Neuro issues...?

[HeritageFan]

I have 5 ducklings (welshies) from Metzer- and one from my own flock (a welsh mix drake that I’ve not found a home for)
They are 5 weeks old from the hatchery and 4 weeks old from my incubator.

I started moving them to the “see / no touch” pen next to the main “big kid” duck yard 5 days ago, during the daytime.

Their brooder has pine shavings as a base, a mommas heating pad set up, free access to grit, and they have been on a game bird starter as they were in the brooder w turkey poults (30% protein)

I have been cutting the game bird starter w an all flock grower (18%) for the ducklings (slowly) after moving them to their own pen.

I always add electrolytes to their water for the first month at least- Quick Chick. Plus some brewers yeast tablets crushed up and sprinkled over their food from day one, dosage based on estimated overall weight of the group per the label on the bottle.

I have one hen who is growing as well as her hatch mates from the hatchery, but she wasn’t walking properly when I moved them to the “no touch” pen. She was walking on her “hocks”.
No major signs of injury- she had a couple of -tiny- sores on her feet, and some irritation on her “hocks”.

I separated her for the last 5 days, gave her a clean pool, Epsom salt soaks separate from her pool, treated anything that looked questionable w Epsom salt baths 2x daily, vetricyn after the soaks, and, once dry, added an antibiotic / moisturizing topical. Made sure everything was super clean but did put her to bed w her friends overnight.
During the day, she would stand on her feet but typically in a corner of her hospital pen so she could lean on the “back” wall ... but she would also stand (wobbly but) on her own.

I also started her on Poultry Cell, 4 days ago. 1ml, orally, slowly, once a day.

Her appetite and desire to drink are solid. No concerns about her poos. But she is still not moving right :/

Her “sores” have been healed for 48 hours. I let her out to the “day” pen w her buddies - and I’m not sure what to do next.
She is still very unstable, falls onto her back, and is able to get up but...

I hatch eggs from my ducks. I’m sure I could find her a home where someone just wants eggs but doesn’t want to hatch babies/ I don’t want to add headaches to my lines.

But I also don’t want to add headaches to anyone else!

....if you were in my shoes, what would you do w this little one?
Go to a stronger b complex?
Give her more time?
Any other thoughts?

I don’t want to cull her but I also don’t want her to suffer if the odds are that she won’t have a good life :/

Hopefully this video link works -

@Miss Lydia

 

[ruthhope]

I have 5 ducklings (welshies) from Metzer- and one from my own flock (a welsh mix drake that I’ve not found a home for)
They are 5 weeks old from the hatchery and 4 weeks old from my incubator.

I started moving them to the “see / no touch” pen next to the main “big kid” duck yard 5 days ago, during the daytime.

Their brooder has pine shavings as a base, a mommas heating pad set up, free access to grit, and they have been on a game bird starter as they were in the brooder w turkey poults (30% protein)

I have been cutting the game bird starter w an all flock grower (18%) for the ducklings (slowly) after moving them to their own pen.

I always add electrolytes to their water for the first month at least- Quick Chick. Plus some brewers yeast tablets crushed up and sprinkled over their food from day one, dosage based on estimated overall weight of the group per the label on the bottle.

I have one hen who is growing as well as her hatch mates from the hatchery, but she wasn’t walking properly when I moved them to the “no touch” pen. She was walking on her “hocks”.
No major signs of injury- she had a couple of -tiny- sores on her feet, and some irritation on her “hocks”.

I separated her for the last 5 days, gave her a clean pool, Epsom salt soaks separate from her pool, treated anything that looked questionable w Epsom salt baths 2x daily, vetricyn after the soaks, and, once dry, added an antibiotic / moisturizing topical. Made sure everything was super clean but did put her to bed w her friends overnight.
During the day, she would stand on her feet but typically in a corner of her hospital pen so she could lean on the “back” wall ... but she would also stand (wobbly but) on her own.

I also started her on Poultry Cell, 4 days ago. 1ml, orally, slowly, once a day.

Her appetite and desire to drink are solid. No concerns about her poos. But she is still not moving right :/

Her “sores” have been healed for 48 hours. I let her out to the “day” pen w her buddies - and I’m not sure what to do next.
She is still very unstable, falls onto her back, and is able to get up but...

I hatch eggs from my ducks. I’m sure I could find her a home where someone just wants eggs but doesn’t want to hatch babies/ I don’t want to add headaches to my lines.

But I also don’t want to add headaches to anyone else!

....if you were in my shoes, what would you do w this little one?
Go to a stronger b complex?
Give her more time?
Any other thoughts?

I don’t want to cull her but I also don’t want her to suffer if the odds are that she won’t have a good life :/

Hopefully this video link works -

@Miss Lydia

I would first and foremost, start her on high level Vit B Complex (durvet or similar). We use it orally for ducks: 1ml soaked into a treat daily. Watch her eat it to make sure she get her dose. Continue for at least a week to see improvement and continue for several days after she is symptom free. Pls keep us updated

 

[cheezenkwackers]

I would be heading straight to the feed store for durvet vitamin B complex. It sure sounds like a Niacin deficiency. Some just need more than others. The does is 1 mL a day (but if she is big, an extra 1/2 mL might make sense). I pour it on meal worms or soldier fly larva. Because they are dry, they soak it up. Then, I give it to the one duck only. I would also give her swim therapy. I found my bathtub to work the best. The more she swims, the stronger those legs get.

