He was soaked (just his heiney) last night and this morning and I agree, the soak can chill him, but it seems to have loosened up whatever it was. Last night it looked like he would be dead in the morning. I'm still making sure he has a drink from the dropper every so often, but now he's fighting me more. Last night he just gave up. We appear to be better, but like you say, he could still die anytime now.



I'll get food soaking in his water. I'm not going to invest a ton in him, like you say, sometimes things happen. I'm just wanting to make sure there's not something I can do now - and haven't. ACV, niacin and sugar water are on-hand. I looked up the ingredients in Blu-Kote, looks like gentian is the magic ingredient. As an antiseptic and protectant, it looks like I will be doing ok with bacitrin - I've got iodine, but hesitate to put it on such a young duck in such a sensitive area. I guess I'm hoping since there's been improvement, that we are on the way uphill. He now stands at alert and pays attention when I walk up instead of laying there with his bill face down. His hatch mates don't bother him at all, so he's getting all the rest he needs.

If I can get the car tomorrow, I'll go pick up some polyvisol - is that a brand name? Would there be another name to find it at the co-op?

 

[Lacrystol]

Good to hear he's doing a little better. But one thing you need to understand, they don't poop from there vent! If you feel below the tail above the vent that's there poop hole, may want to check that hole..

Iodine is good that would be my second choice. Yes you can rub some of that on him.

Polyvisol with out iron cost about 10.00 if you have poultry drench that would be good to give him too that cost about 12.00 but if you want to go cheap get some of this

One cost 1.99 and the other is about 2.99 so for about five bucks could save you some money...

They come in a package of three and it's ok to give it to the others. I usually mix one package of each in with a gallon of water then poor it in a quart container for them. Store the rest in the fridge. Should be served cold. Lol

 

[Lacrystol]

His vent should not be exposed, it should most definitely be completely covered, it should also have a scab on it that will fall off adventurally. Here's my baby duck just born yesterday as you can see the upper is his vent and of course he has poop on him, which is good because now you can see there's his poop hole. Lol

Don't worry we cleaned him up. Lol

 

[Lacrystol]

His vent looks infected it's hard to tell in the pic but it does look infected..