[Chrissie]

Hello everyone,

I wonder if I could get some advice please…We have just re-homed a poorly duck that was kept in too small, very muddy conditions with too many males trying to get it on with her. She has been living in our bathroom for the last couple of days and is slowly recovering. Other than a few sore (but not infected) points at the back of her neck and bum she seems OK. I was hoping to introduce her to our ducks (2 couples) in a week or so but I want to give her a bit longer to get her strength back and feathers oiled again but I don’t quite know what to feed her? She is on a mix of wheat and layer pellets at the moment but I was hoping there was some TLC food (like a nice warm watery porridge with some grated carrot which I sometimes give to my chickens in super miserable weather and they love it) to aid a speedy recovery. Most of all she needs to gain some weight – she is just skin and bones and I am worried about how she would cope in that crappy weather and her new flock… (behaviour is fine though – nice to be hissed at when entering the bathroom – which was an improvement from the first day when she was just sitting there quite dopey shaking  ).

Any suggestions?

Thanks,
Chrissie.

[colliewobbles]

Our ducks just love bananas that have gone just past their best, when they are nice and soft

Donna

[mentalmilly]

Sound like she is recovering nicely, does she take a bath with you?

[goosepimple]

Haven't done bananas, must try that.  And bathing with the ducks, that sounds good too 
 
Our Muscovy ducks are given brown bread squished to a pulp in milk (cow or goat) when they are ducklings and they love it above everything else for the rest of their lives.  It helps build them up.  Alternate it with grain so she doesn't get stuffed though.  I also leave half an iceberg lettuce around too and they like to attack it. 
 
Poor little thing, thankfully she is in caring hands now.  I wouldn't be too keen to introduce her to the others until she's really fit and well, she may have to stand her ground.  Is there no way of getting her outside though in a coop or something for a week or two, this will slowly integrate her with the others without having to be defensive.
 
Good luck. 

[darkbrowneggs]

As long as she is eating alright she should build up reserves fine.


If she needs tempting I usually mix hardboiled egg with fresh chickweed and medium oatmeal all done in the blender with a garnish of live mealworms. 

[Penninehillbilly]

If she has had a hard time and so underweight, I'm wondering if layers pellets could be too rich for her? Are the pellets and wheat already mixed or do you combine them?
I used to feed whole wheat in water, so they could enjoy dabbling for it, mine used to like weetabix, wholemeal bread, rolled barley? you aren't supposed to feed meat, but someone once told me they gave a little tinned dogmeat to help poorly ducks, (thinking of slug alternatives?)
good luck with her, she sounds like she's getting better already 
just re-read you post, not sure about introducing her to 2 pairs, I think the females would gang up on her?

[Chrissie]

Thanks for all your helpful tips! My 4 year old was very disappointed when I told her she couldn’t go in the bath with the duck (since been called Opsy Daisy). I think I can get an outside coop/run prepared for her – we used to have a big run where we kept the mother hen and the chicks separated from the rest so that should be fine 
She still has wet/greasy looking feathers on her back and the tail (head gone back to ‘normal’ fluffy) – does that mean she needs to go in the water more or do the ‘oily glands’ work outside the water and she should maybe not have a bath but access to a shallow dish of water? As I said before she is having a bath twice a day for about 30mins and then gets put back in a crate with straw on top of a hot water bottle, food and drink – maybe I am too excessive and she doesn’t need the hot water bottle but she keeps shaking in the bath (which is lukewarm) and I don’t know if that has something to do with her feathers being not back to normal?

[Chrissie]

Actually just spent some time on various forums and it seems to be 'wet feathers'  (most likely caused by oil gland being blocked from having been in muddy conditions)... so I will only give her a bowl with water to wash and drink rather than a proper swim for a few days and see how that works!

[goosepimple]

As long as she is eating alright she should build up reserves fine.


If she needs tempting I usually mix hardboiled egg with fresh chickweed and medium oatmeal all done in the blender with a garnish of live mealworms. 

   floats my boat DBE! 

[Chrissie]

Wee girl on the mend- coop being prepared and hopefully she can go outside tomorrow - looking a lot better already 

[colliewobbles]

 

[goosepimple]

very nice, could have done with some plastic pals while she was in there            well done wee duck!