Lame Brooding Duck

Captain Cluck

Songster
13 Years
Jun 19, 2009
183
8
209
Central Florida
My black swedish duck is brooding her second nest of eggs. She sat on her first nest for about 3 weeks, then abandoned it and took over another ducks fresh nest about 1 week ago.

Friday when she came out of the pen for a swim, she was 'goose stepping' - raising her feet up to her belly while she walked - she acted a little wobbly, but seemed to recover. I thought maybe she was just stiff form setting for 4 weeks.

Saturday I was leaving for a farm swap wit some chickens when sh came out of the pen. This time, she walked like a drunk. When I approached to pick her up, she tried to run away quacking loudly (she is always quacking loudly), got 2 steps away and fell. Then every 2 or 3 steps, she stumbled and fell.

I picked her up and checked her legs, feet, back - basically all over and could find nothing wrong. No sores on the feet, no breaks in the legs, hips seem fine. So I put her back in the pen with food and water (and the other 2 brooding ducks) and locked the gate. She was still setting when I returned later and seemed fine.

I have not given the pen a good cleaning in 4 weeks because they are nesting and every time I go in the pen, they jump off their nests and run quacking, or sometimes just scrunch down and hiss. I didn't think it was good to get them that upset (as one of the other ducks has ducklings hatching daily) It is getting gamey in there, so I am going to clean it and replace the litter. I will try not to upset them.

I have been feeding layer pellets and a little scratch grain mixed in. They get their water in a bucket fresh every morning and evening and 2 wading pools to play in. When the ducks come out to swim, one of my drakes is very amorous and determined to mate with them, and the alpha drake has to push him off. I am worried that maybe he has injured her?


So I am cleaning it today. I guess I need to separate the Romeo (akk another pen!). Is there anything else I can do? should I try adding vitamins to the feed or water?
 
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Food bowl is always full and within a few feet of her nest. Water is about 10 feet away in a bucket that is changed morning and evening. The wading pools are on the other side of the yard about 50 feet from the pen, so they have to get out and get some exercise in order to swim. Pools are changed several times a week.

I picked her up this evening and she is so thin I think she has not been eating.
How do I get her to eat? All she seems to want to do is set on the nest and hiss at everyone. She rarely comes out any more it seems. She has a nest setting mate - another duck who shares eggs back and forth with her. (either it is 2 nests side by side or one nest and both are on it).
 
I took Daphne (the lame duck) out of the pen today and put her in a pool to bathe. She hasn't left the pen on her own since Saturday. She acted like she didn't know what to do. Finally, she swished around a little and drank some water. Then she laid in the water resting her head on the side of the pool. She looked depressed.

Then I put her in the playpen with the three 6 week old ducklings and set her in their pool where she finally made an effort to bathe, just not enthusiastically. Then she rested her head on the side of the pool again for a few minutes. She looked a little waterlogged, but not raggedy so I don't think she's been preening much. I know she hasn't been in a pool since Sunday.

I left her on a rug on the porch in the shade with a bowl of food, but she is not preening or eating. She will drink a little. I put ACV in the water for her.

She has been panting, so I swabbed the back of her throat, but there was nothing on it when I pulled it out, so I don't think it's gape worm.

I looked at the soles of her feet and some of her toe joints seem slightly bruised and slightly swollen. Would hurting feet stop her from eating, preening and bathing? I am not sure how she would have hurt her feet. The other ducks are all sound and walk, eat drink and preen just fine. All my ducks have baldish patches on their backs. I am thinking it is from the drakes mounting them every time they leave their nests, but am worried they could have mites How would I be able to tell?

Right now Daphne is standing on the rug the porch in the shade, shifting her wings a little, panting off and on and quietly quacking and drinking ACV water. She looks more alert, just not the enthusiastic duck she used to be.


Any ideas what else I should do?

Edited to add - Only the girls ducks have the bald patches on their backs. The drakes don't have any bald patches anywhere.
 
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