Duckling with curled foot and twisted leg

[Shoebox]

Hi, I have a duckling with a curled foot and leg that looks turned inward. It's about 32 hours old now and moving around the brooder a bit, but its leg and foot haven't seemed to improve at all. It had multiple malposition issues and needed help to hatch, but otherwise seems healthy. It only takes a few steps at a time and walks looking almost like it has a peg leg, just putting its weight on the end of the leg bone and not on its foot. The foot stays curled even when totally relaxed.

I've been reading up on making a boot for uncurling the foot, but is there something else I need to do to help correct the rest of its leg?

 

[DotToDot]

Sometimes this happens when the duckling is still in the egg, so it’s not your fault. I don’t really know about the boot, but good luck.

 

[Shoebox]

Sometimes this happens when the duckling is still in the egg, so it’s not your fault. I don’t really know about the boot, but good luck.

Thank you for saying that. I've never had any kind of abnormality in hatched eggs before, so this was a sad surprise.


I think I was able to get a good-enough boot put on lastnight, but upon closer inspection it looked like the duckling is somehow actually just totally missing the back toe on that foot too. So it seems like probably some deeper issue than just cramped egg at hatch time.

 

[Eggcessive]

I will,tag @Miss Lydia in case she has suggestions.I would try giving 1/4 tablet daily of crushed human vitamin B complex in some food or a little water.

 

[Shoebox]

I will,tag @Miss Lydia in case she has suggestions.I would try giving 1/4 tablet daily of crushed human vitamin B complex in some food or a little water.

Thank you. What dosage of human B Complex would that be based on? Would liquid B Complex work too, or does that have too many other ingredients?


And I should probably add too for info that the duckling's joint where the leg meets the foot was very stiff and could barely be moved at all. Not sure how that compares to other curled foot problems that are fixable with a boot.

 

[Eggcessive]

Since I don’t know ducks, I would wait for others to comment. Liquid B complex dosage used in chickens is 1/4 ml daily. There could be a tendon issue or leg deformity Isuppose.

 

[New duck mommy 2021]

can you feel the back of both legs and feel if the bad one feels feels different
Could be a tendon out of place
But the missing back toe makes me wonder if it’s just a deformity

 

[Shoebox]

can you feel the back of both legs and feel if the bad one feels feels different
Could be a tendon out of place
But the missing back toe makes me wonder if it’s just a deformity

The tendon seems to be in the same position on the back of both legs, and also seems the same as on the legs of one of the ducklings without issues that I checked for comparison. I also noticed that the leg-to-foot joint is already much more flexible since having the boot. Maybe about half-way to where it should properly be able to bend but that seems like a good sign so quickly.




The photo below is from before putting on the boot that I missed adding before. I'm not crazy, right? That back toe really is just totally missing?



As for the B Complex, I've had to order it but I do have nutritional yeast I could give and Purina Poultry Electrolyte packets that I've been giving them all anyway in water. It looks like those actually do have all the B vitamins in the ingredients list if I'm not mistaken.



Is it still the niacin that's the most important here, and should I find a way to give this duckling extra directly since I don't know how much of the supplement water it's drinking? I know niacin is very important for ducklings to prevent weak legs, but didn't know it could actually help  correct leg issues too.

I'm not able to tell if maybe the entire foot is paralyzed and it's just using its leg to do all the moving. But I'm guessing that even if the foot does flatten, this duck will probably always have some balance issues from missing that back toe for stability?

 

[New duck mommy 2021]

The tendon seems to be in the same position on the back of both legs, and also seems the same as on the legs of one of the ducklings without issues that I checked for comparison. I also noticed that the leg-to-foot joint is already much more flexible since having the boot. Maybe about half-way to where it should properly be able to bend but that seems like a good sign so quickly.

View attachment 3549655


The photo below is from before putting on the boot that I missed adding before. I'm not crazy, right? That back toe really is just totally missing?

View attachment 3549705

As for the B Complex, I've had to order it but I do have nutritional yeast I could give and Purina Poultry Electrolyte packets that I've been giving them all anyway in water. It looks like those actually do have all the B vitamins in the ingredients list if I'm not mistaken.

View attachment 3549692

Is it still the niacin that's the most important here, and should I find a way to give this duckling extra directly since I don't know how much of the supplement water it's drinking? I know niacin is very important for ducklings to prevent weak legs, but didn't know it could actually help  correct leg issues too.

I'm not able to tell if maybe the entire foot is paralyzed and it's just using its leg to do all the moving. But I'm guessing that even if the foot does flatten, this duck will probably always have some balance issues from missing that back toe for stability?

That does look like the toe is missing
But if you can get baby waking on it’s foot it may just be okay
I put 1tbs nutritional yeast to 1 cup feed
I do this no matter what as I want to prevent leg issues
I have only had one young one get a shaky leg and be a bit bow legged when little abc it was one from a group I bought
None of my young have ever had it and I got that little one at a day old so it had been getting nutritional yeast from day 1 here
I started to give baby durvet vitamin B complex about 1/2 ml directly on it tongue over the course of the day a few drops at a time
Plus at night would add it and Nutridrench to the night water
It was correct in a week but I continued for 2 weeks just to be sure
Baby is now 5 weeks and just fine
I do the nutritional yeast with my young for 12 weeks and adults still get it a few times a week 4-5 in the morning feed sprinkled along with oregano
In winter I add it daily
It maybe more then needed but I don’t have leg issues in my ducks or the hatched babies
I have pekin , khaki , pekin x khaki , Swedish and now anconas
The Swedish are my biggest ducks
You can’t give to much niacin as they will release what the body doesn’t need
Hope this helps
The durvet vitamin B complex says injectable for cattle but with ducks it’s oral and can be bought at TS or on Amazon

 

[Shoebox]

That does look like the toe is missing
But if you can get baby waking on it’s foot it may just be okay
I put 1tbs nutritional yeast to 1 cup feed
I do this no matter what as I want to prevent leg issues
I have only had one young one get a shaky leg and be a bit bow legged when little abc it was one from a group I bought
None of my young have ever had it and I got that little one at a day old so it had been getting nutritional yeast from day 1 here
I started to give baby durvet vitamin B complex about 1/2 ml directly on it tongue over the course of the day a few drops at a time
Plus at night would add it and Nutridrench to the night water
It was correct in a week but I continued for 2 weeks just to be sure
Baby is now 5 weeks and just fine
I do the nutritional yeast with my young for 12 weeks and adults still get it a few times a week 4-5 in the morning feed sprinkled along with oregano
In winter I add it daily
It maybe more then needed but I don’t have leg issues in my ducks or the hatched babies
I have pekin , khaki , pekin x khaki , Swedish and now anconas
The Swedish are my biggest ducks
You can’t give to much niacin as they will release what the body doesn’t need
Hope this helps
The durvet vitamin B complex says injectable for cattle but with ducks it’s oral and can be bought at TS or on Amazon

Thank you for sharing your regimen. Is there a danger of overdosing the other B vitamins besides Niacin? I have Poultry Cell while waiting for the Nutri-Drench to arrive Are those interchangeable, or are they meant for different situations?