My drake lost his wings!

[saxonyduck]

So i'm stunned that I didn't see this before but one of my drakes, Elvis, doesn't have any of his primaries anymore. He's acting completely normal, chatting, eating, swimming, grooming. I remember last week thinking it was odd that when he and the others came out the front door after getting mushroom treats instead of flying off the top step he hopped down awkwardly.

But tonight I saw him preening and my heart stopped - he just has little stub wings on both sides! (the picture is sideways - I can't figure out how to turn it around!)

So one month ago Elvis (on the left) and Jimmy had the same-ish looking feathers though Elvis' neck was already plucked and his primaries looked beaten up.

And now Jimmy still has all his and Elvis is missing his gray chunks. (Sorry the picture is sideways too)

Can the feathers be gone because of Jimmy mating Elvis while Elvis is mating Joey? But Joey hasn't lost her wing feathers - she's lost plenty of feathers on her back under her wings and the back of her neck though. In this picture Elvis is on top, Joey in the middle, Jimmy at the bottom.

My only thought is that it's from having two boys fighting. But I never see Jimmy and Elvis fighting - just when mating. Any other ideas? I just feel sick looking at him preening - one of my favorite things is always watching them do their Asian Martial Art wing/leg stretch! And everyone here has advised me to either get more females or give away a male.....and I've been selfish because I love each of their personalities so much. So I built Joey her own "duck recreation area" for when I'm at work and at night and then I try to supervise during the other times.

Thank you so much for your thoughts!

 

[DuckLady]

He is fine. He molted.

 

[saxonyduck]

Thank you so much. I feel incredibly relieved!

I don't understand why he would molt them all at once since he can't fly - I guess it shows how far removed they are from being wild ducks!

 

[veronicasmom]

Wouldn't it be better to have at least one more female? I would be a little nervous with two boys and one girl that they might overbreed her and she could get killed or seriously hurt.

 

[saxonyduck]

Veronicasmom - you're right. I'm more than a little nervous. I'm on the edge of terrified all the time. I think I spend more time moving ducks into different enclosures or half listening for the warm up sounds of duck mating then I do getting my work done. My logic that gets me stuck is that I keep hearing that one male duck works with up to 4-6 females. So will it make a difference if I get just one more? We live in a fairly dense suburban area and I don't think local laws allow more than four fowl/poultry - nor can I clean that many ponds!

And I haven't been able to give away one either - they've been together since hatching and when one is alone they act all disoriented.