Hunched up duck.

[BlueMoon-N-Farm]

Alright, perhaps someone in this thread can help me out since no one in the emergency section appears to know how to direct me.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/802822/fluffed-up-duck
Here is the link which has pictures and description.

He is eating and drinking fine, and when he is waddling around he stands up straight, but when he sits still for a long period of time he hunches up.
Any ideas on what I can do for him?

 

[Amiga]

Hunching up like that ( I have only 1 drake in my flock) for my girls usually means anxiety or broodiness.

Are others picking on him? Is there something making him anxious? It just sounds like it could be hormonal.

If a vet is not an option, I would get him in a tub of lukewarm water deep enough to float in and watch him closely for half an hour. Sniff test, see if anything doesn't smell right - I don't know how else to say that. But some kinds of problems have an aroma.

Vitamins, probiotics and electrolytes in the water to cover those bases.

How hot has it been? I find some of my ducks are more sensitive to certain stresses than others, and my gut is that this one is stressed.

 

[BlueMoon-N-Farm]

Hunching up like that ( I have only 1 drake in my flock) for my girls usually means anxiety or broodiness.

Are others picking on him?  Is there something making him anxious?  It just sounds like it could be hormonal.

If a vet is not an option, I would get him in a tub of lukewarm water deep enough to float in and watch him closely for half an hour.  Sniff test, see if anything doesn't smell right - I don't know how else to say that.  But some kinds of problems have an aroma.

Vitamins, probiotics and electrolytes in the water to cover those bases.

How hot has it been?  I find some of my ducks are more sensitive to certain stresses than others, and my gut is that this one is stressed.

It has been almost 100 degrees out for the past week, and I do have one maybe two other dracks that I am trying to place. (I say maybe because it started out a honker and now has a raspy voice, so I have to wait until the feathers grow in to know for sure.)
He has been keeping the one drake away from his girl and pulling feathers on the chickens, so perhaps he thinks hes going to loose his lady?
I did actually call and consult a vet, and they pretty much said that since hes not showing any other symptoms to blame the heat and wait for it to cool down before I did anything else.
I can run a fecal at home but they pretty much said (like the first person who replied) that unless hes confined in horrible filth 24/7 that the chance of him having that many worms is slim.
I'll pop save a chick in there water and see if that helps. I am really hoping that its just the heat. I'll bring him in and let him swim in the bathtub and see if I notice anything strange.
Thanks for the advice! I'll let you know what ends up happening.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Did you remove the sheep feed away from his reach? I was thinking maybe upset tummy also since when I have one I tend to pull into myself if it's bad enough cramps. just something else to consider. Make sure there is plenty of cold fresh water for them to get into and cool off 100* is pretty hot to have to deal with whether man or beast. I know there have been others posting this week with 1 duck out of a flock that seemed to having more difficulty with the heat than others.

 

[BlueMoon-N-Farm]

Did you remove the sheep feed away from his reach? I was thinking maybe upset tummy also since when I have one I tend to pull into myself if it's bad enough cramps. just something else to consider. Make sure there is plenty of cold fresh water for them to get into and cool off 100* is pretty hot to have to deal with whether man or beast. I know there have been others posting this week with 1 duck out of a flock that seemed to having more difficulty with the heat than others.

Yup, I confined them to there own pen so they couldnt get to the sheep's feed when I fed everyone.
He is still eating like a pig and swimming just fine.
The tub resulted in nothing much of anything but a messy tub. No sweet smell, sour smell, or even a yucky smell. Just duck.
Hopefully he will stop hunching up with the weather cooling down.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Yup, I confined them to there own pen so they couldnt get to the sheep's feed when I fed everyone.
He is still eating like a pig and swimming just fine.
The tub resulted in nothing much of anything but a messy tub. No sweet smell, sour smell, or even a yucky smell. Just duck.
Hopefully he will stop hunching up with the weather cooling down.

If everything else appears normal then I'd say just keep a close eye in case anything changes and lets just hope it's the heat and it will cool down soon. Keep us updated on him. Try to get some kind of Electrolytes though to add to their water during this heat wave.

 

[Amiga]

If everything else appears normal then I'd say just keep a close eye in case anything changes and lets just hope it's the heat and it will cool down soon. Keep us updated on him. Try to get some kind of Electrolytes though to add to their water during this heat wave.

ditto

 

[BlueMoon-N-Farm]

Will do! Thank you guys

 

[BlueMoon-N-Farm]

Ok new symptom.
He is now loosing weight, starting to slow down on eatting, but is still following everyone and flapping his wings around.
Hes still hunching up and not looking great when he stops walking and stands still even though hes away from the sheep food and on his own food.
I caught him again today and compared him to the other ducks, he is thin.
When I caught him I flipped him over to check his vent, and found nothing unusual, however when I begin listening to him I heard a snap crackle sound like something was moving under tissue paper coming from his belly and vent area.
I checked his lungs by listening to his neck and lung area and didnt hear it. So its his gut and or vent thats making the sound.
Still no smell or anything like that.
Any idea what I should do for him???

 

[Miss Lydia]

Ok new symptom.
He is now loosing weight, starting to slow down on eatting, but is still following everyone and flapping his wings around.
Hes still hunching up and not looking great when he stops walking and stands still even though hes away from the sheep food and on his own food.
I caught him again today and compared him to the other ducks, he is thin.
When I caught him I flipped him over to check his vent, and found nothing unusual, however when I begin listening to him I heard a snap crackle sound like something was moving under tissue paper coming from his belly and vent area.
I checked his lungs by listening to his neck and lung area and didnt hear it. So its his gut and or vent thats making the sound.
Still no smell or anything like that.
Any idea what I should do for him???

Sounds like something going on in the digestive tract, How old again? can you get a product called Poultry Nutri Drench? I know TSC carries it, it can be given right into the mouth, carefully, but will deliver a nutritional supplements straight to where needed, this is what it says, premium rich supplement formulated to rapidly deliver energy and essential nutrients. although ducks don't get parasites like other farm animals wondering if maybe he could have picked up something while in the sheep pen? just jumping to conclusions of course. Eyes still clear? I'd say he's not feeling too good and most likely the reason for hunching up. I think I'd put him where he doesn't have to expend so much energy trying to keep up, with some TLC and a bit of detective work on trying to figure out what might be going on this maybe the best course right now. Even one friend in with him to keep him company would help so he doesn't get depressed.