Needing advice on a sick duck.

[Girly White Silkie]

Put oil in yogurt

 

[Lazy Duck]

I don't think I'd keep forcing oil down. She may aspirate it. When you massage her chest area is it hard or soft? Could she have gotten into anything non edible string perhaps? etc

@casportpony any ideas?

Her chest is soft when I massage it and full of water as that is the only thing she is consuming. And it's possible she could have found something she shouldn't have in her run, but I have looked and haven't been able to find anything.

 

[Lazy Duck]

Vet and Xrays would show a twist or mass.


https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...rmer-misinformations-graphic-pictures.933643/

I would think worms wouldn't be it with them only 6 months old Unless kept in horrid conditions. Have access to stagnant water, crowded ponds.

I have tried all the vets and none of them will see a farm bird. I can't get her to an x-ray to confirm it with out traveling a few hours and a ferry boat ride away. I am going to contact the wildlife centre to see if they can help at all to.

I can assure you the small pond, run and coop are clean. These guys are pets and very well loved. We only have 11 and all are Muscovy, 6 of which we raised since they were a week old and this girl is one of our original 6.

Thank you for taking the time to reply. Very appreciated.

 

[Lazy Duck]

@Lazy Duck so sorry your duck is having issues... @casportpony can hopefully give advice on blockage treatment... I would wait and see what she says...



Unfortunately, that dosage is *not* accurate... .5cc is only enough for a 2 lb bird... link below that Miss Lydia posted has accurate Safeguard dosage in post #15...

Thank you very much!

 

[chicken danz]

Thank you for replying! This is great information and I appreciate your time.

I have not dewormed them yet. They are about 6 months old now and it didn't cross my mind that it could be a parasite. She is the only one in my small pet flock that is showing these symptoms. I will find a dewormer to eliminate this possibility asap.

She hasn't been to interested in food. Her poops were very soft/liquidy and dark when I brought her downstairs which didn't alarm me as abnormal. Since I have pulled food and all she has is electrolyte water she is pooping water, with no colour but she is pooping. Would I see worms in her poop if she had them?

How would I confirm the twist or the mass??
No you would not see capillaria worms in their poop. They are quite small and are more like threads, plus they don't expell them unless they are killed. You need to let your duck eat if she wants to. At this point I would be sure to give her only a high quality game bird food.
Unfortunately the only thing that would confirm a blockage is either a scoping, exploratory surgery, or death. None of which is good. The scoping and surgery would be insanely expensive even if you could find an avian specialist to do it. Soft tissue will not show up on xrays so it is insanely a waste of time and money.

@Lazy Duck so sorry your duck is having issues... @casportpony can hopefully give advice on blockage treatment... I would wait and see what she says...



Unfortunately, that dosage is *not* accurate... .5cc is only enough for a 2 lb bird... link below that Miss Lydia posted has accurate Safeguard dosage in post #15...

You obviously are taking the word of another person who has posted this. Please continue reading to understand. I am going from the manufacturers recommendations ( which treatment of ducks and chickens etc is off label and not studied thoroughly by the manufacturer) as well as my vet experience. If given at higher doses you can create too toxic an environment and if the bird has an overload of worms it could literally choke the bird to death if all the worms are killed at once. It is much safer to give a lower dose and continue for three days. Besides, I didn't see where the weight of the muscovy was posted at all. I was using an average weight of an adult female muscovy of 6 pounds and adding extra due to the lower body weight of a duck compared to a hooved animal.
In the case of peafowl, however it is usually given in one acute dose on a regular schedule because peafowl are not easily handled or handled often. This is one point of contention that people get confused with. Different rules apply to different birds.
@Miss Lydia is correct in the chance of string or something being ingested could cause a blockage. As well as too much stringy grass especially without a good source of grit.

One other point that should be noted is this: As soon as any bird is placed on soil they can get worms. Or if they are with a parent bird infected with worms they can get them from the parent even in a closed environment. It has nothing to do with age. I worm all my birds once a quarter regardless of the situation or the age of the bird. It's all a practice of good healthy animal management. And some birds can be hatched with worms already in their system.
My only goal here is to help...... not to argue. Some things will never be agreed on. But my years of practice with thousands of birds speaks loudly. I read so much false information on the forum and unfortunately you can find anything you want to find out there for advice. Much of which is old wives tales and totally off the wall. I did notice that @Miss Lydia says she aims for a certain level per pound. Hats off to her for not saying that you MUST worm at that level. She is giving advice in the right way.

 

[chickens really]

You obviously are taking the word of another person who has posted this. Please continue reading to understand. I am going from the manufacturers recommendations ( which treatment of ducks and chickens etc is off label and not studied thoroughly by the manufacturer) as well as my vet experience. If given at higher doses you can create too toxic an environment and if the bird has an overload of worms it could literally choke the bird to death if all the worms are killed at once. It is much safer to give a lower dose and continue for three days. Besides, I didn't see where the weight of the muscovy was posted at all. I was using an average weight of an adult female muscovy of 6 pounds and adding extra due to the lower body weight of a duck compared to a hooved animal.
In the case of peafowl, however it is usually given in one acute dose on a regular schedule because peafowl are not easily handled or handled often. This is one point of contention that people get confused with. Different rules apply to different birds.
@Miss Lydia is correct in the chance of string or something being ingested could cause a blockage. As well as too much stringy grass especially without a good source of grit.

