Pekin Duckling blowing hard through nose and shaking head. What is this?

[Katicorn]

Almost 2 week old duckling started ”hard blowing” through nose last night and sometimes shaking its head. They get to swim twice a day, and there’s a dog bowl in the brooder with them that they can dip the whole bill in. Is this a breathing issue, or a warning whistle?

any comments would be appreciated. Thank you.

 

[Isaac 0]

The action you describe is routinely done by ducks to keep their upper respiratory system clean of debris. In the case that the sneezing is being done constantly I would find it likely the duckling got a piece of debris/bedding/feed into its nares and is attempting to clean it out. This should resolve itself as long as clean deep water is being provided.