Ducklings seem stuffy

[patrickftobin]

Hi all,

I have 5 Rouen ducklings, 19 days old. They are eating and drinking normally and have periods where they are active and move around and then periods where they rest.

A couple of them seem stuffy like their noses are clogged. They have deep water to sink their whole bills and I’ve let them bathe and swim every few days. I clean their pine shavings (damp and poopy clumps) several times daily, give them fresh towels twice daily, change their water multiple times a day. Temperature is about 65-70 degrees in the room they’re in. There’s no nasal discharge, no sneezing that I’ve heard.

I’m not sure what else to do for them to help maybe clear out their nostrils. Their nasally squeak whistle has changed to a slight honk. Maybe this is normal and their voices are changing? I’m just worried. Any advice? Thanks!

 

[Quatie]

They may have something stuck in their nares. You can look inside them and see. I often find baths are better at getting ducks to properly clean their nares. Even with deep water, some just don't seem to fully dunk their heads. A luke warm bath will likely clear it up. Just make sure you help them dry off and keep them them warm after the bath.

 

[patrickftobin]

They may have something stuck in their nares. You can look inside them and see. I often find baths are better at getting ducks to properly clean their nares. Even with deep water, some just don't seem to fully dunk their heads. A luke warm bath will likely clear it up. Just make sure you help them dry off and keep them them warm after the bath.

I’ve given them a slightly warm bath and some water in a deep dish so they can dunk their bills but a few of them still sound stuffy. Can ducks get a cold? Or is this just their voices changing? Their usual nasal whistling sounds slightly honky!

 

[Quatie]

I’ve given them a slightly warm bath and some water in a deep dish so they can dunk their bills but a few of them still sound stuffy. Can ducks get a cold? Or is this just their voices changing? Their usual nasal whistling sounds slightly honky!

So ducks can get infections in their eyes and nares. Usually when I have hear whistling from their nares, something has been stuck. Ducks blow air out in water to clean them out. If it sounds croupy, that is an indication of an infection.

Another thing that can occur, is fungal infection. That is most likely to happen if their bedding is constantly wet and encourages fungal growth. If you are keeping it clean and dry, this is not as likely. Hay bedding molds easily. Straw and pine shavings don't mold easily.

It is a bit early for when their voices normally change. I have seen it happen at around 3 weeks. It is not as common, but still possible. If you take a video, I can confirm what is happening. To upload a video, you will need to post it to another website like YouTube or vimeo.

 

[patrickftobin]

So ducks can get infections in their eyes and nares. Usually when I have hear whistling from their nares, something has been stuck. Ducks blow air out in water to clean them out. If it sounds croupy, that is an indication of an infection.

Another thing that can occur, is fungal infection. That is most likely to happen if their bedding is constantly wet and encourages fungal growth. If you are keeping it clean and dry, this is not as likely. Hay bedding molds easily. Straw and pine shavings don't mold easily.

It is a bit early for when their voices normally change. I have seen it happen at around 3 weeks. It is not as common, but still possible. If you take a video, I can confirm what is happening. To upload a video, you will need to post it to another website like YouTube or vimeo.

I have them on pine shavings and I clean out damp and poopy shavings a few times a day. I’ve also been laying down towels for them and those do get damp but I’ve also been changing those out a couple times a day and washing and putting clean dry ones in. Last night I removed the towels all together to see if that was it. I’ve attached a video here:

You can kind of hear the slight honk in the video. They are still eating and drinking normally and active. They are 3 weeks old today. Thank you for your help!

 

[Quatie]

I have them on pine shavings and I clean out damp and poopy shavings a few times a day. I’ve also been laying down towels for them and those do get damp but I’ve also been changing those out a couple times a day and washing and putting clean dry ones in. Last night I removed the towels all together to see if that was it. I’ve attached a video here:

You can kind of hear the slight honk in the video. They are still eating and drinking normally and active. They are 3 weeks old today. Thank you for your help!

I think I can just heat what you are talking about in the beginning on the video. It kind of sounds like a clogged nostril. I would take a close look at the nares. You may want to compare the duckling to one that is not having an issue to see what it looks like. This is the best example I have of nares. But you should able to see through them. Did it improve any after a bath?

Your cage looks really clean. A fungal infection seems unlikely, but I felt I should at least mention in just in case. It does look like they could use some deeper water. A lot of use modified Tupperware containers. Here is an example of what I use. It helps reduce some of the mess.

 

[Quatie]

@patrickftobin how is your duckling doing?

 

[patrickftobin]

@patrickftobin how is your

They all seem good I was reading online that starting at 2 weeks their peeps might start to become a half peep half quack so I think that’s all it is. I’ve continued keeping their enclosure clean, they have a new waterer like the style you use, with holes in the lid of a Tupperware container, and their nares are all clear, they’re eating and drinking normally still. thank you for checking in, it means a lot!

 

[Quatie]

They all seem good I was reading online that starting at 2 weeks their peeps might start to become a half peep half quack so I think that’s all it is. I’ve continued keeping their enclosure clean, they have a new waterer like the style you use, with holes in the lid of a Tupperware container, and their nares are all clear, they’re eating and drinking normally still. thank you for checking in, it means a lot!

That is great to hear!