One other point that should be noted is this: As soon as any bird is placed on soil they can get worms. Or if they are with a parent bird infected with worms they can get them from the parent even in a closed environment. It has nothing to do with age. I worm all my birds once a quarter regardless of the situation or the age of the bird. It's all a practice of good healthy animal management. And some birds can be hatched with worms already in their system.
My only goal here is to help...... not to argue. Some things will never be agreed on. But my years of practice with thousands of birds speaks loudly. I read so much false information on the forum and unfortunately you can find anything you want to find out there for advice. Much of which is old wives tales and totally off the wall. I did notice that @Miss Lydia says she aims for a certain level per pound. Hats off to her for not saying that you MUST worm at that level. She is giving advice in the right way.

Awesome reply.....Perfect!

 

[Ravynscroft]

I have tried all the vets and none of them will see a farm bird. I can't get her to an x-ray to confirm it with out traveling a few hours and a ferry boat ride away. I am going to contact the wildlife centre to see if they can help at all to.

I can assure you the small pond, run and coop are clean. These guys are pets and very well loved. We only have 11 and all are Muscovy, 6 of which we raised since they were a week old and this girl is one of our original 6.

Thank you for taking the time to reply. Very appreciated.

Don't worry, she was not implying that they live in bad conditions, just explaining it is more unlikely to be worm overload at that age unless conditions were as described...
Yes, worms are everywhere, but in *normal* conditions, 6 months is a shorter than average time for worm issues...

It really does sound more like a blockage, another possibility is hardware disease... even in the best of care, little bits of things can be missed... I hope the wildlife area can help you, x-ray would be best at this point, IMO...

 

[Lazy Duck]

You obviously are taking the word of another person who has posted this. Please continue reading to understand. I am going from the manufacturers recommendations ( which treatment of ducks and chickens etc is off label and not studied thoroughly by the manufacturer) as well as my vet experience. If given at higher doses you can create too toxic an environment and if the bird has an overload of worms it could literally choke the bird to death if all the worms are killed at once. It is much safer to give a lower dose and continue for three days. Besides, I didn't see where the weight of the muscovy was posted at all. I was using an average weight of an adult female muscovy of 6 pounds and adding extra due to the lower body weight of a duck compared to a hooved animal.
In the case of peafowl, however it is usually given in one acute dose on a regular schedule because peafowl are not easily handled or handled often. This is one point of contention that people get confused with. Different rules apply to different birds.
@Miss Lydia is correct in the chance of string or something being ingested could cause a blockage. As well as too much stringy grass especially without a good source of grit.

One other point that should be noted is this: As soon as any bird is placed on soil they can get worms. Or if they are with a parent bird infected with worms they can get them from the parent even in a closed environment. It has nothing to do with age. I worm all my birds once a quarter regardless of the situation or the age of the bird. It's all a practice of good healthy animal management. And some birds can be hatched with worms already in their system.
My only goal here is to help...... not to argue. Some things will never be agreed on. But my years of practice with thousands of birds speaks loudly. I read so much false information on the forum and unfortunately you can find anything you want to find out there for advice. Much of which is old wives tales and totally off the wall. I did notice that @Miss Lydia says she aims for a certain level per pound. Hats off to her for not saying that you MUST worm at that level. She is giving advice in the right way.

I appreciate everyone who has posted on this thread! I am very new to ducks and the knowledge of everyone here is honestly nothing short of amazing. Ideas/opinions and any other options was what I was looking for and I got just that.
Though I have looked into this dewormer you suggested and I will be picking it up. I agree that deworming wouldn't hurt my flock. They do live with a mainly dirt ground. And I would never take dosing of anything with a grain of salt. Even if I smile and knodd doesn't mean I won't be doing more of my own research.
You're all wonderful and I truly am greatful for the help!

I have contacted the wildlife centre and will let me bring her down to them for an assessment. Doesn't mean I'll get any answers but it's a start. I will update the post when we come back. Fingers and Feathers are crossed for a positive outcome.

 

[chickens really]

You obviously are taking the word of another person who has posted this. Please continue reading to understand. I am going from the manufacturers recommendations ( which treatment of ducks and chickens etc is off label and not studied thoroughly by the manufacturer) as well as my vet experience. If given at higher doses you can create too toxic an environment and if the bird has an overload of worms it could literally choke the bird to death if all the worms are killed at once. It is much safer to give a lower dose and continue for three days. Besides, I didn't see where the weight of the muscovy was posted at all. I was using an average weight of an adult female muscovy of 6 pounds and adding extra due to the lower body weight of a duck compared to a hooved animal.
In the case of peafowl, however it is usually given in one acute dose on a regular schedule because peafowl are not easily handled or handled often. This is one point of contention that people get confused with. Different rules apply to different birds.
@Miss Lydia is correct in the chance of string or something being ingested could cause a blockage. As well as too much stringy grass especially without a good source of grit.

One other point that should be noted is this: As soon as any bird is placed on soil they can get worms. Or if they are with a parent bird infected with worms they can get them from the parent even in a closed environment. It has nothing to do with age. I worm all my birds once a quarter regardless of the situation or the age of the bird. It's all a practice of good healthy animal management. And some birds can be hatched with worms already in their system.
My only goal here is to help...... not to argue. Some things will never be agreed on. But my years of practice with thousands of birds speaks loudly. I read so much false information on the forum and unfortunately you can find anything you want to find out there for advice. Much of which is old wives tales and totally off the wall. I did notice that @Miss Lydia says she aims for a certain level per pound. Hats off to her for not saying that you MUST worm at that level. She is giving advice in the right way.

Your so right in your reply...Although many experienced people here...Why it's called Backyard Chickens...But we are dealing in Backyard Ducks....Knowledge comes from experience too...Not always text book....

 

[chickens really]

Apologies.....I stick up for my Peeps.....