My duck ate a 2ft plastic string!! ohh my gosh is he gonna die??(pics)

[Miss Lydia]

When I was a kid many moons ago I remember our cat must have swollowed a string of some kind because i can remember it hanging out of her bottom and my mom telling us not to touch it, she must have completely passed it because it was gone the next day, so hopefully he'll pass it without any problems, I'd say if it was going to start problems you'd probably already see them.. Your a good duck mom to take him to the vet...

 

[ejctm]

Hey Julie,

That is good news from the vet I think. Here's hoping it all turns out fine. Ducks are very robust you know!

 

[Goosifer]

I just found this thread and I was wondering if your duck made it? I think one of my ducks just ate a string and I'm worried

 

[jz]

Hi there!
Yes he did make it and is doing fine, I am happy to report The string wasn't a very durable plastic so he must have digested it, it was never found in his duckpoo, It was kind of like a tough version of the plastic that walmart bags are made of. I don't remember exactly what I did, but I'm pretty sure we gave him olive oil and apple cider vinegar. I'm sorry to hear about your duck, hope things turn out well!

 

[moomoodiddy]

one time i had a calf eat some rope and then a cat eat an ibephrone and they both turned out fsine animals can suprisingly take pretty good care of themselve

 

[Goosifer]

Thanks for the reply. Tht gives me hope. Glad your Duck made it!

 

[theduckgirl4110]

First of all, take a deep breath... It's going to be okay. My ducks have eaten the weirdest things and all turned out fine. When I had Victor, my runner, eat a long ribbon, part of it was still hooked on the comb of his bill. I was able to pull it out through his mouth. It sounds like your guy has already eaten it and it's past his mouth.

I would add the grit, just to help crunch up the ribbon. If it has become weak enough for him to pull on it and eat it, it may be weak enough to get crumbled into pieces in his gut. If you saw some fragments, that probably means he was pulling and yanking on it (Playing with it) before he got a piece he could eat. This may be a good sign since he may have broken it up into smaller pieces before consuming them. Because it is not a normal food it could take longer to pass.

I would keep vigil, over his poop and keep calling every vet you can explaining it is an emergency (that usually gets their attention) until you find once with some experience with large parrots or best, waterfowl. If you start to see bits of green in his poop, you'll know the ribbon has broken up. If you see an end sticking out, do not pull, If the end hanging out his behind gets long, you can cut it closer to his body so it doesn't trip him or get in the way. Be careful not to give him too much olive oil, as it is a fat and ducks shouldn't get too much fat. I'd also research the entire area where his brooder box is, and make sure that any of it didn't fall on the other side of the box or end up under neath blankets, or was dunked in his water. You may find larger pieces that he hid/flung thus making you feel better about how much he may have eaten.

If you don't see anything over the next two days coming out the other end, call a vet. If you can't find a vet who will see him, find an emergency vet that sees birds (when you call the emergency places, you can just ask if they see birds) and just bring him in. Usually if someone is terrified holding their animal telling their story to the receptionist, especially in front of other patients, the likelihood they will just see him and do an xray is higher. Tell them to xray his belly and that they don't need to knock him out, but try to hold him still first. Sometimes they will let you aid in this. I've had many ducks get xrays and only once did one need to be knocked out (it was of her throat). If he's upset and wiggling too much, then he'll need to be put under, so it'll be good for you to calm him.

This sounds like something that should crumble inside his gut and come out in smaller pieces. It also seems likely he shredded it into smaller pieces when he ate it.

Make sure to give us updates!

My ducks just ate some Styrofoam insulation ( the stuff with the tin foil covering it) will they be ok???? I have four ducks in their house and the insulation was on the wall to keep it warmer in there. woke up went out, they all were fine, yelled at me ran to their pool and plants.help me please!

 

[AliMcG]

Sorry to jump on such on old thread but I have found it both worrying and funny. My Runner duck is a house duck and the things he eats (or tries to) is unreal! One favourite is bits of tinsel (my children have an obsession and I find it 12 months of the year) but as mentioned with the string above, we have never found any of it in his poop, so I can only assume he digests it... This morning I have discovered that about 1-2ft of embroidery thread is missing. Its either fallen down the sofa, been vacuumed up or been eaten, but having read through this post I feel less concerned than I did this morning. Lettuce has a thing about anything stringy and I have had to pull my knitting out of him as I'm knitting, it once came out covered in food so I have an idea of how far down it went.

 

[Outta Here]

Oh dear! So sorry this has happened, but I did have this experience and will share the outcome: My pet duck swallowed a rope when I was in grade school. My Dad made some soft mash or maybe even whole corn--I don't remember. He kept the rope as taut as he could without lifting the duck and with the other hand offered bits of food. Evidently the duck's throat opened a bit every time it reached to eat. My dad would pull the rope a bit every time the duck opened its throat to swallow. It took time and patience, never force, but Daisy was saved! My duck did suffer some "vocal chord" damage, though, and had a weird quack after this. Much luck to you with your beloved pet...