Any Duck experts!?

[poiuytrewq]

Sorry I know this is the wrong place but more traffic here so I'm hoping for quicker replies!

Daughter got two ducklings a few days ago. They have been doing really well. Eating, drinking swimming.
One hatched with a twisted leg but I guess had never known any different and was fine with it. The other perfectly healthy. He was fine this morning but we have just popped home for lunch and he's holding his leg up in a weird way and not using it/moving round.
They are sat under their heat lamp and look normal otherwise but I don't know pain signs or signals in ducks so unsure if it's OK to keep him and see how he go's or if we need to pts

 

[poiuytrewq]

They are in a proper brooder box and safe. There is really no way for him to have broken it?

 

[MotherOfChickens]

what breed of duck? (it is relevant)

Is it the healthy one now having problems? Twisted legs can be fixed if caught early enough-look at splinting ducklings/chick legs up on line-needs to be done asap.

Another problem in larger breeds of ducks is niacin/Vit B3 deficiency. If they are on standard chick crumb, they might benefit from some brewers yeast sprinkled on top. Ducks need more B3 than chickens and can't get it from grains as efficiently as poultry.

 

[Nudibranch]

If it was hatched with a twisted leg then as it grows it may cause more trouble as the bones develop and they bear more weight. As MOC says, make sure they have waterfowl crumb not chick crumb. It may be too late to splint now but it could be worth a try. Did it hatch normally (i.e. without assistance)?

 

[MotherOfChickens]

must also be an unmedicated crumb.

I've splinted chick legs up to about a week old successfully (assisted hatch, lesson learned) but all my ducklings are hatched under broody ducks so don't have the problem.

Smallholder range do waterfowl feed but don't think they do small bags of crumb. They can go onto grower/finisher at 3-4 weeks of age too, don't keep them on crumb too long.

 

[poiuytrewq]

Sorry I've not been clear. The one hatched with a dodgy leg is apparently fine. His leg is weird but he hops and swims and is active. The one that had good legs suddenly has a bad one.
I believe they are runner X

 

[poiuytrewq]

Yes they hatched alone. The food is what we were given with them and it's just in a clear plastic bag (as in they gave us some of theirs to tide us over) I'll get some tomorrow to be on the safe side.
If they are splinted how will the duck lie down? And what/how did you go about splinting?

 

[MotherOfChickens]

splinting is really for splay leg-have a quick google to see if its similar and then look for videos-there are various ways of doing it. It would be unusual IME that a youngster develops splay leg days after hatching, its usually straight after. Its also quite soon for a B3 deficiency but could be.
Often leg problems or things such as wry neck are due to a number of things such as small eggs, disease in the hen (less likely in ducks), poor nutrition of hen, poor egg quality, inbreeding etc etc.

 

[poiuytrewq]

Mm, no it's not that. It's more like the one leg on each bird is being held up high and not used. On closer inspection it's not twisted I don't think just turning in because they are held up high. The one born like it uses his to swim and dive but not to walk.
I think I may just call the vets tomorrow. I don't know enough to help them and I don't want to think they are in pain (although they don't appear to be)
Would my normal vet (small animal practise) treat ducks or do you need a more specialist vet?

 

[MotherOfChickens]

you can but ask them, unless its a decent mixed practise though, most vets are clueless about poultry and ducks. You could try on some FB duck/poultry pages in the meantime. I would definitely try the brewers yeast though, just the bog standard stuff will do if you have any for your horse? If its that, it'll begin to sort itself out remarkably quickly.

 

[poiuytrewq]

I don't have any but can get some. Do you think it might be worth a try for a few days before trying a vet?
We have become really fond of them already!

 

[Emily99]

I don't have any but can get some. Do you think it might be worth a try for a few days before trying a vet?
We have become really fond of them already!

If it's a newly acquired thing I would be concerns about mycoplasma arthritis that is now causing tendon slip (mixed practice vet here). If that is the case antibiotics needed asap but potentially untreatable.

 

[MotherOfChickens]

I would get them to vets as soon as you can. Did you buy these ducklings? I would also let the breeder know whats happened.

 

[Casey76]

I would also tag or band them so you don't breed from them in future too