My mom got 6 ducklings about a month ago...2 are now 3 months old, the other 4 are about 2 months old. They are all Pekins.
Last week my step-dad's St. Bernard got hold of one of the 3 month old ducklings. My mom did not see the injury occur, just the aftermath...her tiny BishonPoo, Heidi, had herded all but this one duck into the pond to get them away from Lucy (the St. Bernard). Lucy had the duck cornered, and Mom said she ran and grabbed the duck and put her into the pond, then took Lucy in the house. She came back out and inspected the duck. There was no blood, no puncture wounds...but the duck was limping, so Lucy must have had her by the foot or leg.
The leg is getting worse. Although no obvious injuries, the duck is limping more, and the leg is swollen, but no discoloration. She isn't grooming her feathers, so she looks grungy. All she wants to do is float in the pond...she won't dive like the rest of the ducks, or go upside down foraging for goodies on the bottom of the pond. She can barely make it OUT of the pond due to her injured leg...mom usually has to help her out and carry her back to the duck house at dusk.
I know nothing about ducks and injuries. If one of my chicks has spraddle leg, I hobble it. Crooked toes...they get splinted. What in the world do I do for a duck's injured leg, when I don't even know what's wrong with it? I have VetRap, but will wrapping it up help? Will the VetRap just come off because the duck is in the water most of the day?
Thank you in advance for any advice/help given.
Edited to add pictures...you can see which one she is, the one with the dirty back end. When she swims, I don't think she's using the bad leg. She uses the good leg and her tail for steering.
Last week my step-dad's St. Bernard got hold of one of the 3 month old ducklings. My mom did not see the injury occur, just the aftermath...her tiny BishonPoo, Heidi, had herded all but this one duck into the pond to get them away from Lucy (the St. Bernard). Lucy had the duck cornered, and Mom said she ran and grabbed the duck and put her into the pond, then took Lucy in the house. She came back out and inspected the duck. There was no blood, no puncture wounds...but the duck was limping, so Lucy must have had her by the foot or leg.
The leg is getting worse. Although no obvious injuries, the duck is limping more, and the leg is swollen, but no discoloration. She isn't grooming her feathers, so she looks grungy. All she wants to do is float in the pond...she won't dive like the rest of the ducks, or go upside down foraging for goodies on the bottom of the pond. She can barely make it OUT of the pond due to her injured leg...mom usually has to help her out and carry her back to the duck house at dusk.
I know nothing about ducks and injuries. If one of my chicks has spraddle leg, I hobble it. Crooked toes...they get splinted. What in the world do I do for a duck's injured leg, when I don't even know what's wrong with it? I have VetRap, but will wrapping it up help? Will the VetRap just come off because the duck is in the water most of the day?
Thank you in advance for any advice/help given.
Edited to add pictures...you can see which one she is, the one with the dirty back end. When she swims, I don't think she's using the bad leg. She uses the good leg and her tail for steering.
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