Pekin leg amputation—what would you do?

[Weeg]

So, update: I've had more conversations with our vet and a few different pet prosthetic/wheelchair companies. It sounds like duck leg prosthetics are very tricky and often don't work out. The wheelchair is a better option, but there's the fact that she could only use it when supervised--and may not be able to learn to use it with one leg anyway.

The surgery would be around $600, and that plus a wheel chair would be well over $1,000. I think I might be willing to spend that amount of money if it guaranteed her a good quality of life afterwards, but it seems like it could end up making her life much worse. Right now she can still get around our yard and keep up with our other ducks surprisingly well.

I wish I could know ahead of time whether she would learn to get around on her own with just one leg, but I don't think I want to take that gamble. We haven't made any firm decision yet, but I think maybe the kindest thing would be to let her continue as she is for now, until it seems like her life is more bad than good.

I can't express how much I appreciate the people on this thread taking the time to share thoughts and experiences. This is a wonderful community of people .

Whatever decision you make is the right decision. You are the only person that knows her, and your setup well enough to make an educated, and knowledgeable decision. Sounds good to me. You could try CBD oil for her to help ease any pain she might be having. You'll want to get CBD rather than hemp. Amazon only sells hemp. I would put small animal CBD oil into google. Thats made for rabbits etc, so the dosage should be pretty similar.
Did you get a chance to talk to any other poultry vets about it? Maybe you don't have any other vets near you though.

 

[Stoney Meadow Maple]

I am going to voice my thoughts here but I want to preface them with my sincerest appreciation for the effort you are putting in.
ducks like to waddle around and root and make messes and get muddy and wet and eat bugs and sleep and eat peas and poop and get muddy and wet and poop some more... my personal feeling about it is perhaps letting go would be the best for all of you, I can't tell you it is the right decision for you, but it would be the right decision for me.
if we were talking about a dog this might be a different story, but not because they are lesser pets but because they will/can/have adapted to a different lifestyle that permits the use of mobility aids, ducks well, they have a lifestyle that to me doesn't seem conducive to living with mobility aids, especially for heavyweight breeds like Pekins.
the best I can leave it is to really evaluate the options and in the end, make sure you are doing it for her, not for you.

 

[Peas4Ducks]

I am going to voice my thoughts here but I want to preface them with my sincerest appreciation for the effort you are putting in.
ducks like to waddle around and root and make messes and get muddy and wet and eat bugs and sleep and eat peas and poop and get muddy and wet and poop some more... my personal feeling about it is perhaps letting go would be the best for all of you, I can't tell you it is the right decision for you, but it would be the right decision for me.
if we were talking about a dog this might be a different story, but not because they are lesser pets but because they will/can/have adapted to a different lifestyle that permits the use of mobility aids, ducks well, they have a lifestyle that to me doesn't seem conducive to living with mobility aids, especially for heavyweight breeds like Pekins.
the best I can leave it is to really evaluate the options and in the end, make sure you are doing it for her, not for you.

I’ve followed a similar line of thought. Right now it’s hard to accept not trying to prolong her life, because she’s still such a happy duck—but if she lost her mobility, she’d lose all of the things she currently enjoys. I think it’s better to just let her keep enjoying them for as long as she’s able to, and then let her go.

 

[nchls school]

You mention that the ankle and toe are the bad areas and talk of amputating the leg? If the amputation is low down on the leg, there is more of a chance that a prosthetic foot would work as the duck would be able to lay down and walk fairly well and swim.

 

[Kimmyh51]

I’m back with more questions about what to do about Boop, the abandoned Pekin with advanced bumblefoot we picked up from one of our city ponds.

Two weeks of antibiotics made no difference in the bumblefoot in her ankle, and her toe got significantly worse during the treatment. I considered pursuing my own regimen of different antibiotics against our vet’s advice, but ultimately decided against it.

Our vet recommended us to have her put down, but after more discussion he said that he thought amputating her leg was a viable possibility, as long as we are willing to commit to the work of caring for her afterwards.

I’ve emailed a few different companies that make animal prosthetics, but I don’t expect to hear anything back until Monday at the earliest.

Does anyone know of a Pekin duck with one leg that has any quality of life? There are a few success stories about prosthetic legs on the internet, but they definitely seem like the exception rather than the rule. People with Pekins—would you ever consider having a leg amputated, if it would save their life? How would you deal with aftercare?

