One month old Khaki Campbell pullet attacked by a raccoon and in need of aid

[Amiga]

Thanks, Captain Cluck, this seems to me to be a very good description of the care needed for a duck after a raccoon attack. Wish I knew where to post this kind of detail for more people to find.

 

[Captain Cluck]

Me, too. It is difficult to find help for ducks in general, never mind in an emergency. And depending on who you talk to, they are either farm animals (just kill it and get another one) or exotics (that will be $$$$$ just for an exam, please)

I originally posted on the emergencies forum/board for help, but got no reply. I guess that one is for chicken emergencies only. Silly me!

I had to learn by trial and error and lots of advice from some of my Facebook friends (one switched from pre-veterinary studies to become a CNA and is now a pharmacy student, and another who has a husband who is a nurse - I really picked their brains) and what I could find on the different discussions on the forums here, the internet in general and common sense.

The only thing I did not do that maybe I should have is I did not clip off enough feathers to find wounds. Looking back, I should have just cut them all off and put baby t-shirts on her. Now that the scabs are sloughing off, I am finding woulds I did not treat. Fortunately, the treatment she did get seems to have been sufficient (I rarely have money for a vet visit, so I do 98% of everything myself.)

Now that Lucy is nearly recovered, I was waffling between being a sneaky law breaker or being an out in the open law breaker; i.e. do I keep her in the house or put her in the back yard in a predator proof pen. Since the neighbors here stupidly feed raccoons ("But they are hungry! and they are cute!") and red-tail hawks ("But they are soooo cool!") I opted for keeping her in the house and treating her like any other house pet - including diapering (yes, diapering- for those who are incredulous at this, it does cut down on the amount of cleaning, and it does not hurt the bird or hamper it in any way. Bird diapers are built differently than people baby diapers or dog diapers. Google duck diapers or chicken diapers)

Currently, she lives in a large wire dog crate in my livingroom where she is in the thick of things without getting hurt. I had to steal the crate from one of our dogs (actually my daughter's dog).

Eventually, I got tired of washing 6 loads of towels every week (in addition to the people laundry & towels), so I got some of those piddle pads they put under incontinent people and it helps cut down the work immensely. True, it isn't very green, but until she is ready to go back on shavings, she gets the piddle pads.

Meanwhile, I am altering a different crate for Lucy to make cleaning easier for me.

Then the little dog can have her crate back (she is always trying to get the duck to go out so she can go in)



(edited for spelling)

 

[Childwanderer]

I'm afraid the vet might not be an option. I haven't had good experiences with the vets in my area, and money is tight. Good news- she has started eating her regular food again!!! There is currently no sign of infection. I filled the tub with water for her to bathe this morning. She swims happily, but avoids submerging the wounded parts of her head. Unfortunately, a small bit of the jaw bone is exposed. Does this make the situation more serious?

 

[Amiga]

Yes. The vet told me once (very sad story of a raccoon attack) that exposed bone is a major infection risk. Keep that wound covered, use antibiotic ointment as Captain Cluck recommends, and I really would start oral antibiotics. If an infection gets ahead of you, you may not know until it is way too late.

 

[MrPato]

Im happy to hear that your duck is getting better. I agree with Amiga it is a good idea to give antibiotics like Duramycin 10 until wound is cloesed. For pain meds i have used Rimadyl og Metacam. Tramadol is recommended too. Asprin some say you can use. But it is hard on liver and can damage it. Pain management is soo vital for stressless healing.

I currently have a duck i had to amputate his wing by the elbow. He is still healing poor thing and doing good.

For wound wash Band-Aid from Johnson is amazing. Washes, disinfects and gives a little pain relief.

Wish you the best in this healing process.

Greetings from Florida