Lame duck, please advise!!

Bekbos

In the Brooder
Oct 18, 2024
15
17
31
Hello, I have a 1 year 4 month old saxony girl that has been sick for 2.5 weeks. I've only had her since July. It started out that she was laying down more than normal and slower than the other ducks at getting to the pond. After 1 week of that I noticed her stumbling a little, at which point I started researching and came to the conclusion that shes probably niacin deficient. Other signs include her being pigeon toed (I'm new to ducks so she may have been pigeon toed since I got her and I just never noticed). I started 100mg niacin daily, diluted and syringed down her throat on 10/15. On 10/18/24 she went from just a little stumbly to being so weak that she couldnt make it up the bank and into the duck house that night. She has been too weak to stand since then. I continued researching and found that the "flush free" niacin I had been giving her does not work for ducks, so I immediately started durvet vitamin b complex, 1cc daily syringed down her throat. She has been on that since 10/19. She has shown no signs of improvement. She also stopped eating on 10/19. Ive been keeping her in the duck house where she doesnt move except for her head, just yesterday I trialed some water therapy and she perked up a bit while swimming but she was even weaker somehow when I returned her to the duck house after a 20 minute swim. I only know 1 person with ducks and she advised me to give .5cc pour on ivermectin just in case its a parasite. I applied that last night. Im at a loss, I would be so grateful if someone would chime in with their thoughts or advice. I dont want her to suffer. Do you think its too late for her? Shouldnt I have seen some improvement by now if I was on the right tract with the vitamin b supplementation?

Other possibly helpful info: I have 2 ducks and 1 drake, they free range around our small pond all day everyday and I close them in their duck house at night, the girls laid eggs the first 2 weeks after I bought them in late July and then stopped cold turkey.. I havent gotten a single egg since. Ive adjusted feed a lot to try to get some eggs out of them. Possibly their feed has been vitamin deficient which has caused this duck to be very sick. They ate purina all flock raiser crumbles for a couple weeks, then a bag of scratch and peck organic duck/chicken mash that i fermented for 1-2 days, then i tried new country organics duck mash that i fermented, when that bag was gone i started natures best organic all flock with free choice oyster shells available and thats what they are currently on. They never cleaned out their bowl with the fermented feed, they just picked out the pieces they liked. I have checked feet for bumblefoot/cuts/infection nothing notable there. I have tried lots of different treats, she wont eat anything, shes still drinking water though. Her stool is loose dark greenish brown.
 
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The problem with niacin deficiencies is that the longer they are untreated the longer it takes for them to recover. From your description your duck has a very severe niacin deficiency which will take much longer than 3 days to show improvement. I wouldn’t expect any noticeable improvement for 1-2 weeks at the very least it and even then it could take up to a month of daily dosing. With vitamin deficiencies it is not a matter of simply refilling the tank so to speak, but of maintaining those full levels long enough for their body to stabilize its own levels and maintain them on their own without the high dosage. I would also dose with poultry cell because she may be having issues in other areas since you mentioned them picking out the pieces they liked. Depending on how long it’s been you may have to tube feed her. Although I would try wet crumble feed first (not fermented just wet). Sometimes just wetting the crumbles makes it more appetizing and easier for them to eat. As for the wormer I would not recommend that route. De worming a duck can be hard on their body if they are dealing with an active niacin deficiency.
 
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The problem with niacin deficiencies is that the longer they are untreated the longer it takes for them to recover. From your description your duck has a very severe niacin deficiency which will take much longer than 3 days to show improvement. I wouldn’t expect any noticeable improvement for 1-2 weeks at the very least it and even then it could take up to a month of daily dosing. With vitamin deficiencies it is not a matter of simply refilling the tank so to speak, but of maintaining those full levels long enough for their body to stabilize its own levels and maintain them on their own without the high dosage. I would also dose with poultry cell because she may be having issues in other areas since you mentioned them picking out the pieces they liked. Depending on how long it’s been you may have to tube feed her. Although I would try wet crumble feed first (not fermented just wet). Sometimes just wetting the crumbles makes it more appetizing and easier for them to eat. As for the wormer I would not recommend that route. De worming a duck can be hard on their body if they are dealing with an active niacin deficiency.
Thank you so much for the response. I will continue with the vitamin b and get some poultry cell. Is a full recovery possible? Do you expect her to be walking after that month or so of daily supplementing? How can i support her while she recovers? Won't she get sores and other issues from just laying in the duck house for a month? Also how can I prevent this from happening in the future? All the feeds I have tried were allegedly safe for ducks so should have had enough niacin. Is it bc they were not eating it all, but only picking out the tasty stuff? Also why do you think she won't eat now? How many days can she survive on just a few peas, corn and scrambled egg bites before I need to consider tube feeding? I already wet their crumble before I feed them everyday.
 
Do you give liquid meds like this?
https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...dications-to-all-poultry-and-waterfowl.73335/ It’s very important the meds go in the right hole so not to aspirate them. Since she’s only been on the Durvet liquid 3 days you’re going to have to give it more time.( I was going to add more but @HollowOfWisps covered it all.
Info on tube feeding
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/tube-feeding-ducks-updated-5-7-2020.1211994/
Yes, thank you, I did research it highly and I'm positive I'm not getting any of the med down her airway. Do you think tube feeding is necessary at this point?
 
Good advice from both. I feed my flock wet pellets/crumbles specific for ducks. An All Flock feed may not have the right amount of niacin in it.

The fact that she's pooping green stuff is good, it means food is being digested. If it was watery and mostly white it would concern me more.

They may have stopped laying for various reasons, the most common being stress (new place, this can take a few days to kick in and rid the body of the eggs already forming), moulting, and less daylight. Mine have all stopped laying now, and most of my chickens have too.
 
She actually looked a little better today!! She was trying to stand (still couldnt) but she was flopping herself around to change position more. She also went crazy on some meal worms so hopefully shes finally going to start eating again.

Do you have any advice for how to care for her while she's recovering? I don't want her to get sores or mites or other issues from laying in the duck house all day for weeks on end. I've been putting her in a stock tank of water for two 30 min swims everyday, obviously doing the vitamin b complex and just started the poultry cell, lots of treats that she sorta eats and that's all I've been doing for her.
 
Have you had a problem with external parasites? Usually with ducks it isn’t a problem because they are in water so much. Just keep her safe and keep on with what your doing with supplements and hopefully your seeing a start to her recovery. Sure sounds like it!!
 
Have you had a problem with external parasites? Usually with ducks it isn’t a problem because they are in water so much. Just keep her safe and keep on with what your doing with supplements and hopefully your seeing a start to her recovery. Sure sounds like it!!
No, theyve never had external parasites, I just wondered since she isnt in the water near as much right now. Thanks for the response and help!
 

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