sickly duckling: UPDATE

[Miss Lydia]

Here's an update:

Yesterday afternoon I noticed 2 more doing the same thing as the tiny duckling. After watching them for a while I noticed that they were also the one's with the dirty faces. Upon closer inspection I noticed they all had plugged nostrils! Anything with a stuffy nose is going to mouth breath. The Nutri-Drench is sticky enough they were getting very dirty from it and it was also plugging their nostrils. So those 3 got put into a plastic washtub with a towel on the bottom and shown what fun it is to play in a bowl of warm water. 2 were willing participants and got cleaned up pretty nicely. The 3rd one didn't want anything to do with the water but I managed to get 1 nostril cleared so it's only mouth breathing a tiny bit now. I went back to the Save-A-Chick in their water last night and this morning since it's not sticky. I'm also going to try the face baths again this afternoon since these 3 don't seam to play in the water like the other 3 do that aren't having this problem.

I also weighed the tiny one that's been having so much trouble and it gained 4 grams overnight! It hadn't gained anything at all for 2 days so tiny as this may be it is gain and i'll take it.

Now I'm just praying this really was all that was wrong with them and that as they grow they discover water is super fun and keep themselves washed up better on their own. And hopefully the tiny one will keep gaining-it's got a LOT of catching up to do. We're also hopeful that once we get them onto a grower feed in a week or so that their growth will even out. There are huge growth differences in these babies so I'm inclined to think this food doesn't agree with all of them quite as well as it does for some of them. We were going to change them yesterday but the only options for us are in 50 lb bags and they are going to be 2 weeks old in a week so it would never get eaten up before they are supposed to drop down to a lower protein level.

That is so strange about the nutri drench I've used it for years on newly hatched chicks and ducklings and never seen it do this. but glad you found out the problem, great to hear the lil one has started to gain weight too. do they have water deep enough to wash their faces 24/7?

 

[HSerChickLady]

The Nutri-Drench was getting them all dirty, not just their faces, but anyplace it was getting splashed on them. It must be the molasses in it? I was mixing it for 2 oz per gallon which was only half the recommended strength for their age.

They have a chick waterer in their brooder until I move them to a bigger brooder then they'll get a gallon waterer. There are 3 who spend time blowing in the water, dabbling, etc. and there are 3 who only get drinks. Those are the one's who's faces are all dirty where their bills meet fluff and their nostrils are getting plugged. I've never swum ducklings before but I might have to this time to encourage them to keep cleaner once they grow a bit more-they're only a week old. They just won't wash their own faces for some reason. All 3 are smaller and one had some neuro trouble for a couple days. These things are definitely higher maintenance than other breeds.

The tiny one gained 2 more grams yesterday during the day. It's up to 43g now. But I weighed the biggest and it was 169g!!!!! That's how big the size difference is we're dealing with. They just aren't remotely growing uniformely at all. At least the bigger one's aren't bullying the smaller one's. I've been keep close track of that and it looks like everyone gets their fair time at the food and water.

 

[Miss Lydia]

The Nutri-Drench was getting them all dirty, not just their faces, but anyplace it was getting splashed on them. It must be the molasses in it? I was mixing it for 2 oz per gallon which was only half the recommended strength for their age.

They have a chick waterer in their brooder until I move them to a bigger brooder then they'll get a gallon waterer. There are 3 who spend time blowing in the water, dabbling, etc. and there are 3 who only get drinks. Those are the one's who's faces are all dirty where their bills meet fluff and their nostrils are getting plugged. I've never swum ducklings before but I might have to this time to encourage them to keep cleaner once they grow a bit more-they're only a week old. They just won't wash their own faces for some reason. All 3 are smaller and one had some neuro trouble for a couple days. These things are definitely higher maintenance than other breeds.

