Is my rouen malnourished?

[RileyB]

I bought an 8 week old rouen last week at a chicken swap. He seems healthy and is very lively (he is also growing just fine). He eats and drinks well, and there is no indication of something being wrong. However, I've seen pictures on this website of other 8 week old rouens with feathers. Mine has no feathers so far...just a coarser fuzz than a baby would have. I'm worried that he could be malbourished, or the breeder was wrong and there's no way he's 8 weeks old. Also, when trying to find articles about this, I've read in some places it take 5-6 months for rouens to get their feathers, but in other places it says it only takes 1-2 months. Additionally, the breeder told me it takes 21 weeks before you can tell male from female by the feathering.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

 

[jdywntr]

Posting a pic will help. Feathers grow in phases starting at just a few weeks old.

Here were my Rouens at about 8-9 weeks.

This is at about 3.5 weeks.

 

[RileyB]

I'll post a pic tonight when I get home. But my duckling definitely looks more like the 3.5 week old pictures you have....no feathers at all....

 

[Amiga]

It won't hurt to start a regular program of poultry vitamins with electrolytes and probiotics in any case, and be sure there is fresh water and food available 24/7.

 

[RileyB]

That's a problem. I have the duckling in with a chick and they cannot eat the same food. I feed each of them separately approximately 3 times a day. Each time I let them eat and eat until they want to stop. I always leave the food with the duckling long after it has stopped eating. However, my chicks are almost to the age where they can switch from starter to grower food. Maybe I should just start feeding them both that so they can have the food 24/7.

But...the duckling was in with other ducks when I bought it, and they had food 24/7. So...I'm thinking it really isn't 8 weeks old.

Thanks for the suggestions on vitamins, etc. I will definitely start doing that.

 

[CelticOaksFarm]

They can eat the same starter feed and should have it a d water available 24/7 right now.

 

[RileyB]

I thought ducks would die if they ate the medicated chick feed....

 

[jdywntr]

There is controversy on whether or not ducks should eat medicated or not. Some medicines in feed are bad for ducks, some are not. It depends. Some feed medicated with no problems, some have had losses. I choose to not feed medicated just in case.

 

[RileyB]

I'm thinking I might just have to switch both the duck and the chick from their starter crumbles to the grower food (they can eat the same kind). If my duckling is not in fact 8 weeks old (and the breeder made a mistake when he told me that), will it harm the duck to switch to grower food too early?

 

[Amiga]

I started switching from starter to grower between 2 and 3 weeks for my runners, and by 3 weeks or so they were on grower.