I need help! Please give advice. Kinda stuck here.

[alexisrambles]

If you can, I suggest you bring a sort of treatment plan to your Dad as an alternative option for both ducks. Make a list of the things that can improve gout and decide what is most doable for you and your family.

Just remember that if they are put down it's not your fault. It's a learning experience and these things happen. It's clear that you only want the best for your animals.

I disagree strongly that you can't disagree with your parents without insulting them. I also don't think any of us here mean to insult your dad with what we are saying. We simply don't all agree with him on the best course of action.

 

[WannaBeHillBilly]

Once again: Everybody here calm down and don't panic!
Agree on all the recommended actions with Niacin, Vitamin B complex and introducing a new duck(ling) and even culling that poor male. Culling a healthy duck is not OK!
@ThatOneFarmGirl786 What i additionally suggest is to try a pain management with Ibuprofene or Aspirine, which also would help with an inflammatory process.
See the thread "Ibuprofen Dose for Ducks" and "the use of anti-inflammatories or aspirin in poultry or fowl" here on BYC.
If there is nothing you can do to improve the drake's life and he has to be put down, please spare the Duck! Try to find somebody close to your location who is willing to adopt her. No clue where you are located, but i would gladly take her in and you would be welcome to visit her whenever you like. Just don't kill a healthy duck!

 

[ShannonR]

Once again: Everybody here calm down and don't panic!
Agree on all the recommended actions with Niacin, Vitamin B complex and introducing a new duck(ling) and even culling that poor male. Culling a healthy duck is not OK!
@ThatOneFarmGirl786 What i additionally suggest is to try a pain management with Ibuprofene or Aspirine, which also would help with an inflammatory process.
See the thread "Ibuprofen Dose for Ducks" and "the use of anti-inflammatories or aspirin in poultry or fowl" here on BYC.
If there is nothing you can do to improve the drake's life and he has to be put down, please spare the Duck! Try to find somebody close to your location who is willing to adopt her. No clue where you are located, but i would gladly take her in and you would be welcome to visit her whenever you like. Just don't kill a healthy duck!

1. Why is culling a healthy duck unacceptable? Culling is a personal (in this case, family) choice. Healthy chickens past their egg laying prime are culled every single day. How is this duck any different? I don't feel like it's my place to rip on someone else's choices when it comes to their poultry. I can make suggestions, or outline what I would do if I were in their shoes, but the choice is ultimately not mine. The above post is a little forceful in the personal opinions department.
And,
2. How do we know the second duck is indeed healthy, given the nutrition issues that have come to light in this thread? A lifetime of the wrong feed may well have caused quite a bit of less visible damage to the other duck as well. It happens, we all have these learning experiences sometimes.

 

[Bettyboop7499]

1. Why is culling a healthy duck unacceptable? Culling is a personal (in this case, family) choice. Healthy chickens past their egg laying prime are culled every single day. How is this duck any different? I don't feel like it's my place to rip on someone else's choices when it comes to their poultry. I can make suggestions, or outline what I would do if I were in their shoes, but the choice is ultimately not mine. The above post is a little forceful in the personal opinions department.
And,
2. How do we know the second duck is indeed healthy, given the nutrition issues that have come to light in this thread? A lifetime of the wrong feed may well have caused quite a bit of less visible damage to the other duck as well. It happens, we all have these learning experiences sometimes.

EXACTLY!

And in my opinion, culling is absolutely apart of farming but it doesn't have to be a negative experience, it can even be a positive learning experience. Farming is rewarding in so many ways but it is also hard and emotional at times. I took the opportunity to learn biology of a duck. She gave back to our farm in many ways. These are decisions that farmers have to make, what is best for the animal, what is best for the budget, and overall operation of the farm.

 

[ShannonR]

EXACTLY!

And in my opinion, culling is absolutely apart of farming but it doesn't have to be a negative experience, it can even be a positive learning experience. Farming is rewarding in so many ways but it is also hard and emotional at times. I took the opportunity to learn biology of a duck. She gave back to our farm in many ways. These are decisions that farmers have to make, what is best for the animal, what is best for the budget, and overall operation of the farm.

Great post, thanks!
I would also like to add that folks would do well to remember that poultry are considered livestock, and not pets. These are not dogs, folks. You of course are welcome to humanize and/or make pets out of your own livestock, but please don't expect others to do so simply because it's your personal preference.

 

[Duckworth]

As a parent, I feel strongly that it is not my place to tell another parent’s child to disrespect, disobey, or dishonor their parents. There might be some extreme circumstance under which I would consider counseling disobedience, but this isn’t one of them. My goal was to provide information that might inform the decision-making process so that a workable solution might be easier to come to. But I would not substitute my judgment for the judgment of this young lady’s parents. I am not there and have no idea how many other considerations are going into their choices.

