Puking 1 week old duckling....ideas???

[Herdcutter]

ok so I purchased a dozen ducks from a hatchery. I buy from them every year, and I have contacted them about this. But they are at a loss as I am.

This duckling is a Black Swedish duck. She is one week old now and has been puking up clear mucus when she is picked up. She is definitely failing to thrive IMHO. She smaller than her sisters.
I have been giving all of them yogurt and hard boiled egg. She eats well. They thought she was loading up with water.

Personally, I think I'm not going to win this race and I'm curious if anyone else has had a duckling like this and what did you do to help. I'm going to keep doing the yogurt every other day. And hard boiled egg on the opposite days. I currently feed them chick starter.

Thank you for your help!
Laura

 

[casportpony]

I would stop the yogurt and egg and switch to a flock raiser that is labeled for starting ducks. If you can't do that, stick with the chick starter add some brewers or nutrional yeast.

Then don't pick her up when she has a crop full of food and water. If you must pick her up, figure out how to do it without putting pressure on her crop and esophagus.

 

[Herdcutter]

Oh! I have a one pound container of brewers yeast. How much would you suggest per pound of chick starter? I'll weigh everything out...

 

[casportpony]

Oh! I have a one pound container of brewers yeast. How much would you suggest per pound of chick starter? I'll weigh everything out...

I think that @Miss Lydia uses one tablespoon per cup of feed, but I could be wrong.

 

[Herdcutter]

Hey @Miss Lydia!

 

[apricotvalleywf]

To me it sounds like your duck is choking. I would turn the duckling upside down and run your fingers down its neck. See if any discharge, lumps, etc.. can be seen/felt.

Ducks cannot vomit so if you are having discharge then something is not going down properly or is coming back up, but not through muscle contractions.

 

[PirateGirl]

I have heard one tablespoon per cup of feed as well. They can't overdose on it so it doesn't have to be exact. I usually do one scoop of food (my scoop is approx a cup) and sprinkle the nutritional yeast generously on top, then do another scoop, then sprinkle, so it's kinda mixed throughout and doesn't all just settle to the bottom. The ducks do plenty of feed mixing on their own!

I don't know specifically about vomiting and/or crop issues with ducklings though. I hope you can get some more specific advice.

 

[Lil Drake40]

It is 1 tablespoon per cup of feed

 

[Soon2BChixMom]

I don't know about ducks, but chickens can aspirate if the turning upside down is not done properly.

What is the water set up like?

 

[casportpony]

To me it sounds like your duck is choking. I would turn the duckling upside down and run your fingers down its neck. See if any discharge, lumps, etc.. can be seen/felt.

Ducks cannot vomit so if you are having discharge then something is not going down properly or is coming back up, but not through muscle contractions.

If this only happens when the duckling is being picked up or held I don't think it's choking.