Pekin duck's upper bill is turning pink

[Galaxyfalcon]

Hello all! I'm not sure if this is anything to be concerned about (or even what it might be if it is). My boy has recently starting having his bill turn pink, right up where it "joins" the rest of his face. I'll attach some photos so you can see. The only reason why I'm concerned is because this is a change (wasn't like this before) and the color looks almost inflamed, but I don't know if that applies here since he's obviously a duck. I also can't tell if there's any swelling but it might just be my imagination. This is my only Pekin so I don't have any other big guys to compare him too.

 

[TomCahalan]

His bill is being depleted of carotene. This suggests that he needs more to meet his vitamin A needs. Try feeding him carrots.

 

[Isaac 0]

Alternatively, you could feed cooked mashed sweet potatoes which contains more carotene than carrots, and will likely be preferred more by the ducks.

 

[Galaxyfalcon]

I'll get right on that! This guy was suffering from niacin deficiency this spring as a duckling, and we had him on a b complex until not too long ago and have been adding brewers yeast to his food, so I was worried it might be a vitamin problem (I was thinking b again).

How often/how much should I be feeding them carrots/sweet potatoes?

 

[TomCahalan]

The color in his bill is his reserve, same with the yellow color in his skin, and the orange color of his feet. He isn't deficient until all of those turn pink, but you want to keep his reserves full. Just fill him back up. I second the recommendation of sweet potatoes. None of my ducks like carrots.

Note that ducks with naturally pink bills (such as aylesburies) have lower carotene storage capacity, not necessarily a problem, but they don't have the buffer than other breeds do.

 

[Galaxyfalcon]

Hello again! Just a quick update:

So we tried both carrots and the mashed sweet potatoes, but no luck so far! No one seems interested in the mashed sweet potatoes. I tried mixing it in with some of their feed and scratch but still no luck.

Any ideas? No one seems very interested in it. I thought about possibly "blending" it into a slurry and seeing if anyone will take it then.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Don’t be fooled into thinking that if a vegetable is green, then it has no beta-carotene. The carotenoid pigments in many vegetables are overshadowed by the green color of chlorophyll. Green leafy vegetables such as spinach, Swiss chard, turnip greens and beet greens are very rich sources of beta-carotene, packing 300 to 580 micrograms of RAE per 3.5-ounce serving. If you can find them, add some young dandelion greens to your fresh vegetable salad. Even common varieties of red, green and romaine leaf lettuces contain 370 to 440 micrograms of RAE per 3.5-ounce serving. (found this on line)

As the summer winds down, food sources of beta-carotene in the garden or at your grocer start to ramp up. Cantaloupe provides a sweet and delicious 170 micrograms of RAE per 3.5-ounce serving. If you would prefer to cook your beta-carotene foods, try baking some winter squash or pumpkin . Per 3.5-ounce serving, canned pumpkin contains 780 micrograms, baked butternut squash contains 560 micrograms and baked hubbard squash contains 335 micrograms of RAE. To enhance beta-carotene absorption in your small intestine, mix some sunflower seeds with diced squash, as the seed oil will enhance absorption of fat-soluble vitamins such as beta-carotene.




My ducks love greens romaine, swiss chard turnips and collards.

 

[Isaac 0]

e mashed sweet potatoes, but no luck so far! No one seems interested in the mashed sweet potatoes. I tried mixing it in with some of their feed and scratch but still no luck.

Any ideas? No one seems very interested in it. I thought about possibly "blending" it into a slurry and seeing if anyone will take it then.

If anything else, try adding concentrated beta carotene to some treats they actually like.


https://www.puritan.com/puritans-pr...kvnFv-q0mggO2L7KbV8aAvd6EALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds

 

[rahaf]

Hello all! I'm not sure if this is anything to be concerned about (or even what it might be if it is). My boy has recently starting having his bill turn pink, right up where it "joins" the rest of his face. I'll attach some photos so you can see. The only reason why I'm concerned is because this is a change (wasn't like this before) and the color looks almost inflamed, but I don't know if that applies here since he's obviously a duck. I also can't tell if there's any swelling but it might just be my imagination. This is my only Pekin so I don't have any other big guys to compare him too.

View attachment 2345231
View attachment 2345232View attachment 2345233

did u find out what it was? i seem to be experiancing this with my pekin rn and idk what to do

 

[Miss Lydia]

did u find out what it was? i seem to be experiancing this with my pekin rn and idk what to do

Can you post pictures?