Young Duck went suddenly lame

[Miss Lydia]

Please just give the BComplex a try for a week and keep her where she isn’t trying to keep up with everyone she needs the vitamins resting and water therapy, but until she is up on her legs she shouldn’t be trying to keep up, anyway you can make a small area for her and maybe just one of her sibs for company?

 

[Soon2BChixMom]

If you are already giving her other supplements, the b complex won't hurt.

 

[WannaBeHillBilly]

Please just give the BComplex a try for a week and keep her where she isn’t trying to keep up with everyone she needs the vitamins resting and water therapy, but until she is up on her legs she shouldn’t be trying to keep up, anyway you can make a small area for her and maybe just one of her sibs for company?

Hi Miss Lydia,

i think my ducks now officially hate me!
Due to the really bad weather here i decided to confine them all to their chicken-house and their platform and don't let them out on the grass overnight.

Limpy got the vitamins (yes also B complex) and minerals, some water with dextrose and vitamin c and off she/he went into the house to the siblings. They are now huddling all together on a really thick layer of hay in their chicken cube, resting.
Let's see what tomorrow brings…

 

[Soon2BChixMom]

I bet she will enjoy being in with her pals. The b complex might take a bit of time to kick in.

 

[Miss Lydia]

That's great to hear @WannaBeHillBilly Hoping you see great improvement with all you are doing. Honestly they will forgive you. Just bring out some dried meal worms. All will be forgotten.

 

[WannaBeHillBilly]

Daily update: All Duckies are staying voluntarily in their house today. The platform around the house is full of soft feathers, so i assume they're shedding the last duckling downs. Limpy is doing better - i think - she/he was standing on both legs, cleaning its belly. Have not seen Limpy walking so far, i don't want to disturb them more than necessary. - Also the weather here makes me sleepy too…

 

[WannaBeHillBilly]

Decided to give Limpy a bath after she/he got its medication and while she/he was bobbling in the water offered some food, mixed with vitamin C and calcium supply.

After that i held her/him on my legs and examined the feet for any signs of bumble foot and found nothing wrong:

I noticed that Limpy is a lot smaller than the other four siblings

Limpy is able to stand almost like a runner-duck

But walking is still difficult and exhausting, the right leg does not really work

The whole bird somehow looks twisted when it sits on the ground. I tried to move both legs and found nothing wrong with joints and Limpy did not showed any sign of stress or pain. Started flailing with both legs when she/he had enough and wanted to be put back on the ground.
But she/he is not eating enough over the day! When i pick her/him up and offer some food i have to slow her/him down or she/he will choke. - Happend today and was very scary…
I have re-installed the heat lamp in the chicken house and placed Limpy back under it for the night.
Compared to the other four ducks, Limpy looks scruffy and unkempt, like a bum and i don't really know how to help. Nothing like a feather-comb or -brush does exist, does it?

 

[Soon2BChixMom]

What are your plans for limpy? As well as your other ducks?
Are they meant for pets and eggs?
Most likely her general appearance has to do with her lack of proper muscles due to not walking like the others. And, a lack of preening.
Was she always smaller?
Could be neurological and it wasn't as noticeable until she got older. Also, since they mostly forage and don't eat commercial feed, she might not be as good at that so is hungry and when she is offered feed she is ravenous. Most domestic ducks are not as good at foraging as their wild counterparts. Plus wild birds are not confined to one area - they can move from place to place to find what they need. Maybe your others are just better at foraging than limpy is.
I would continue with the vitamins especially the b complex if you are wanting to see improvement. Maybe wait a week or two since you just started with the b complex and decide what to do then unless she gets worse in the meantime.
I would also keep the commercial feed available to all ducks - a very little amount so that it doesn't spoil (If they aren't eating it). At least they can choose to eat it or not.
Other than that, I really have no other suggestions.
I wish you and Limpy the best! Hope to see improvement!

 

[Miss Lydia]

I agree most likely with limits disability she isn’t able to do much foraging so having feed where she can get to it easily would be a good idea . Keep supplementing with the B Complex and water therapy. Can she use her legs normally when in water?swimming? This could even be congenital and just didn’t show up as noticeably until recently.

 

[WannaBeHillBilly]

What are your plans for limpy? As well as your other ducks?
Are they meant for pets and eggs?
Most likely her general appearance has to do with her lack of proper muscles due to not walking like the others. And, a lack of preening.
Was she always smaller?
Could be neurological and it wasn't as noticeable until she got older. Also, since they mostly forage and don't eat commercial feed, she might not be as good at that so is hungry and when she is offered feed she is ravenous. Most domestic ducks are not as good at foraging as their wild counterparts. Plus wild birds are not confined to one area - they can move from place to place to find what they need. Maybe your others are just better at foraging than limpy is.
I would continue with the vitamins especially the b complex if you are wanting to see improvement. Maybe wait a week or two since you just started with the b complex and decide what to do then unless she gets worse in the meantime.
I would also keep the commercial feed available to all ducks - a very little amount so that it doesn't spoil (If they aren't eating it). At least they can choose to eat it or not.
Other than that, I really have no other suggestions.
I wish you and Limpy the best! Hope to see improvement!

Thank you very much for your good wishes, they seem to work! - See below…
Well, since we moved to WV in March this year my wife always wanted to have Chickens for eggs. I was more into planting fruit-trees and -shrubs, work once, harvest for years… And from my childhood experience i do not like chickens, too noisy, stinky, bah!
Then came that day in the local store when my wife found six larger, terribly sweet looking ducklings and the salesclerk told us what would happen to them if they would not find a home soon…

So we bought them immediately, together with two bags of food, a chicken house, feeder, waterer,… And they turned out to be soooo cuuuuute!
So now they are our pets that hopefully start making breakfast for us soon. My wife told me that duck-eggs are much tastier than chicken eggs. All i know is that i don't like goose-eggs - too much white, too little yolk; And i loved to eat the eggs of the »dwarf-chickens« (i think they're called bantams here) almost all yolk, very little white.
I am planning to have more duckies, ordering some from Meyer and fence in more and more of my land so they can forage and do duck things the whole day in exchange for being cute and funny and laying eggs. So for now pets with benefits!