The tiny one gained 2 more grams yesterday during the day. It's up to 43g now. But I weighed the biggest and it was 169g!!!!! That's how big the size difference is we're dealing with. They just aren't remotely growing uniformely at all. At least the bigger one's aren't bullying the smaller one's. I've been keep close track of that and it looks like everyone gets their fair time at the food and water.

The crumbles they are eating is so tiny it can clog up their nares too and if they don't dunk their faces it just keep plugging their little nare holes up till they can't breath. Yes some of the crested do come with neuro problems and most have no idea until they bring them home, I commend you on working with these little ones getting them over the worst. and gaining weight which is always a good sign, if you have a nice warm bathroom and plenty of warm water put enough water in the tub to just cover their legs and just leave them maybe 5 mins to start being sure to towel dry each one as they come out of the tub and then straight back under heat lamp. They love the water time and you'll enjoy watching them.

 

[HSerChickLady]

The crumbles they are eating is so tiny it can clog up their nares too and if they don't dunk their faces it just keep plugging their little nare holes up till they can't breath. Yes some of the crested do come with neuro problems and most have no idea until they bring them home, I commend you on working with these little ones getting them over the worst. and gaining weight which is always a good sign, if you have a nice warm bathroom and plenty of warm water put enough water in the tub to just cover their legs and just leave them maybe 5 mins to start being sure to towel dry each one as they come out of the tub and then straight back under heat lamp. They love the water time and you'll enjoy watching them.

Thanks. We don't have a bath tub so I'm either going to plug the bottom of the shower or put them in the kitchen sink to play and just clean it good when they're done. These guys are more work and I had no idea they would be until we had trouble with them. I even read about them and found no mention of it until we already had them. I just hope they all do well enough to be merged with the older birds in late summer otherwise we're going to have to build them a whole new place to be permanently. They're still a lot of fun no matter and they've got a good home for as long as they live.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Thanks. We don't have a bath tub so I'm either going to plug the bottom of the shower or put them in the kitchen sink to play and just clean it good when they're done. These guys are more work and I had no idea they would be until we had trouble with them. I even read about them and found no mention of it until we already had them. I just hope they all do well enough to be merged with the older birds in late summer otherwise we're going to have to build them a whole new place to be permanently. They're still a lot of fun no matter and they've got a good home for as long as they live.

I love those that take their responsibility seriously. They will do well under your care I'm sure.

please keep us up to date on them, and hopefully you'll have 1 big healthy flock soon.

 

[HSerChickLady]

Thanks for the support. I will let you know how they do as they grow.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Thanks for the support. I will let you know how they do as they grow.

Don't forget pics so we can see how much they are growing. look forward to hearing about them.

 

[jenniemig]

Yes, I'd love to see pictures too!

My White Crested Qwackers has had a very rough time so far, but she's getting better everyday

 

[Miss Lydia]

Yes, I'd love to see pictures too!

My White Crested Qwackers has had a very rough time so far, but she's getting better everyday

 

[HSerChickLady]

Oh, that is so cute!!!! Glad your is doing better.

Ours weighed 53 grams this morning, that was a 5 gram gain in 24 hours, and it's biggest gain yet. I'm excited to see how much it weighs tonight. It's getting faster and harder to catch which I take as a good sign. Today is the first time it's eyes have looked bright and fully open. It's been named Droopy because the poor thing has looked that way since we brought it home.

I found niacin tablets yesterday at the store and have started putting those in the water instead of the electrolytes and they are drinking a lot more water now than before. I have them up to half and half on their new feed (Nutrena Nature Wise chick starter) and they're eating a lot more food than before as well. I'm not sure if it's the difference in food or not though. They didn't care for the brewer's yeast and had pretty much stopped eating if I mixed even 1/2 tbsp. into their food. My older ducks dislike brewer's yeast as well so I'm leaning towards that being why they are eating better. Either way eating more is a good thing.

I will try to get some pics so you can see the size difference we have. Last night the range was 53g at the smallest and 169g at the largest. It's nuts!