I didn’t have the impression that this young lady’s father was happy about the loss of one or both ducks, but saw it as unavoidable or advisable in the face of the information he had. Adding more information may not change that, or it may offer other possibilities that he might find more appealing.

All of us have to make choices about how many resources we can invest in our birds, any other animals we may have, our homes, our relationships with other people, etc. That’s life.

I’m sure that this young lady’s father loves and cherishes her and is not making these decisions lightly or without regard for her well-being. Sometimes life is hard and we lose animals we really care for.

 

[ThatOneFarmGirl786]

Wow. Okay, that's alot of people. I was talking to my dad today, (before I read all this) and he said that he'll give me a few weeks to see if Dawn improves. If he does, we'll keep him as he is and continue treatment until he gets to his best point. If he doesn't get good and he still seems like he's in pain, we're going to cull him. My dad said that he didn't even want to cull any but he understands that if it's in the best interest of the duck, he will. He said " I'm not going to get my hands dirty for one duck" not sure if he was serious.or not. He said he's fine with keeping the female BUT he doesn't know how our chickens react. If they react well and actually integrate her into the flock, she can indeed stay. I'm gonna hopefully go out and buy everything necessary. Honestly, I feel like it's irreversible, but I previously lost an animal because I freaked out since she attacked me and now I really hate myself because she had a reason. I was introducing her to other babies so she wouldn't be lonely and she tried biting them so i moved her back and she went in and attacked me. I hate myself for not trying to change her attitude and just actually done something. Take note that all this happened 2 years ago and I still hate myself for it. I know there's a difference between an animal that bit you and an animal that has gout, but the point is I wish I would've tried. I know not everyone agrees with my decision but, idk it's all a bit personal. I love animals and I know, a lot of people think I'm a kid and all but, as a preteen that's been raised with animals all her life, I think it's only right that I try. I'm sorry if any of this makes me sound bossy, but all is this is just really stressful. I take care of 26 animals by myself, and, even though it's all pretty stressful in the end, it's all worth it. Lately, I've just been really stressed about the ducks, but this whole community has definitely helped. Before I joined this community, I honestly thought he would never get better and never expected myself to agree to slaughter, but now I understand that it's what's right in the end, I just want to try first. Thanks for all the advice, though.

 

[ShannonR]

Wow. Okay, that's alot of people. I was talking to my dad today, (before I read all this) and he said that he'll give me a few weeks to see if Dawn improves. If he does, we'll keep him as he is and continue treatment until he gets to his best point. If he doesn't get good and he still seems like he's in pain, we're going to cull him. My dad said that he didn't even want to cull any but he understands that if it's in the best interest of the duck, he will. He said " I'm not going to get my hands dirty for one duck" not sure if he was serious.or not. He said he's fine with keeping the female BUT he doesn't know how our chickens react. If they react well and actually integrate her into the flock, she can indeed stay. I'm gonna hopefully go out and buy everything necessary. Honestly, I feel like it's irreversible, but I previously lost an animal because I freaked out since she attacked me and now I really hate myself because she had a reason. I was introducing her to other babies so she wouldn't be lonely and she tried biting them so i moved her back and she went in and attacked me. I hate myself for not trying to change her attitude and just actually done something. Take note that all this happened 2 years ago and I still hate myself for it. I know there's a difference between an animal that bit you and an animal that has gout, but the point is I wish I would've tried. I know not everyone agrees with my decision but, idk it's all a bit personal. I love animals and I know, a lot of people think I'm a kid and all but, as a preteen that's been raised with animals all her life, I think it's only right that I try. I'm sorry if any of this makes me sound bossy, but all is this is just really stressful. I take care of 26 animals by myself, and, even though it's all pretty stressful in the end, it's all worth it. Lately, I've just been really stressed about the ducks, but this whole community has definitely helped. Before I joined this community, I honestly thought he would never get better and never expected myself to agree to slaughter, but now I understand that it's what's right in the end, I just want to try first. Thanks for all the advice, though.

Thanks for the update and for this amazing post!!!

I'm extremely impressed with how well spoken you are for your age, BTW. Beautiful command of the English language.

Best of luck to you and your ducks!!

 

[Mad Murduck]

I wish you all of the luck in the world!
Purina flock raiser, b vitamins, plenty of water for drinking and swimming.
Their metabolism is fast,so you might see improvement more quickly than expected. You are in the right place to learn .

 

[ThatOneFarmGirl786]

Thanks.
All this autocorrect is annoying though
Hopefully this works