Rescue Pekin sounds like a guinnea pig???

[jducour]

Hi! I rescued two female Pekins today. One is 6 months old and looks really healthy. The other is 1.5 years old, is laying eggs and looks moderately healthy. Her feather quality isn't great, but she is a healthy weight and her eyes and bill look good. My problem is that she sounds just like a guinea pig. She just squeaks and squeals like a baby pig. I have heard that this can be caused by worms. She came from a farm that was a little messy - it had goats, chickens, turkeys, horses and dogs all over the place. Is it most likely she has worms, or is there another possible cause? I have her separated from my flock at the moment, and I plan on going to the feed store tomorrow to get a dewormer unless anyone has a better idea. At this point, I am not considering a vet - as she has no other symptoms and is laying a healthy egg every day. I have heard it doesn't cause any harm to worm, so would it be best practice when introducing a bird from a large farm anyway?

 

[jducour]

Any ideas folks?

 

[JadeComputerGal]

I'm afraid I don't know what a guinea pig sounds like, but I'm guessing it doesn't sound much like a Pekin duck. An abnormal call can be caused by a whole lot of things--worms, obstruction, sinus/respiratory infection, etc. With sinus infection, you'll usually see signs in the eyes, the cheeks, and often discharge from the nares. Is she having any other symptoms at all like listlessness, poor appetite, etc?

@casportpony , most likely things and where she should start other than worming?

 

[Amiga]

I would get a fecal sample to a vet right away. Einz sounds squeaky because she yelled herself hoarse when we adopted the drake. I mean, for weeks. sigh.

I think guinea pig noise is a shrill whistle, yes? Her vocal cords could be damaged, but it might be parasites . . . .

 

[jducour]

I'm afraid I don't know what a guinea pig sounds like, but I'm guessing it doesn't sound much like a Pekin duck. An abnormal call can be caused by a whole lot of things--worms, obstruction, sinus/respiratory infection, etc. With sinus infection, you'll usually see signs in the eyes, the cheeks, and often discharge from the nares. Is she having any other symptoms at all like listlessness, poor appetite, etc?

@casportpony , most likely things and where she should start other than worming?

I am planning on starting worming tomorrow, I already bought it. I am considering just worming my whole flock, so I can do it all at once. She is eating, but she is new and a bit nervous. She is otherwise healthy. Clear eyes, lays an egg, but it seems to strain her to quack - and it comes out like a high pitched squeak.

 

[jducour]

I would get a fecal sample to a vet right away. Einz sounds squeaky because she yelled herself hoarse when we adopted the drake. I mean, for weeks. sigh.

I think guinea pig noise is a shrill whistle, yes? Her vocal cords could be damaged, but it might be parasites . . . .

Yep, a shrill whistle, almost like she has to strain to get it out. She pants sometimes too when her sister Pekin isn't. The sister that came with her quacks very loud, thank you very much. It could be damaged vocal cords, I almost hope it is and not something worse - I don't know her history - only that she wasn't taken care of very well. Do you think it would be ok to treat for worms this week and see how she is doing? My husband will throw a fit if I have to take her in right away, our vet won't do a fecal sample without an office visit, so we are over $100 just to get in the doors. I could probably afford to take her in in a couple of weeks if she isn't improving. I weighed her today so I have a baseline, she is only 6 lbs 6 oz, so on the small side for a Pekin - but her breast bone isn't protruding, and she doesn't seem underweight.

 

[Amiga]

Oh, wow, our vet will take a sample without an office visit. drat. Well, I don't know what the consequences are for de-worming if there are no worms, but it may not be a problem, as I have read a number of people de-worm their ducks whether they show symptoms or not, just as a maintenance item.

You might want to give her something to soothe her throat, like a cooled, weak oregano tea or a quarter teaspoon of coconut oil.

 

[jducour]

Oh, wow, our vet will take a sample without an office visit. drat. Well, I don't know what the consequences are for de-worming if there are no worms, but it may not be a problem, as I have read a number of people de-worm their ducks whether they show symptoms or not, just as a maintenance item.

You might want to give her something to soothe her throat, like a cooled, weak oregano tea or a quarter teaspoon of coconut oil.

Yeah, they said they would take the sample, but wouldn't discuss the results without an office visit

. There are no other vets within a few hours drive that I know of. I have Oregano in my garden, that's not a bad idea. I've heard of using ACV too, would that help?

Thanks! It helps so much to have someone to bounce ideas off of

 

[Amiga]

I would try the fresh oregano. By the way, I have used just a few drops of colloidal silver in drinking water for one overnight for a case of laryngitis, and either it worked or there was a coincidental spontaneous healing of the throat. But please do your due diligence about the colloidal silver. Just a thought.

Certainly, the oregano or the ACV would be worth a try.

 

[jducour]

The oregano and the ACV would be ok to give to the entire flock, yes? She is very shy, and I am trying to give her space to adjust. I am just trying to figure out how to dose just her, or to find something safe to give the whole flock.