I’m back with more questions about what to do about Boop, the abandoned Pekin with advanced bumblefoot we picked up from one of our city ponds.

Two weeks of antibiotics made no difference in the bumblefoot in her ankle, and her toe got significantly worse during the treatment. I considered pursuing my own regimen of different antibiotics against our vet’s advice, but ultimately decided against it.

Our vet recommended us to have her put down, but after more discussion he said that he thought amputating her leg was a viable possibility, as long as we are willing to commit to the work of caring for her afterwards.

I’ve emailed a few different companies that make animal prosthetics, but I don’t expect to hear anything back until Monday at the earliest.

Does anyone know of a Pekin duck with one leg that has any quality of life? There are a few success stories about prosthetic legs on the internet, but they definitely seem like the exception rather than the rule. People with Pekins—would you ever consider having a leg amputated, if it would save their life? How would you deal with aftercare?

I was just wondering what the end result was here and why the bumblefoot was not able to be removed by the vet? (Were there other reasons to amputate as well?)
my understanding of bumblefoot is that antibiotics often don’t work as the infection is walled off by the birds immune system and therefore there is not enough blood supply into the infected area to transport antibiotic.
one other thing that can help is fitting them with a ‘shoe’ made from neoprene or similar to cushion their feet from rough ground. These shoes alone can resolve mild to moderate bumble foo, so I was wondering what the reason was thatyour vet didnt offer the option of excising the lesion, perhaps followed up by the bird wearing these shoes (you can find them online for chickens or ducks or make your own), as an option for this duck?

 

[Peas4Ducks]

I was just wondering what the end result was here and why the bumblefoot was not able to be removed by the vet? (Were there other reasons to amputate as well?)
my understanding of bumblefoot is that antibiotics often don’t work as the infection is walled off by the birds immune system and therefore there is not enough blood supply into the infected area to transport antibiotic.
one other thing that can help is fitting them with a ‘shoe’ made from neoprene or similar to cushion their feet from rough ground. These shoes alone can resolve mild to moderate bumble foo, so I was wondering what the reason was thatyour vet didnt offer the option of excising the lesion, perhaps followed up by the bird wearing these shoes (you can find them online for chickens or ducks or make your own), as an option for this duck?

To be honest, I’ve realized that he’s just not a great vet when it comes to ducks—which is a shame, because he’s the only vet I’ve been able to find in our region who’s even willing to work with ducks.

But I’m happy to report a happy ending (so far)! Some of the pus ended up working its way out of her foot on its own, and I gave her Baytril for seven days. Her ankle is still slightly misshapen and she still limps, but she doesn’t seem to be in pain and her foot doesn’t feel hot anymore. I hope the infection is completely gone, but at the very least she’s gained some comfort and time.

 

[Miss Lydia]

That is great news. Keep an eye on it and if need be you can remove any left over infection.

 

[Stoney Meadow Maple]

To be honest, I’ve realized that he’s just not a great vet when it comes to ducks—which is a shame, because he’s the only vet I’ve been able to find in our region who’s even willing to work with ducks.

But I’m happy to report a happy ending (so far)! Some of the pus ended up working its way out of her foot on its own, and I gave her Baytril for seven days. Her ankle is still slightly misshapen and she still limps, but she doesn’t seem to be in pain and her foot doesn’t feel hot anymore. I hope the infection is completely gone, but at the very least she’s gained some comfort and time.

I fought and fought with one of my harlequins, finally just sticking with the drawing salve , eventually just going to observation. Her foot looks good, she isn't limping. They are pretty amazing given half a chance.

 

[ruthhope]

To be honest, I’ve realized that he’s just not a great vet when it comes to ducks—which is a shame, because he’s the only vet I’ve been able to find in our region who’s even willing to work with ducks.

But I’m happy to report a happy ending (so far)! Some of the pus ended up working its way out of her foot on its own, and I gave her Baytril for seven days. Her ankle is still slightly misshapen and she still limps, but she doesn’t seem to be in pain and her foot doesn’t feel hot anymore. I hope the infection is completely gone, but at the very least she’s gained some comfort and time.

How is your duck doing, Peas4Ducks?

 

[Peas4Ducks]

How is your duck doing, Peas4Ducks?

She seems to still be doing well! She has a limp that’s worse some days than others, but she gets around just fine and she doesn’t seem to be in pain. She loves swimming and peas and hanging out with the other ducks. Thanks for checking on her.