what is wrong with my duck???????

[Soccer Mom]

I'm glad he has access to forage, but most likely he isn't getting enough vitamin B. It's a common deficiency in waterfowl. It would still supplement his foraging with a balanced feed. Just an ordinary bag of Purina Flock Raiser would help the ducks health.

 

[Dances with Ducks]

Some individuals will show problems sooner than others. Maybe he isn't as good a forager, but if you want healthy ducks you will need to start feeding them some feed with more nutrition. This little guy is going to need extra supplementation real soon. Can you get to a Walmart for some brewers yeast tablets, you can crush some up and sprinkle it on top of his feed if you can get him to eat something. Pick up some frozen peas while your at the store, that usually tempts them to eat. Letting him float in a basin or tub of water will help him feel better and is good therapy for his legs.

Let us know how it goes.

 

[Boggy Bottom Bantams]

Runny, dark, poop, lathargic, lack of appitite, all are signs of coccidia. Kind of rare in waterfowl, but you may want to have a vet do a fecal swab just to check.
Also agree with the others on needing more nutritionally balanced feed ratio, corn is fine, but not as the sole ration.
I'd check with a vet though, for the coccidia, could very well be the problem, it hits, suddenly, and hard, and is very contagious.
Hopfully, that's not it, but it wouldnt hurt to check, the poop gets dark, because they are bleeding internally from the cocci, parasites in their intestines.....

 

[nettie]

he needs pellets, along with our other ducks... cracked corn is not sufficient food for ducks. They probably don't find enough while foraging the same yard everyday. they need either flock raiser or layer pellets.

In the mean time, if you have dry dog food, you can mix it with water and make a soup... allow him to eat/drink this... he needs protein and vitamin B right now. If you have niacin, a vitamin, you can crush them and put it in the water or with his food. If you can get to a local feed store, buy poultry vitamins in a powder form to add to his water/soup.

You can also give him some greens and veggies, like peas or lettuce... it'll keep his appetite up.

Cracked corn only has maybe 8% protein, and not nearly enough vitamins... Pellets have a balance of vitamins and minerals that are good for poultry. If you have chickens who eat some sort of pellet or crumble, give the ducks that food as well.

I'm almost positive your ducks problems are from malnutrition since he is not injured. Even if your ducks have been fine up to this point, he has gotten to where he needs better food. Maybe he was more prone tp problems than other ducks, but all of your ducks should be eating better feed. It's what's best for them.

Free ranging is probably what has kept your ducks ok to this point... your sick duck must not very very successful at it and became malnutritioned.

 

[nettie]

I don't want to sound mean or rude or anything but if you think of it this way, it might make the most sense... (sorry in advance if it sounds harsh...)

Picture you only getting to eat canned corn for every meal every day... Corn that is not fresh has lost a good amount of it's vitamins... (dry cracked corn loses a ton of nutrition because it's dried and not fresh). Canned corn would be like that cracked corn... then the only other food you get to eat is whatever you can find in your yard... Not the woods or a huge amount of area for cover, but in the same yard everyday.... Now remember you have to search long and hard for that food having nothing but corn in your belly.... You'll probably get too tired before you can kind enough to eat... You'll be using up all the carbs in that corn for energy, and since you're not getting enough protein, eventually your body will start using it's own muscles for energy.

This is not the first time we've run into this here on BYC. Others in the past (i've been on for a year now) have reported the same things you are and told us their ducks only eat crack corn... I bet changing their feed will fix your little guy right up and prevent future problems...

Have you lost other ducks? your first post said you couldn't lose another duck... what happened to them?

 

[duck boy]

well i did get it some new food(pellets)poultry feed and has loots of nutrition, i also let him sit in a large tub of water to give ease to his joints if that is one of the problems. i thank you all for the info so far. and i do under stand about the corn being the primary food sorce. i also intend to give him some lettece along with the pellet/crumbles. My first duck that died was a pekin and died of old age along with health issues he was a rescue from a near by pond but he kept going down hill from there. Now i only have magpies and my oldest magpie hen that died two weeks ago was killed by an owl.


Thanks