Overlapping duck feet!

[raychelharper]

Hello! I’m new to this website, but i’ve been reading on it a lot since i’ve gotten ducks and i’m looking for some help. I have a pekin duck (i think) named pablo from tractor supply. i got him in march along with 5 other ducks and some chickens. this is mine and my families first time with ducks and chickens and everything has been going well with everyone aside from pablo. he’s the biggest of all the ducks, as well as the nicest, but i’m worried about his feet and feathers. we were feeding all of the ducks duck crumbs while they were babies, but from the things i’ve read i just bought pablo some duck disks that contain brewers yeast and have been trying to feed him some. he has an issue where he likes to stand on top of his other feet, and i don’t think it’s by choice. he doesn’t walk as fast as the other ones due to this, and all the other ducks push him over while he’s walking and walk right over him. he’s also losing some feathers in his rear end, but none of the other ducks have been having these issues. i’m not sure if i’m doing something wrong, or if he was born this way, but i would like to hear some thoughts about what i could do to help him. i can’t keep him separated from all the other ducks all day due to me being in school and working, but when i get home i put him in a cage by himself with his own water and grass and some food to help him not get run over and be able to maybe walk better. he is also breathing really heavy, i’m currently sitting about 3 feet from him and i can hear him every time he exhales. i just want to hear some thoughts from people that have had ducks way longer than me and probably know much more than me about ducks!
here’s some pictures to help get a better understanding of what i’m talking about, although kinda hard to see where he’s missing feathers on his butt

 

[Miss Lydia]

i believe Pablo has a Niacin deficiency. It happens quite often with Pekins. they grow super fast and it causes their leg muscles to have a hard time keeping up and they can become crippled, lame and if not treated it will eventually kill them. What you need is some Liquid B Complex. TSC usually carries it and it will say injectable but we use it orally and if he is the only one like this then whatever treat Pablo loves just use a small amount of treat and put 1ml of the liquid B complex over it make sure he gets the whole dose every day. I don't know why his feathers look like that since he is young and they should really be healthy looking. Do you think they are picking on him? When you put him up in his cage in the evening put some poultry vitamins in his drinking water you can get Poultry cell at TSC too and the liquid B complex and poultry Cell should help.
Here is info on Niacin deficiency https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/niacin-deficiency-in-waterfowl.1367557/
I would get this ASAP for Pablo .

 

[raychelharper]

i believe Pablo has a Niacin deficiency. It happens quite often with Pekins. they grow super fast and it causes their leg muscles to have a hard time keeping up and they can become crippled, lame and if not treated it will eventually kill them. What you need is some Liquid B Complex. TSC usually carries it and it will say injectable but we use it orally and if he is the only one like this then whatever treat Pablo loves just use a small amount of treat and put 1ml of the liquid B complex over it make sure he gets the whole dose every day. I don't know why his feathers look like that since he is young and they should really be healthy looking. Do you think they are picking on him? When you put him up in his cage in the evening put some poultry vitamins in his drinking water you can get Poultry cell at TSC too and the liquid B complex and poultry Cell should help.
Here is info on Niacin deficiency https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/niacin-deficiency-in-waterfowl.1367557/
I would get this ASAP for Pablo .

thank you so much! im going to get some liquid B complex, one of the ones listed from the link you provided. when should i stop giving it to him? when he starts to walk better? i read about the “overdose” of it and the reverse affect, should i watch him and stop when he’s doing better? i’m sorry these are probably stupid questions, but other than my cat pablo is my favorite thing in the world and i don’t want him to die until his time comes. thank you so much for all your help so far though, and even more for your quick response. the complex is coming tomorrow and i will make sure to start him on it asap!

 

[CoriM]

Don't worry about overdosing him - any excess will flush out of his system. The most important thing is making sure he gets the full dose. When duck feet turn in and they step on themselves I think it's called pigeon-toed. I had a pekin who did that slightly. Definitely a niacin deficiency issue. You should make sure he has extra vitamin B complex for the next couple months at least. @Miss Lydia had a good suggestion about the poultry cell as well.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Keep him on it for a week after he is walking much better. You may have to be keep him on this or another type of niacin because of his breed. You can keep him on the BComplex at the right dose or you can start him on Nutritional yeast after he is walking good. The Nutritional yeast can be sprinkled right on their feed and everyone can have it. But get him on the Liquid BComplex also don’t get discouraged if you don’t see it happen fast since this has been going on for a while means it’s going to take a while. Also there are no stupid questions!

 

[raychelharper]

thank you both so much! i’m feeling a lot better, i’ve been nervous about him and i’m so glad it’s something i can help him with!

 

[Miss Lydia]

Keep us updated on how he is doing.

 

[Chicken poppy]

Keep us updated on how he is doing.

X2! How is he now?

 

[raychelharper]

thank you both so much! i’m feeling a lot better, i’ve been nervous about him for awhile and i’m so glad it’s something i can help him with.

Keep us updated on how he is doing.

X2! How is he now?

I’m so sorry for the late response.
Pablo passed away today while i was at work. He was doing better for a bit after getting the vitamin B complex, he was walking more and seemed happier. Although as time went on i kept giving it to him and started to notice a more drastic decline in his health. he started not being able to quack, he wouldn’t stand at all unless i helped him, he would only eat if i brought the food to him, and drink if i put him in-front of the water, he would no longer try to do it himself. he was getting a white foam around his eyes i would clean everyday, we knew he wasn’t going to make it, but we wanted him to go on his own time. Today while i was at work my parents went to go feed him and give him the vitamin B complex, he was laying down with his head on the ground, but breathing. they picked him up and he perked up and started flapping his wings and trying to run, so my parents set him down again thinking he was asleep and they scared him, he proceeded to lay down limp again, then start shaking and flapping around, then he stood straight up as if nothing happened. we think he was having seizures. my dad held him to try and get him to eat and drink something, but he wouldn’t and while my dad was holding him he eventually went completely limp and wouldn’t move, but was breathing. at this time my dad thought it was best to help him go so he wouldn’t suffer (in the fastest way possibly so he wouldn’t suffer as well) but when he came back to do so he was no longer breathing. i got home from work and we buried him maybe 30 minutes ago, we buried him with some peas and a towel he liked to sleep on while i did homework outside with him. he was my first duck, and a very good one.
we believe there must of been something more wrong than just a lack of vitamins, although the complex did help him for some time. we are going to deep clean the coop and run tomorrow in hopes that whatever illness he had won’t contaminate any of the chickens or ducks we have left. it may have been something genetic with him, but we don’t want to risk it.
thank you all for all the help you have given me with him, i appreciate it very much. i do think the complex helped, even if it didn’t i choose to believe it did.
thank you all

 

[CoriM]

I'm so sorry for your loss! That sounds really hard. You did the best you could for him, and it sounds like your whole family really cared about him and tried to help. Sometimes these things just happen. You gave him a good life for the short time he was with you .