Tube feeding question

[Kagen101]

Hello so my duck has been sick for a couple weeks now and hasn’t been eating so we have been tube feeding her. We have been tube feeding her 3 times a day, and I was wondering if we tube feed her for too long, will she forget how to eat food regularly? And will she become solely dependent on us to feed her??

 

[Miss Lydia]

Do you know what’s wrong with her? I have only fed my a Runner duck 7 days before she was eating enough on her
to stop. Even though I was tube feeding her I also made a wet soup of her feed daily.

 

[Kagen101]

Do you know what’s wrong with her? I have only fed my a Runner duck 7 days before she was eating enough on her
to stop. Even though I was tube feeding her I also made a wet soup of her feed daily.

We think it is a parasite, I posted a thread I little bit back on it, I’m not sure how to share it. Mm okay that’s good to know, well we have been feeding her a feed mush through the tube, and she will only eat earthworms and meal worms on her own. We have been tube feeding her for 5 days now I believe. Should I make a wet feed soup and see if she eats it on her own?

 

[Kagen101]

Do you know what’s wrong with her? I have only fed my a Runner duck 7 days before she was eating enough on her
to stop. Even though I was tube feeding her I also made a wet soup of her feed daily.

Do you think we should Decrease feedings? We feed her 60 ml 3 times a day.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Do you think we should Decrease feedings? We feed her 60 ml 3 times a day.

Do you know why she stopped eating?
Has she lost weight? what are her symptoms?
You might try cutting back and offering warm wet feed and she if she'll eat any It doesn't have to be much because you don't want mold to start growing for one thing. I did add a small amount of ACV with mother to the warm water before mixing my Runners food it helps keep mold away. I made it up 2X a day a small amount it took her about 6 days before she started eating enough I could stop tubing her.

 

[Kagen101]

Do you know why she stopped eating?
Has she lost weight? what are her symptoms?
You might try cutting back and offering warm wet feed and she if she'll eat any It doesn't have to be much because you don't want mold to start growing for one thing. I did add a small amount of ACV with mother to the warm water before mixing my Runners food it helps keep mold away. I made it up 2X a day a small amount it took her about 6 days before she started eating enough I could stop tubing her.

Here is a link to a thread about it
Thread 'What’s wrong with my duck?'
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/what’s-wrong-with-my-duck.1615766/ but we don’t know why she stopped eating, she is slower, won’t eat, has messing bottom from liquify poop, and sometimes her poops has a little bit of blood. This is why we thought it was a parasite, so we have been giving her a natural dewormer. Okay sounds good, so for the mush should I put niacin in it? Or just the feed with water and ACV? and looking back at my thread I know see we started feeding here 7 days ago :/

 

[Miss Lydia]

Did you remove the oyster shell and grit from their feed? They can overdo on both and get impacted we had a member whose duck did this very thing. Put the oyster shell and grit in separate bowls close by their food. They will use it as they need it. I mix the ACV with the warm water and pour it over the feed to make it a mash or soup. Do you have any nutritional yeast? you can mix some of that in the feed. What niacin are you using? I have never used plain niacin I have always used Nutritional yeast. Or Liquid B Complex.
I would def give her a chance now to see if she is interested in eating anything how is she acting does she get up and move around is she interested in bathing

 

[Kagen101]

Did you remove the oyster shell and grit from their feed? They can overdo on both and get impacted we had a member whose duck did this very thing. Put the oyster shell and grit in separate bowls close by their food. They will use it as they need it. I mix the ACV with the warm water and pour it over the feed to make it a mash or soup. Do you have any nutritional yeast? you can mix some of that in the feed. What niacin are you using? I have never used plain niacin I have always used Nutritional yeast. Or Liquid B Complex.
I would def give her a chance now to see if she is interested in eating anything how is she acting does she get up and move around is she interested in bathing

Yes we did, they are now separate. I have the food and a little bowl next to it with half grit and half oyster shell. Yes I do, the niacin we give them in nutritional yeast with niacin. I’ll put some of that in yes she does move around and forge and bathe but won’t eat and she doesn’t have a proper oil coat so she gets soaked.

 

[Miss Lydia]

So she isn't preening? Do you have her inside or is she staying in the coop. Adding some protein can help her feathers but a good molt will do the best at getting her feathers in shape. So she isn't acting depressed like she has given up on life.
I have 3 Buffs 2 will be 8 end of April one is 4 yrs old.

 

[Kagen101]

So she isn't preening? Do you have her inside or is she staying in the coop. Adding some protein can help her feathers but a good molt will do the best at getting her feathers in shape. So she isn't acting depressed like she has given up on life.
I have 3 Buffs 2 will be 8 end of April one is 4 yrs old.

She grooms a little but not very much and I haven’t seen her put on oil in a while, she’s outside in the pin with the other girls, we tube feed her inside our house. What’s a good way to add protein? I mean she still eats earthworms and she will eat dried mealworms should we be feeding her mealworms for often? Umm well she looks a little sad. But she more of just looks sick, she is still exited to go out and forge with her sisters. Somthing I’ve noticed is she also has some eye discharge, it’s just wet around her eyes. Yeah she is a buff duck too, and she is almost 6 years old I believe.