quackkquack_
Songster
- Jun 30, 2022
- 358
- 395
- 141
Hi everyone! I wasn't sure where to post this so I put it in "Managing Flock" and I didn't want to put it in the injuries/diseases because I'm not sure if it is a disease..
So my two-month old snowy call duck, Lovebug, has some problems.. First off I want to explain my whole situation with raising him.
So I am a student and I bought 6 eggs from this lovely lady and only Lovebug made it. He was premature by a few hours and the hole on his belly, where the umbilical cord was, was still open but it closed relatively quick and it took about a week for the plug to fall off. He was a very adventurous and he was very determined. But, he didn't get out very much since he hatched when school started for me (when I hatched Newt, it was the summer so I had plenty of time to be with her) and since school, I couldn't hangout with him as much as I wanted so I didn't build a strong bond with him. He also had a small container, smaller than Newt's was, and while we are making them a new enclosure, he is still in that small container and I can't get a new one for him which I feel like it explains why he acts the way he does.. He would get out and swim and run around for about 30 minutes when he was younger but since I got more busy with school and schoolwork and doing art for other people, I hung out with him a lot less, he usually just got to swim and he didn't get to run around that much. Which.. brings us here. Since it was just Thanksgiving break, I got caught up on my work and art and I let him run around the house and that's when I realized the way he acts is unusual. He also is skinnier than Newt, he doesn't look round and chubby like Newt does. (He also has angel wing, it's genetics and me and my mom wondered if he was inbred because of the way he was acting, she thinks its a neurological thing, our cat does some of the things he does too)
He pretty much stands sometimes like a runner duck and he drags his butt, his wings are also really big for how small he is. When he flaps his wings, he runs into things but Newt also does that. His eyesight doesn't seem very well, he'll react to movement but he tends to just walk into things. He will also try to dunk his head and basically get himself wet but hes not in the water and he doesn't understand that, my mom came to the conclusion it's because anytime he got out, he was in the water for majority of his time. He will also just randomly start backing up but he does it really wonky, his body is kinda curved when he does it, and he just backs up into things, he also backs up to turn sometimes. Hes not scared of people but hes terrified when being held (which is surprising because he used to be totally fine with it) and hes really strong, I'll hold his wings down as tight as I can when holding him but he still gets them out and they are huge so he slaps me with them sometimes on accident. My mom said he probably backs up to turn because of how cramped his container but he is able to turn in it. Oh! Also his feet and breathing. His feet will turn inwards sometimes and overlap each other when he stands or walks, he also limps sometimes or trips which because his foot when he was younger wouldn't open for 24 hours and he also tripped/limped when he was younger, I assume its from that. His breathing sounds kinda raspy but his nostrils are completely clean, my mom said she could see through them because they were so clear and clean. She also said the breathing sounds like it's coming from his chest. Because hes never been in a huge open space (I would let him run around in our bathroom but its also pretty small) he didn't really know what to do. But he also finished having a bath so he just cleaned himself.
I honestly feel really bad because I feel like I neglected him too much as a little young duckling and I am pretty much the one to blame and I take full responsibility. I just want to make his life better and I'm letting him run around the house all day and my mom said that if he is to improve, he should improve within a week and I really hope so. If he can't, I want to at least make his life more comfortable being a special needs duck. What are your thoughts on this? Is there something wrong with him (the raspy breathing) and is there anything I could do to make his life better and more comfortable? And pretty much what I'm asking is what exactly is wrong with him and is it because of his cramped living situation (the container isn't as cramped as I feel like I'm describing it but it's small and he shouldn't be in it but like I said we are building a new big enclosure for a temp. living situation until I can get the supplies to build them my dream enclosure) (If pictures are needed, I'll have to take them tomorrow when I get home)
Apologies for how long this is!
So my two-month old snowy call duck, Lovebug, has some problems.. First off I want to explain my whole situation with raising him.
So I am a student and I bought 6 eggs from this lovely lady and only Lovebug made it. He was premature by a few hours and the hole on his belly, where the umbilical cord was, was still open but it closed relatively quick and it took about a week for the plug to fall off. He was a very adventurous and he was very determined. But, he didn't get out very much since he hatched when school started for me (when I hatched Newt, it was the summer so I had plenty of time to be with her) and since school, I couldn't hangout with him as much as I wanted so I didn't build a strong bond with him. He also had a small container, smaller than Newt's was, and while we are making them a new enclosure, he is still in that small container and I can't get a new one for him which I feel like it explains why he acts the way he does.. He would get out and swim and run around for about 30 minutes when he was younger but since I got more busy with school and schoolwork and doing art for other people, I hung out with him a lot less, he usually just got to swim and he didn't get to run around that much. Which.. brings us here. Since it was just Thanksgiving break, I got caught up on my work and art and I let him run around the house and that's when I realized the way he acts is unusual. He also is skinnier than Newt, he doesn't look round and chubby like Newt does. (He also has angel wing, it's genetics and me and my mom wondered if he was inbred because of the way he was acting, she thinks its a neurological thing, our cat does some of the things he does too)
He pretty much stands sometimes like a runner duck and he drags his butt, his wings are also really big for how small he is. When he flaps his wings, he runs into things but Newt also does that. His eyesight doesn't seem very well, he'll react to movement but he tends to just walk into things. He will also try to dunk his head and basically get himself wet but hes not in the water and he doesn't understand that, my mom came to the conclusion it's because anytime he got out, he was in the water for majority of his time. He will also just randomly start backing up but he does it really wonky, his body is kinda curved when he does it, and he just backs up into things, he also backs up to turn sometimes. Hes not scared of people but hes terrified when being held (which is surprising because he used to be totally fine with it) and hes really strong, I'll hold his wings down as tight as I can when holding him but he still gets them out and they are huge so he slaps me with them sometimes on accident. My mom said he probably backs up to turn because of how cramped his container but he is able to turn in it. Oh! Also his feet and breathing. His feet will turn inwards sometimes and overlap each other when he stands or walks, he also limps sometimes or trips which because his foot when he was younger wouldn't open for 24 hours and he also tripped/limped when he was younger, I assume its from that. His breathing sounds kinda raspy but his nostrils are completely clean, my mom said she could see through them because they were so clear and clean. She also said the breathing sounds like it's coming from his chest. Because hes never been in a huge open space (I would let him run around in our bathroom but its also pretty small) he didn't really know what to do. But he also finished having a bath so he just cleaned himself.
I honestly feel really bad because I feel like I neglected him too much as a little young duckling and I am pretty much the one to blame and I take full responsibility. I just want to make his life better and I'm letting him run around the house all day and my mom said that if he is to improve, he should improve within a week and I really hope so. If he can't, I want to at least make his life more comfortable being a special needs duck. What are your thoughts on this? Is there something wrong with him (the raspy breathing) and is there anything I could do to make his life better and more comfortable? And pretty much what I'm asking is what exactly is wrong with him and is it because of his cramped living situation (the container isn't as cramped as I feel like I'm describing it but it's small and he shouldn't be in it but like I said we are building a new big enclosure for a temp. living situation until I can get the supplies to build them my dream enclosure) (If pictures are needed, I'll have to take them tomorrow when I get home)
Apologies for how long this is!
