Limping duckling

[Born A Duck Lover]

I just discovered that one of my ducklings now has a pretty bad limp since yesterday. I felt her leg and it was hot. Now I'm not sure what to do. Do I just let her get some rest or do I actively do something to help her?

 

[katharinad]

How old is the duckling? It sounds like an injury, because of the heat. Probably the best is to make sure it doesn't walk and watch. It may be better in a day or two. I just had a 12 week old one limping and sitting down all the time. Nothing broken so I simply watched it. It took 3 days to heal. Sprains can happen. What kind of surface is the duckling on? You need to avoid anything slick, this also means no news papers. I use peewee pads and cotton towels in the brooder.

Originally I was thinking of penning my duck up, but I did leave her with the flock. This means she had to walk to follow them around. She did well, sitting down a lot and spending some time in the pool to cool off her joint.

 

[desertdarlene]

I would let her get some rest and not encourage her to run around a lot. I agree with being careful with surfaces that are extra hard and slippery.

I don't know if you remember my first post with the older duckling limping because he was caught on some fishing line? Well, he did limp for a while, but I think he completely healed on his own.

 

[Born A Duck Lover]

The duckling is only about a week and a half old. I am using straw for their bedding; is that okay? But yeah, I'll just make sure that she doesn't move around too much. Poor little thing.

 

[ducklover700]

My duckling has this problem too. I found out that his brooder (a tote) was holding too much heat in...maybe you should check that. And put vitamins in your duckies water too. that perked mine up.