HELP! Perkin duck can't stand and falls over, wobbles head, tearing eyes, panting

[bdba7991]

Hello! I really need HELP!!! My duck Butters has all of a sudden not been able to walk and he falls over but keeps trying get up and stand. He does live inside, he's 3 months old now. His one eye started tearing bad and it almost looks lightly red around the feathers.hes panting, but he's drinking water. He wasn't eating before till after I gave him a bath and cleaned his bed and gave fresh water and food and he ate a little.i thought maybe it was the niactin he needed so night I gave him some peas. We thought he was overweight at first and that's why he could not walk but i think he is fine he's really not fat. Someone please help I called the vet and they haven't called me back

 

[drumstick diva]

Please post on the "Duck thread," giving as much information as possible. If you have a video showing what his condition is - that could be of enormous help. Do you think it is possible he had a stroke, or heat related event?

 

[Amiga]

Hello! I really need HELP!!! My duck Butters has all of a sudden not been able to walk

and he falls over but keeps trying get up and stand. He does live inside, he's 3 months old now. His one eye started tearing bad and it almost looks lightly red around the feathers.hes panting, but he's drinking water. He wasn't eating before till after I gave him a bath and cleaned his bed and gave fresh water and food and he ate a little.i thought maybe it was the niactin he needed so night I gave him some peas. We thought he was overweight at first and that's why he could not walk but i think he is fine he's really not fat. Someone please help I called the vet and they haven't called me back

@bdba7991

I just found this post - is the duck okay? It sounds like it could be botulism or some kind of toxin. Here is information on flushes, and charcoal slurry https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/700526/flushes-for-aiding-in-toxin-removal#post_9508213

 

[Lrs52200]

I have a Crested Pekin Duck, appx 8 weeks old and it sounds like it's the same issue I have. I noticed he was stumbling when he was walking. He'd fall down, get up, stumble like a drunk, fall down, etc. I immediately removed him from the duck run, gave him activated charcoal and waited. 2 days later I thought he was dead - he was lying on the floor unable to move. I went to get the shovel to remove his 'dead' body when I saw his eye move. I immediately thought that he was the victim of Duck Botulism since he appeared to be completely paralyzed. However, when I saw his eye move, I left him because I couldn't bare the thought of killing him. The next day however, he was up stumbling around again so I figured he was on the mend. It has been 5 days now. He's eating and drinking, but still stumbling around like a drunk. It really does seem to be neurological in nature. He's standing up and pressing his back into the corner of his cage so he can 'stand,' but when he tries to walk, he literally looks like a fish out of water. I honestly can't tell if it's botulism or something organic.

 

[Miss Lydia]

@Lrs52200 have you supplemented with any form of niacin? this could be neurological but it may also be a niacin deficiency Go get liquid B complex TSC carries it will say injectable but we use it orally. If he is eating good put 1 ml over a treat he loves just enough treat that he gets full dose. It's the best for getting them over the deficiency. Def worth trying. keep him on it until he is walking good and looks to be over it then keep him on it an extra week. Once you know he has recovered then you can use Nutritional yeast over his feed or keep up with the liquid B. he may need this all his life.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/niacin-deficiency-in-waterfowl.1367557/
Pekin ducks are very prone to niacin deficiency because they grow so fast.

 

[Lrs52200]

@Lrs52200 have you supplemented with any form of niacin? this could be neurological but it may also be a niacin deficiency Go get liquid B complex TSC carries it will say injectable but we use it orally. If he is eating good put 1 ml over a treat he loves just enough treat that he gets full dose. It's the best for getting them over the deficiency. Def worth trying. keep him on it until he is walking good and looks to be over it then keep him on it an extra week. Once you know he has recovered then you can use Nutritional yeast over his feed or keep up with the liquid B. he may need this all his life.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/niacin-deficiency-in-waterfowl.1367557/
Pekin ducks are very prone to niacin deficiency because they grow so fast.

Thank you for the information. I've got to run out today for more feed, so I'll pick up the B complex. Yes, he's eating very well. He gets regular duck pellets and that's why I thought it couldn't be a vitamin deficiency - because these are supposed to be specially formulated for the niacin needs of ducks. I won't give up the little guy He's the cutest ugly duck I've ever seen. I didn't know about the nutritional yeast, so thank you for that. I just happen to have a huge bag of it in my cold room. Awesome!! I guess this duck has moved from the menu to the pet's list, so now I've just got to figure out a name for him. Anyone have a suggestion? I'll follow up and let you know how he's doing in a day or two. I'll start the B complex today.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Crested ducks can have neurological issues for sure but if this is a recent issue then I'd def treat it as a niacin def and see if the liquid B complex helps get him over it. This stuff is amazing for sure. I hope you see improvements within the week.

Ever seen the muppet named Beaker? he looks like a crested muppet.lol

 

[Lrs52200]

Beaker! I love it!!!

 

[Lrs52200]

Beaker died this morning. I guess my efforts were just implemented too late. Poor little guy, we started helping him eat/drink over the past two days because he was flopping around so badly he couldn't sit still long enough to eat and hydrate unless we held him. I'm still not sure this was a vitamin deficiency or virus though. His body movements looked like spastic quadriplegia in humans. If he got excited, his legs would shoot out and stiffen and any movement he tried to make became grossly exaggerated. I'm thinking it really was neurological.
I thank all of you who took the time to assist me and only wish I could have done better. But on the bright side, not one of my other 8 ducks have any similar symptoms.

 

[Miss Lydia]

I'm so sorry to hear you lost Beaker. It could have been neurological just so hard to know, but you did your best to help him.

Very thankful all the other 8 are doing great.