Lump on my ducklings neck

[Carmen_kaelina]

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Can someone please tell me why there’s a lump on the side of my ducklings neck I’m a new duck owner and I’ve looked on google and it’s no help I’ll try and put pictures but I’m really scared for my duck and if you could reply asap that would be very help full I had gave it a bath and some homemade veggie juice and I looked it up before I had gave it to them and it seems to go down and it poops a lot and it lays in it often and that where I found it this morning and it went back to how it was in the beginning the pictures my sister sent me after she took them a bath because I was at work

 

[Isaac 0]

The lump is the bird's crop which acts as a holding pouch for feed/water until it can be sent down further into the gastrointestinal tract to be digested.

 

[KaleIAm]

What should I do I’ve done a lot of research on them and what they need and how much space they need I have spent 1-2k on them and they have all the need and a huge yard with a fence they can’t get through of course and a pond near by and they are fed daily I don’t know what I did wrong

A crop is a normal part of bird anatomy.

How is your duckling behaving? Do they have duckling friends and a heat source?

 

[Isaac 0]

What should I do I’ve done a lot of research on them and what they need and how much space they need I have spent 1-2k on them and they have all the need and a huge yard with a fence they can’t get through of course and a pond near by and they are fed daily I don’t know what I did wrong

The crop is a normal feature of a bird's anatomy - no reason for concern. If there is something else you're concerned about, please do mention.

 

[KaleIAm]

I got them March 25 and their water that they swim in is warm most of the time but my niece likes to feed them ice cold water sometimes and I don’t know if that’s good or not because it’s just water but I had told her to quit and I have been feeding them lettuce and veggies to see if I needed to change their food products and it went away but since she’s been feeding them ice cold water it has came back

If ducklings drink too much very cold water it can lower their over all body temperature and make them wobbly. We've had other BYC members this has happened to. I would let them drink only room temperature water and keep them in a warm location after bathing until they are dry.

Are you also feeding them a commercial diet for poultry?

 

[KaleIAm]

I have told her not to and I have bought duck food but the seem to get in the bags of rice and only eat that

Unfortunately rice isn't nutritionally complete for ducks and lacks important nutrition they need to grow properly. I would remove the rice from the ducks' access.

It can be challenging when people don't listen. Maybe explain to your niece that her actions are hurting your baby ducklings. Personally, I would not allow someone near my ducks if they refused to follow my husbandry rules. Good luck, I know it can be a tricky situation with family.

 

[KaleIAm]

I had a talk with the whole family saying no one’s allowed to touch any of my farm animals or any animals that I own and they all agreed after I had showed them the ducklings and thank you so much for your help should I just wait to see if it goes down because when I gently press on it I could feel the rice on both ducks but one of the ducks when I gently pushed it’s neck it looked like snot was coming out of it’s nose and I have let them walk through the neighborhood so maybe it ate something it shouldn’t in the grass or someone fed it ?

Well done being firm with your family! I know it isn't always easy.

I would be very careful not to push on the crop (bump) after your ducklings eat. Like you noticed it will push the food up into their throats. The problem is it can also push food into their airways, and cause serious complications including death.

The crop does expand after birds eat, and empty as the food goes into the stomach. It is a weird part of avian anatomy since it is so much different than what we have. But for birds it is completely normal.

 

[Carmen_kaelina]

No no specific brand. Just some insoluble chick grit like this.

Okay I will make sure to get enough bags to last awhile just in case I’m working and can’t get it ,thank you so much you’ve been such a huge help

 

[KaleIAm]

Okay I will make sure to get enough bags to last awhile just in case I’m working and can’t get it ,thank you so much you’ve been such a huge help

1 bag is probably enough to last until adulthood and beyond. They don't use much.

 

[Carmen_kaelina]

Just offer it on the side in a little dish next to their food, they will eat as much of it as they need.

Okay thank you so much