Duckling with hurt legs,

[larry12]

Hi, I have hatched 6 ducklings, ranging from 1 week to nearly 2 weeks old. One of the ones that was hatched on Saturday week has hurt its legs. It was jumping up in the brooder we have. Now its feet are under its body. It is still shuffling along in another box now with another duckling. Still eating and drinking, it can scratch its head and body with its feet, it won't walk on them though. I put it in the bath to try and get it to move its feet. Can anybody help.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Hi, I have hatched 6 ducklings, ranging from 1 week to nearly 2 weeks old. One of the ones that was hatched on Saturday week has hurt its legs. It was jumping up in the brooder we have. Now its feet are under its body. It is still shuffling along in another box now with another duckling. Still eating and drinking, it can scratch its head and body with its feet, it won't walk on them though. I put it in the bath to try and get it to move its feet. Can anybody help.

First of all

It may just need so extra care in the form of niacin and some poultry vitamins or save a chick. which ever you can get, niacin should be plain form not time released or flush free, most any store carries them and it's 100-150mgs into a 1 gal of water. If ducklings are fed Chick starter they don't get the niacin they need to have strong legs, some ducklings don't have a problem with but others can so it's okay to give this niacin water to all of them. Or Brewers yeast sprinkled on their feed 1tab to 1 cup of feed. It's amazing how fast one can bounce back when started on this, if it's lil legs were weak to begin with letting it have swim time will help to strengthen them too. It may just need some water therapy and rest but the vitamin support will get it going quicker. Good luck and please let us know how it does.

 

[larry12]

Thank you, I will get some and try it out, we did have another one which was a bit wobbly too.