Hiya my ducklings were born on monday we've been feeding them on chick crumb which i thought was non-medicated which i bought online as there are no local shops that sell it. Today i recieved a e-mail from the seller telling me it was in fact medicated and it had been bagged wrong Now i'm stuck i have just ordered some more from a more reliable supplier but i'm not sure what i should feed them in the mean time? Also will it have done my babies any damage? I'm so worried
Most people here is the States feed medicated feed for the first few weeks. It will give the ducklings and chicks a chance to develop an immunity to things like salmonella and other bad bugs. I would Google the type of meds that are in the bag of feed that the company sent you, just to make sure that they are safe for ducklings. They owe you a replacement bag of what you ordered. It wasn't your fault that they sent you the wrong bag. I would think that if the ducklings have been eating without any problems that I would feed them the rest of it without worrying very much.
What is it medicated with??? Amprolium is safe for ducklings - but if it is anything else it is best to stop feeding them with it. You can keep them going for a day or two on a mix of human breakfast cereals - but I mean whole grain type ones...not coco puffs or ones full of sugar. -You may have to crush or dampen some grains but they still need a mixed diet- Not just one type of grain. Stick some muesli, corn flakes, oats and bran in a blender to break down the size of the pieces- its better than a single type of grain on its own- or bread.
Lasolocid acid and Avatec I'm not sure what those are. Its so annoying as I only bought that one as it stated non-medicated. Thanks for the advice luckily my husbands a health food freak so we've got lot of oat bran and things to give them for now
You can grab a bag of turkey wild game bird starter...it should be mixed with the chick crumbles anyway 50/50. It has more niacin and less protein so it gives a great balance for them according to the information I received with my ducklings from Holderread's. Their first choice is the Purina line of food - Start and grow I think is the starter name then on to florck raiser and then layena.
The medication is more of an over consumption thing. Ducks eat more then chicks. Right now they are really small so it is not so much of an issue, but you should fix it as soon as possible. In the meanwhile you can mix dried cat food into the food (may have to break it up a little), or give koi fish food.
In the UK, the medicated chicken feed has anti-coccidiostat in it. I read that it is fine for chickens but poisonous for waterfowl. Not sure whether the medicines in yours are that type but you could always try googling them to see if they are. I was lucky to get non-medicated chick crumbs where I live. If you look for the organic versions, they are usually non-medicated. I wouldn't have thought that a couple of days would seriously harm them - they probably ate very little anyway as they are still absorbing the yolks for the first day or so. In the wild, they probably eat all sorts of unsuitable stuff and still survive. Ducks are pretty bulletproof (figuratively, not literally!) You've done the right thing anyway by replacing the feed, so I am sure all will be well. Mine have hatched too now - see pics on my other thread! so excited I had to share that!
