Duckling unable to use foot

[meyerc06]

I didn’t hatch these guys - they were from Meyer Hatchery. I have to look further into findomg a vet in our area - I know that we don’t have any avian vets nearby and our local vets unfortunately don’t see “livestock”.

Do you mind if I pick your brain on another concern with Annie? I’m not sure if her slower development and smaller size is something I should be concerned about - what do you think? She’s still growing and eating and all, but she’s behind in a couple ways:
-the others have lost all of their baby feathers and she’s still got a bunch on her head
-the others are heavy and rounded out, and she’s still easily a couple pounds lighter

Because she’s smaller, she’s less aggressive towards the food and seems to give up if they get a little pushy. She also seems to tire out quickly so she won’t eat all that much even when she has a bowl to herself. I actually decided to give her the b-complex over the mealworms because I thought maybe supplementing her protein (since their food is now only 16-18%) might be a good idea...but I really don’t know if that’s helpful or not.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Giving the b complex over the mealworms is a good idea . As far as her development it may all tie into each other the way she walks etc. but she is developing so that’s a good sign. Maybe give her a bowl separate from the others I have to set out multiple feeders here, hopefully she’d at least have a better chance at eating more, do you keep feed out for them all day? Also might be a good idea to give her something like Poultry nutridrench for a boost . Make sure she has a way in an out of the pool so she doesn’t hurt herself since she’s not steady on her legs. Even if she was steady it’s still good for them to be able to get in an out safely. Water therapy is always good to help strengthen leg muscles.

 

[Isaac 0]

Besides maybe some type of genetic deformity that occurred during incubation, I'm clueless as far as what it may be. When I saw the crooked, almost curling of the toes I got thinking that she may be Riboflavin deficient, but you should have seen improvement when she was on the B complex. I'll do some searching for you.

 

[meyerc06]

Giving the b complex over the mealworms is a good idea . As far as her development it may all tie into each other the way she walks etc. but she is developing so that’s a good sign. Maybe give her a bowl separate from the others I have to set out multiple feeders here, hopefully she’d at least have a better chance at eating more, do you keep feed out for them all day? Also might be a good idea to give her something like Poultry nutridrench for a boost . Make sure she has a way in an out of the pool so she doesn’t hurt herself since she’s not steady on her legs. Even if she was steady it’s still good for them to be able to get in an out safely. Water therapy is always good to help strengthen leg muscles.

Thank you so much! I’m going to add another feeder and see if that helps her. I do have food available all day except I remove it before bed each night (since I found the one duckling had passed during the night from what looked to maybe be choking, I can’t bring myself to leave food in at night).

Would the Rooster Booster Poultry Boost or Poultry Cell be okay for them?

 

[meyerc06]

Besides maybe some type of genetic deformity that occurred during incubation, I'm clueless as far as what it may be. When I saw the crooked, almost curling of the toes I got thinking that she may be Riboflavin deficient, but you should have seen improvement when she was on the B complex. I'll do some searching for you.

Thank you so much! I looked up Riboflavin deficiency, and it does sound a lot like her, though I guess a lot of the symptoms are similar across different issues. I’m going to keep up the Duravet and hope that it gets better. I have an electrolyte/probiotic combo (similar to the save-a-chick) that maybe I’ll start using in the water instead of the straight niacin powder.

 

[meyerc06]

I've been using the High Level B-Complex every morning and adding an electrolyte/probiotic supplement to their water. Annie still is having major problems walking. She seems stiff-legged, and always tucks her tail while she's trying to walk around. She takes a couple of awkward steps, but she's often having an issue where she puts her foot down and it folds under (like shes standing on the top of her flipper), which seems super painful. She'll then yell out and plop down, but it's like she also has difficulty correcting it. She even steps on her foot in this way when she's in the pool.

It's breaking my heart. I have no idea what to do for her, and we don't have a vet nearby that sees ducks. I saw online that there's a company that makes little shoe-like braces for chickens and ducks. Has anyone ever tried these? I'm not sure if it would help or not, but I'm at a loss of what to do next. It seems like a deficiency should have corrected itself by now.

 

[Miss Lydia]

have you tried making a shoe to hold her foot in correct position? Could this be a break at the ankle that hasn't healed properly some updated pics?

 

[meyerc06]

have you tried making a shoe to hold her foot in correct position? Could this be a break at the ankle that hasn't healed properly some updated pics?

I haven't tried making a shoe yet. I have been researching a little on how to do this - any advice on the best way to go about it?

It could honestly be anything, I'm just so confused. She does walk around a little bit, and it doesn't always fold like that...but it does happen regularly after a few steps. Strangely enough, after I've been supplementing her for a while, it seems like it's been happening more often. The only thing I can think is that maybe she had a niacin/riboflavin deficiency, and now that's improved and the ankle/foot injury is becoming more apparent. ?? I don't know.

I'll try to get some pictures later today when I'm back home.

 

[Miss Lydia]

https://sites.google.com/a/poultrypedia.com/poultrypedia/poultry-podiatry. Go on here an scroll way down till you come to chick shoes,for your duckling i’d wrap up around her leg for support of the ankle. Just be careful not to wrap to tight that circulation is cut off.

 

[meyerc06]

https://sites.google.com/a/poultrypedia.com/poultrypedia/poultry-podiatry. Go on here an scroll way down till you come to chick shoes,for your duckling i’d wrap up around her leg for support of the ankle. Just be careful not to wrap to tight that circulation is cut off.

Thank you so much - this link is great!!

While I was looking around, I actually found a vet that will see ducks. I made an appointment to bring her tomorrow, so hopefully they’ll be able to give me some more insight and finally help her. I’m a little worried about bringing her there myself - she’s not going to be happy at all about the trip and being away from her brother and sister.

In the meantime, I’m going to gather the supplies to make a shoe for her. Seems like a good idea to have them on-hand anyway!