Old duck egg bound or possibly sick. Need help identifying what might be wrong.

[DuckyDonna]

It sounds like you are doing everything right. I like that you've got her apart from the others and in a quiet place with her food and water. The calcium gluconate isn't going to work instantly. I'd say by tomorrow morning you might see an egg if that is indeed the problem.

I use a 3 ml syringe all the time so it should be fine for you to use. I actually like it better because it gives you a bit of room for "oops". You do know that you need to aim for the DUCK'S RIGHT side in her mouth right?

I really hope she gets better and I can't imagine what else you could do for her. She's a lucky duck to have good humans.

 

[Galaxyfalcon]

It sounds like you are doing everything right. I like that you've got her apart from the others and in a quiet place with her food and water. The calcium gluconate isn't going to work instantly. I'd say by tomorrow morning you might see an egg if that is indeed the problem.

I use a 3 ml syringe all the time so it should be fine for you to use. I actually like it better because it gives you a bit of room for "oops". You do know that you need to aim for the DUCK'S RIGHT side in her mouth right?

I really hope she gets better and I can't imagine what else you could do for her. She's a lucky duck to have good humans.

Yeah we aimed for her right side. She was being a good patient right up until we got the plastic in her mouth and then she started squirming and trying to snap her mouth shut! Poor girl.

You may just be dealing with her end of life also. It's just so hard to know since we can't go by much other than their subtle hints at how they are feeling. The Cal glu won't hurt her so hopefully if she is having egg issues it will help. About all you can do is make her comfortable. The save a chick will surely help in the hot temps. You can get the 1ml syringes at most pharmacies since they are used by diabetics.

She's been standing for about 4 hours or so...we got her ready for bed and put her in the big swim tank before bed and she popped out after a short while and is still just standing. It seems like sitting is really uncomfortable.

Do you all know what end-of-life symptoms look like for an old duck? I've never had a duck this old before so if this is just complications from old age I'd like to know what to look out for in the future.

I've seen her poop a couple of times this evening but nothing that looks like an egg. She is drinking very lightly but no food still. This is day 4 I believe? I can't imagine she can continue for too long if she doesn't start eating. We always knew losing her would be hard, she's a very polite and sweet girl.

 

[KaleIAm]

I'm very sorry to hear that Momma Duck isn't feeling well.

I have lost 4 ducks and when they have been near the end some of the symptoms have been: stopping eating, reduced movement, hunkered posture, staring at walls for long periods, disoriented, personality changes, and shivering. Not all of them had all of these symptoms.

Do you have any metacam you could give her? It is available only by prescription. It is a NSAID/pain reliever that vets always give my ducks when they are having reproductive problems or seem painful.

 

[HollowOfWisps]

Ducks stop laying at 7-9 years old so she very well might not be egg bound just her egg laying days are coming to a close. I would consider a vet, however she as others have said may just be getting old and feeling it or reaching that point where she is slowly seeing the end. Some ducks are bright and perky to the end, but we also have to remember that ducks just like people as they age they tend slow down and there isn't much we can do about it. It's kind of like expecting a 90 year old woman to be running laps and doing jumping jacks.

 

[Miss Lydia]

I sure wish we had the answers, But just keeping her comfortable may be all you can do unless you did take her to the vet or have a vet who would sell you the Metacam. In case she is in pain.

 

[Galaxyfalcon]

Do you have any metacam you could give her? It is available only by prescription. It is a NSAID/pain reliever that vets always give my ducks when they are having reproductive problems or seem painful.

We actually do have some metacam so that might be on the table at this point.

I would consider a vet, however she as others have said may just be getting old and feeling it or reaching that point where she is slowly seeing the end. Some ducks are bright and perky to the end, but we also have to remember that ducks just like people as they age they tend slow down and there isn't much we can do about it. It's kind of like expecting a 90 year old woman to be running laps and doing jumping jacks.

I sure wish we had the answers, But just keeping her comfortable may be all you can do unless you did take her to the vet or have a vet who would sell you the Metacam. In case she is in pain.

We actually broke down and took her to a vet yesterday. We live in a rural area so the options for avian vets aren't great locally. Vet thinks it is most likely age-related organ failure, possibly the kidneys or liver but it could also be something with the oviduct. The disoriented "staring at walls" seems to be some kind of dementia-like onset. I went ahead and approved some tests just because I want answers for future ducks. She spent the night at the vet and should be coming home today. I think we may be looking at end-of-life treatment, so depending on what the results of her tests are we're planning to make her comfortable as possible and let her have a lot of outside time and hopefully she'll pass peacefully.

Putting her down is an option but if she's going to pass I'd like to let her spend her final days hanging out in familiar places that she loves so hopefully we can let her do that and keep her comfy. We'll see what her results are.

 

[Miss Lydia]

I hope you get some answers and she can spend her last days where she is happy and comfortable.
Please let us know what the vet says.

 

[Galaxyfalcon]

I hope you get some answers and she can spend her last days where she is happy and comfortable.
Please let us know what the vet says.

Hello everyone, I have some sad news. The vet said that it appears to be kidney related organ failure and possibly reproductive organ failure as well, likely just as a result of her old age. We were considering putting her down, but she passed away last Saturday. We were out with everybody doing yard chores and cleaning the duck run, and she was in her nest box. She started shaking a little, and we took her out and sat under the tree with her and she passed away quietly there. She'll be missed very much and I'm glad we got to have her for the couple of years that we did.

Here's some photos of her when she was a little healthier and spending time with her good lady friend Herman the duck!

 

[Miss Lydia]

I’m so sorry you lost her. Sure sounds like she had a wonderful life. I’m sure having you all right with her at the end was special.