Pekin Hen Not Acting Right

[Vyctoria]

I did notice when I put them in tonight, as well as yesterday, that she seems to be lingering around one of the plants in there, which she never used to do. I was planting some different stuff to try to add some substance to their pen, but they unfortunately mowed everything down. I was sticking to plants I know to be safe, except for the one plant that is still left in the back corner, a Catmint. I couldn't find anything good or bad on it, but they really haven't touched it until just recently. Could that be toxic? I think she's the only one messing with it.

Has she ever laid eggs?...I never feed Ducks layer feed..I feed Duck finisher, Oat and Barley crumble and classic scratch grain..can you get an All Flock feed or Water fowl feed?..I'm in Canada so not sure what's available to you?
Not sure if internal parasites could be her issue?...

She hasn't started laying yet. In fact, my older ducks haven't laid much at all this year because we built a big, new coop and they were shocked by the new surroundings. Now there isn't enough daylight hours. :/

I do mix the egg layer with all flock because I have a drake and I wanted the extra protein while they were molting and nobody was currently laying. I have 4 hens that are over a year old and have laid before, so that's why I was feeding some egg layer in case they started up again. I wonder if I should just switch to nothing but all flock then? I do offer oyster shell at all times, so I suppose they could use that if they need it. We don't have an actual duck feed in my area or else I'd be switching to that for sure. I do add some Rooster Booster powder to their outside water every day when I change it. It's basically a poulty multi-vitamin and probiotic. The ACV goes in their water in the coop.

I'm not sure on the parasites. I really wish I could know for sure if they had them because I hate to treat animals for stuff needlessly. I wonder if my vet would be willing to make a special exception and run a sample for me. I used to work for them.

Can you take the duck to a vet?

Unfortunately, we are in an extremely bad financial bind right now and the vet would cost hundreds. I just don't have the funds right now.

Place her in a warm or crate room on towels so you can see what her poop looks like.

I don't know why I hadn't thought of that! I do have a puppy pen that I use to seperate new ducklings. I'll have to split her up for a night so I can confirm that it's her.

 

[Vyctoria]

Well, I ripped that Catmint out this morning just in case. I don't want to take any chances. Thankfully, she seems a little bit better this morning and I noticed that there was a lot less yucky poop. Before, she was keeping her head scrunched a lot and was almost a bit wobbly, but that didn't seem to be the case around breakfast today. She's still just lingering with me in the coop instead of going out with the other ducks though and she doesn't seem as apt to swim in their pond and preen like she used to be obsessed with. Just staying low key.

 

[CayugaJana]

I would think catmint would have some sort of effect on ducks as it can with cats. I agree. Rip that stuff out. Thank you for the updates and keep them coming.

 

[Vyctoria]

She unfortunately went right back to not acting right this evening when I put them in. She is covered in mud from not cleaning herself and she keeps her head scrunched up. Her walking almost seems a bit slow and wobbly too. I currently have her in a warm bath in my tub right now. I tried cleaning her as best I could, but she has no interest in preening. She's just in there sleeping now. She did have a good bowel movement as soon as she got in there and it looked fine. Her appetite has been great, but I've noticed that she's severely underweight. She's always been a hefty bird and I didn't really fathom how tiny she got until I carried her all the way in. I haven't changed anything in their feeding all this time, so I'm unsure of why she suddenly dropped weight like this in the past couple weeks.

My plan is to keep her seperate and in the coop for a while so that I can feed her seperately and keep her warm and dry as we're expecting cold and rain all week. I'll have to start giving her more frequent meals with some Nutri-drench.

I checked her over for mites and such, but there isn't anything I can see. I have an appointment with my cat tomorrow for vaccines, so I'll have to check with my vet on whether they'll make a little exception and run a stool sample to check for coccidia.

I'm just at such a loss. It's always my favorite ones that get sick.

 

[CayugaJana]

Ok let us know! I’ll be thinking about her today!

 

[chickens really]

Could she of swallowed metal?...A screw? Not sure?...

 

[Vyctoria]

Could she of swallowed metal?...A screw? Not sure?...

Well, we did just build a new coop, but we were extremely religious about picking up anything we dropped. I stressed that highly to my Dad before we started the project. Regardless, that thought has been on my mind. I have no idea what metal poisoning would look like, but I haven't crossed that off of my list yet. If there was any duck in my flock most likely to eat something it shouldn't, she'd be the one.

She was much worse this morning. Just very weak, moving slow, and has her wings drooped. Her appetite is still great though, but she's too weak to eat fast, so she was getting knocked over by the others during this mornings feeding time. Afterwards, I cleaned out the side of the coop, fenced it off, and I'm keeping her in there. She has her own little pile of fresh straw and a big bowl of just all flock pellets with a splash of ACV, Nutri-drench, and some oregano oil. I've been applying Vet-Rx to her as well, just in case. I'm hoping to pick up some scratch grains while I'm out today to help get her weight up.

Another thought I've had, while kind of far fetched, is that I've just started having issues with mice in the coop the past couple days. Just as the weather got colder. I've never had this issue before and I'm going to be getting some deterrent and traps for the feed room today as well, but can mice have any dangerous affects that anyone if aware of? I haven't seen any droppings yet. Just chewed up cardboard.

Also, I'm not sure if I should keep a heat lamp on her. It's roughly 50 degrees out and windy. We've had nothing but rain the past couple days and the pen is a mud pit, which is why I'm keeping her in. The side I have her on in the coop is away from the door and out of the wind, but I'm concerned that her weight loss might have an affect on her keeping warm. I'm also worried if I put a light on her though, that she'll suddenly start laying eggs, which she doesn't need right now. :/

 

[casportpony]

Have you read this yet? Have you been weighing her?

 

[chickens really]

It's not metal poisoning it would be stuck in her someplace and she is failing....Only an x-Ray would show....

 

[chickens really]

Yes, I would bring her inside to keep her warm if you can?..I had to last winter with my Call Hen..It was just too Cold for her outside and she had a huge poop ball stuck to her feathers..Two days inside a crate and warm baths in my Tub till the weather got better....