 

[Miss Lydia]

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/niacin-deficiency-in-waterfowl.1367557/

 

[HeritageFan]

Thank you, everyone-
I will grab the DurVet B and treats in the morning- and will keep you posted.

I’m confident that I can get her through this.

But I also have a “bigger” question that you guys may/ may not be able to help with...

She came from a big, but quality hatchery.
I can’t imagine that they have the ability to pull babies (that will be their future breeders) out to give them special treatment.
Not trying to get into a conversation about whether that is good or bad, I’m only asking if any of you have any experience as to whether this is a hereditary issue, or just a fluke?
Again, I’m happy to get her set and I know it’s less of an issue once they are grown, but.... does anyone have any thoughts / experience as to whether her offspring would share her need for higher levels of niacin?

If so, I’m sure I can find her a home w someone who keeps ducks for eggs for eating/ selling for eating.

If it’s an issue that isn’t likely to be passed on, I’d love to keep her. But I’ve never seen any info about how the offspring of ducks that need this type of intervention fare- and she is the first of 22 that I’ve kept / had through the years, plus the 40 or so that I’ve hatched, that has needed more than the niacin I typically add to their daily feed.

I plan to continue to hatch ducklings, and don’t want to set anyone up for a headache if I can avoid it by not keeping her in my small program.
She is a spicy little one, though, and I’d love to keep her if it’s not the wrong choice....
The health and quality of the ducklings I produce is very important to me.

All thoughts and opinions are welcome.

 

[HeritageFan]

Update a week out.
She is doing great at taking in her durvet B over freeze dried soldier fly larvae; she eats all of them every day -
I separate her for her vitamins and put her to bed w her friends.

I have also added poultry cell to the waterer for all of the ducklings - and she had been doing well enough that I started to leave her w her “hatch mates” during the days, because she was stressed and calling for them- and she was seeming more stable
....but. This morning here wasn’t rainy- more misty. But enough moisture to make some mud in the baby run.

We had to run an errand, and she was fine w her friends when we left. We came home to find her completely soaked and covered in mud
She must have fallen and gotten rolled

I gave her a water bath, dried her off, put her under a heat lamp to let her finish drying since it’s a bit cool today, and gave her vitamins to her as usual... but it’s pretty clear that she’s not yet stable enough on her feet to preen herself.

Obviously, I need to keep her separated at least during the daytime, if not completely.
That’s on me for leaving her with her buddies too soon.

Does anyone have any experience to relay as to how long it can take to see positive effects from the high strength b vitamins?
Im not giving up on her, just looking for some idea of where the light at the end of the tunnel may be....

She eats and drinks well. Her feet are clean and look good. Her poo is normal. Her feather development is coming along, but she is behind her friends who hatched at the same time. She is still having trouble standing/ prefers to back into a corner for balance, and it isn’t uncommon for her to fall onto her back... but she can get up on her own :/

Their night time enclosure is cleaned regularly. Her “day pen” is also cleaned daily.

She is on Purina Flock Raiser rn, her only “treats” are about 1.5-2 TBSP soldier fly larvae to administer her 1ml of durvet concentrated B vitamins 1x daily.

She has access to water w Poultry Cell, as well as access to clean water/ a shallow pool if she wants it.
She drinks from it but rarely wants to “swim”

 

[HeritageFan]

She is inside for the night- she was still a bit damp from her “bath”

I dried her off most of the way- and then popped her in the inside brooder under a heat lamp to finish drying off. Her down is still damp so she will stay inside tonight. I unplugged the heat lamp once she was pretty much done drying out.

Every time I’ve gone to check on her, she is on her side.... but eating... while laying on her side
I have not seen her drinking yet.
The brooder has a fairly thin layer of pine shavings over a non slip rug pad for her.

There is baby grit in her food. I don’t feel like she can get around well enough to have it separate from her food at this point. Her crop feels pretty empty this evening, but she feels like she has good weight/ isn’t thinner than she should be. Her “keel” is well muscled, her thighs feel right.... I’ve not weighed her but she doesn’t feel like she’s behind in that aspect.

She is trying, and I’ll keep trying for her.
Also. Her legs are straight. Her feet are straight. No swollen joints or foot issues.
She’s not showing any obvious abnormalities other than than the “neuro” symptoms described above.
Any advice is very welcome

 

[Miss Lydia]

Since you are seeing improvement even if slow I’d keep up with all your doing. Hopefully she’ll bounce back from her ordeal yesterday. I honestly would not hatch ducklings from her. But that doesn’t mean she can’t have normal life. She may not get 100% but then again she may so since she’s trying I like that your sticking with her and giving her that chance.

 

[HeritageFan]

Thank you for the props...
I agree on the ducklings; I hope to get her strong and stable, and place her in a home where the concern of ducklings isn’t an issue.

I have a few friends who keep ducks for eggs to eat only, and a few w all hen flocks.

We still have a long row to hoe before that, judging from yesterday

If it isn’t one thing, it’s another lol

 

[Miss Lydia]

Keep us updated on how she is improving!!