Sick Indian Runner

scoles

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Hi, my 9 month old Indian Runner is sick but I'm not sure what it can be. My mother, who is visiting, has been tending to the chicks & duck. Today she let them out of the coop but did not provide them water nor food, which she has been doing, & didn't tell anyone else to do it. About 3 hours ago she told me she noticed they didn't have water all day & just put some out but the duck seems sick. First she lay an egg and the shell was soft, she was still, not quacking nor foraging. I could tell she was trembling a little too. She didn't want to move but when she started drinking a little water she would throw up (?), I'm not too sure that they can do that. She would take a drink, shake her head, gag a little, & as she shook her head some slimy semi foamy stuff would come out. She did that about 4 times. Then after about 30 mins of drinking a little water she started moving/walking slowly. She's not making any sounds, which is odd cause she's very vocal, but after pecking at the wet dirt I could hear her making a low sound kind of like a chirp, she sometimes does this when excitedly eating something delicious but it's much louder. I think she's getting better cause when I put her in the coop she started eating her pellets & drinking but I'm still very worried. Was she just dehydrated? Would that be the reason her soft shell egg? Were they just two different conditions? Dehydration & lack of calcium? I feel so horrible that she was left w/o water, I should have continued to check on them even though my mother was taking care of them. The chicks are fine, nothing wrong with them, thank goodness.
 
Sounds like she became very dehydrated.

She needs electrolytes in her water. Put a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar in a gallon of water for her. Watch her closely. She needs water 24/7.

When laying, their nutrition needs - including water - are much higher. She needs calcium. I buy 23% calcium gluconate and put it in water that I add to my runners' feed. I put a tablespoon of water in each quart of water that I add to the feed. I also set out free choice oyster shell and use a layer pellet.
 

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