Sick Duck.....

[monathequeen]

Hi Folks.
I love this forum about ducks and I'am so happy to know that other folks raise ducks.
I have five ducks and 13 chickens. 3 years now.
My problem is my Pekin who is two years old has been acting very sickly. She usually knocks me over when I go out to feed them their Lettuce and other goodies every morning. She hardley mad a sound the other morning while the other two quacked loudly when they saw me coming with food. I filled the bowl and she slowly made her way to the bowl and ate very little.

I knew something was wrong so I picked her up and examined her. I found a small lesion under her foot which is Bumblefoot as I have dealt with this again and again .
It's a small sore and isn't to the point where she is favoring that foot yet but my problem is I know she needs antibiotics for that foot but I'm leaving for Denver tomorrow and can't get the Baytril until I get back on Friday.

I'm not even sure if it's the Bumblefoot that is causing her to not want to thrive like the others. I'm just guessing this because I have had to deal with this before and the baytril got rid of the sores and they were fine in a week. It's also been VERY cold these last few weeks and has gotten down to below zero so this is probably a shock to them. Maby she is just cold and dosn't want to move from her warm spot ?? They sleep in a duck pen with straw for warmth and they havn't been in water for a few weeks now.
maby I should bring her in and put her in the tub and clean that foot.????

Will she be ok until I get back from my trip or am I going to find a dead duck when I return ?
I have a friend who is "duck-sitting" while I'm away.
I'm worried and need some advice...and thanks for getting back to me.

 

[Wifezilla]

I would at least try to drain it before I left.

A bath wont hurt either.

It is just this one duck that keeps getting infections?

 

[monathequeen]

Thanks for the reply.
How do you drain it ? Do I lance it or will this risk more infection ?
She is the only one who has this problem right now.
I have had very good luck over the last year with healthy ducks.
The bumblefoot is rare since I've learned to keep their run free of debris. I check their feet often to make sure they are clear of sores.

They are also used to bathing everyday but cannot since the pool has 9 inches of ice in it and I cannot break it loose.

 

[Wifezilla]

Yeah, my duck's pool is a solid block of ice too.

Look for the scab. Take off the scab and get the hard plug out. Treat with antibiotic cream. You may want to PM nettie. She has dealt with this a couple of times with her little runner ming mei.

Another thing to consider is if you have one duck that keeps getting sick, it may have an underlying immunity problem.

 

[monathequeen]

This Is The First Time She Has Had Bumblefoot. The Last Time One Had Bumblefoot Was A Couple Of Years Ago And I Treated Her In Time To Get Rid Of The Problem. It's A Very Common Problem W/ Ducks Unfortunately. I Will Try To Remove The Scab Tomorrow And Get Some Triple Attibiotic Cream. I Can Loosely Wrap It With The Stretchy Tape. Wish Me Luck.

I Don't Know If This Is The Reason She Is Not Feeling Good.
I Let Them Out This Am To Go In The Snow. They Just Sat There In The Snow And Ate It....seemed To Be Enjoying The Snow. Crazy Ducks......

Maby The Cold Snow Froze The Ulcer ???
I Think She's Just Cold And Not Wanting To Move About Alot. She Ate Just Fine This Am W/ The Others So..........

Where Are You In Colorado ?
I'm From Denver.

 

[Wifezilla]

I am just South of Colorado Springs

 

[monathequeen]

Hi Again........thanks So Much For The Advice.
I Brought Georgia Inside This Am And Got Her In The Tub. She Was Just So Excited To Get In Water And Bathe.
I Threw A Handfull Of Lettuce In The Water And She Just Swam Around Eating Every Last Bit.
Then She Finally Started To Go Under And Completely Soak Her Feathers. Thats A Good Sign When They Want To Keep Clean.

I Let Her Run Around Thge House After And Spread Her Wings And Had To Vaccume My Whole House When I Took Her Back Out.
I Also Did Some Minor Surgery On That Sore And Used Tweezers To Pull Off Thge Scab And It Came Out Without Much Pulling. Then I Washed The Foot W/ Peroxide And Dried It Off. There Was Absolutely No Bleeding When I Pulled The Plug Out...

She Seemed Really Happy To Have A Bath And Some Treats Inside. I Would Love To Have A House Duck Because She Was So Spoiled Without The Other Girls To Share In THE Attention.

We Sat On The Couch For ABout An Hour And Had A Serious Talk About Her Health Issues And She Promised Me She Would Be Ok Until I Returned From Denver....lol
I Think The Attention Perked Her Up And I'm Less Worried Now. I LOVE HER SO MUCH AND I THINK SHE KNOWS THAT.

Thanks Again.

 

[priss]

Awwww cutie. I'm glad she's perked up, she sounds like a little sweetie.

 

[pishposh]

I love that you brought her inside and gave her one-on-one attention. I think that (and the bath and removal of the plug) probably made a huge difference. My 2 yr old pekin is very special to me too. I hope she gets better soon.