I’m new to the duck scene. Need some advice please.

[Duckfarmer1]

You need to get water in her...I think...I’m not the most experienced on here..but I did have to tube feed my duck for 4weeks in Dec...if it were my duck..I would be doing that...that is what I did...

Oh, I just re-read...so she is drinking? But is she eating? Do you k how how to do the body condition for a bird? I’ll try to find it..,,..https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/00288233.1998.9513338. If you scroll down..it’ll show you how to feel her...if she feels like she has lost weight...perhaps it is time for intervention...I’m not the most experienced one on here...I’m just trying to help with what I had to do for my Little Lou. You could also try a scrambled egg..to see if she likes that? Some do...

 

[Jasonmstewart]

She’s lost a good deal of weight and will not hardly eat at all. Especially her regular food. Is it ok to force feed her all natural baby food?

 

[Miss Lydia]

What do you mean by force feed?

 

[Duckfarmer1]

She’s lost a good deal of weight and will not hardly eat at all. Especially her regular food. Is it ok to force feed her all natural baby food?

@casportpony would know that best...I don’t remember...but something tell tells me not to force feed...it could go down the wrong way...you can try to offer her some, but , perhaps it depends on which kind you have? I would try yogurt first..it has the good probiotic that she needs right now. Also..not sure how you could get this in her, other than tube feeding, but garlic is an excellent home remedy for an antibiotic...it helps boost the immune system. You could also give her a tiny bit of sugar water just to give her a perk. Are her nares ...nostrils..open and clear...does she smell ok..how about her breath and her mucous in her mouth? These are all helpful for figuring out what to do. If her nares are clogged..gently clear them. Sometimes they can get, like a cold, but a respiratory infection that causes those to get yucky. Do you have the nutridrench? Did you put the ACV in her water?

 

[Duckfarmer1]

Do you feed them the same way you would feed a baby parrot?

If they’ll eat it yes..if they aren’t eating then, it needs to be a tube feed tubing situation...is what I understoo Pd from what happened to us

 

[chickens really]

I thought this Duck was seen by a Vet? Follow the advice given by the Vet.

 

[casportpony]

What does she weigh? If she were mine I would tube warmed Pedialyte at 14 ml per pound of body weight, wait 60-90 minutes and repeat. If no poop after three hours from first tubing, I would tube Pedialyte one more time.

Did they show you how to tube?

If I were you I would not tube of force-feed any food until you see at least one poop, and the best way to make this happen is to give them fluids.

 

[Runner duck mom]

Well, here’s an update. We took maverick to the vet. She’s extremely dehydrated. Has a fever of 106. She’s not eating still. The vet was tube feeding her. They gave her an antibiotic and something to reduce her fever. She didn’t lay any eggs at the vets office. She seems to have more energy than the other day but I can’t get her to eat. Can I tube feed her some baby food? Pedialyte? The vet let us pick her up this morning and bring her home. She’s staying inside until she’s better. She’s drinking a good bit of water. Also the vet said she’s lost a lot of weight. We got her home, and while I was out for a little bit, she layed an egg. What should I be trying to feed her? The vet didn’t really have a diagnosis or tell us what they were force feeding her. I’m fine with force feeding, I just need to know what to feed her. I’m ready for her to feel better. I’d love to hear a quack from her. Thanks yall

Did your vet happen to do an x-ray while you were there?
Whenever we have had any of the ducks into the vet the first two things he checks are poop and xrays in case they somehow managed to eat anything they shouldn't have. Mostly metal...screws, nails etc. Any metal ingested will show up very bright on an x-ray.
Only asking because we had similar symptoms with one of our ducks who had eaten a screw.
I'm sorry she is sick and hope the antibiotics help.
Yes, baby bird food did help our Olive ( thanks to @DuckyDonna ) Tube feeding is not as hard as I had first thought it would be. I found a pretty good youtube video...let me try to find it...

 

[Runner duck mom]

 

[Jpat]

What does she weigh? If she were mine I would tube warmed Pedialyte at 14 ml per pound of body weight, wait 60-90 minutes and repeat. If no poop after three hours from first tubing, I would tube Pedialyte one more time.

Did they show you how to tube?

If I were you I would not tube of force-feed any food until you see at least one poop, and the best way to make this happen is to give them fluids.