Slipped Tendon or Trauma? Need Advice on my Duck

[Fluffaloo]

Important Question: How can I tell if she is in pain when she walks or if it’s just a gimpy leg?
In theory I know I can measure her heart rate at different times of the day and compare it to the other ducks. I know pain results in an increased heart rate so that’s one method. In my experience I know that exotics and birds will stop eating and lose weight when something is wrong but she still eats, plays, and is up to almost 1600g.

When she walks it’s almost like the bone rotates around the joint and shifts in an out of place with a pop. She will stretch the leg straight behind her and it shifts slightly into a different position. She used it to scratch her face and propel herself into the pool off of the rock ramp.

The only thing that still concerns me is that some days particularly at night the hock of the injured leg will feel warmer than the other leg indicating inflammation. If she needs to be on anti inflammatories long term she can but I don’t want to put that much pressure on her liver and kidneys.

I really would appreciate any input from you guys for now but I will try to update the thread every couple months from now on mainly because it’s an interesting case.

 

[DingusDuck]

How is she? I don't have much advice, but I hope she's doing well.

 

[Fluffaloo]

How is she? I don't have much advice, but I hope she's doing well.

Hey, thanks for checking it! Excuse the mess, these pics were taken before I added fresh bedding for the week. I can get a close up on her leg tonight. It ended up bowing more to some degree but it is fine. It is not inflamed or infected but she does hobble around with it. Other than that she is a healthy duck who lays blue eggs! I’ll try to get a pic of her leg soon.

Edit: here are some pics of how it bowed. Unfortunately when she does walk it puts pressure on only one side of her foot/toe. I wish I could get some sort of water proof shoe to help her so it doesn’t get as sore.

 

[Fluffaloo]

Update: After discussing older radiographs with another doctor I learned that in addition to the tibiotarsus fracture there was a fracture on the growth plate. This meant that when the legs continued to grow, the pressure placed on the plate grew as well causing it to shift and eventually callus and heal in its own special way. If I could find some sort of silicone shoe for her to help prevent pressure sores then I think she will be perfect.

 

[DingusDuck]

Good luck!!

 

[PattieTheDuck]

The verdict is in, I’m taking off the brace for good. Anyone have any ideas on what may have happened?

It has been nearly 3 weeks since the initial injury. When I first found her in the run she didn’t want to stand at all and acted like she was in pain. With 1 week of meloxicam and the brace I thought she was getting better as she was putting weight on the foot. Week 2, not so much. She started not really putting the foot on the ground so I kept the brace on. Week 3 she is very active tries to keep up with everyone and will put her foot slightly on the ground when she runs.

I wonder if the hock fused oddly with the bone recently? I can post an X-ray from when she first healed around a month old to show how the bowed bone initially looked. Based on how her hock has been growing and kind of protruding outwards it’s the only thing I could think of that might have happened. She uses the foot to scratch her face and will even stretch it behind her so I think the tendon is intact and works. It’s definitely an interesting case.View attachment 3652607View attachment 3652608
Part of me wants to get X-rays again to see how the leg has changed but idk if that is going to happen.
Here are some pictures of the hock today. It doesn’t feel too warm or inflamed and I can’t feel any edema so it’s interesting.
View attachment 3652611View attachment 3652612

I will be posting a video of her walking without the brace shortly. As always any input is appreciated.

looks a bit like my duck's limp but that was mostly because of niacin deficiency and a fall i think.