[mmu]

Our muscovy drake hasn't been too well for about 3 weeks.  The first symptom was that he was gaping a little bit, so we got some Flubenvet and treated him for gape worm, even though we couldn't see any worms in his throat.   It made no difference, so as we had a hen who was having Tylan we tried some on the duck.  No effect.  All this time he has been managing to eat small bits of bread but obviously this isn't enough to keep him going, and now he's very thin and weak.


There are no other symptoms, no wheezing or gurgling, no discharge of any kind, him rear end is mucky but then he's a duck!  He spends most of the day just resting back on his tail, and he's still gaping.


Anything else we can try?

[goosepimple]

gaping sounds like respitory problems I think mmu, you can get a powder antibiotic from the vet to put on his bread - make sure you give him wet bread so he doesn't get bunged up and it makes sure he is taking in fluid.  Make sure it's brown bread too that's important - if you squish some (no crusts) into water in a bowl so it's a pulp he may like that, my Muscovies go mad for it with milk more than water    which gives more nutrition.  I'd give your vet a call which doesn't cost anything, but if it's a breathing thing unfortunately he's unlikely to survive I think.

[funkyfish]

There is a nasty condition that muscovies get. It was in the press that a number died.  Not sure what the symptoms were think were respiratory.

[mmu]

Thanks so much for your help, but whatever he had got the better of him and he died last night.  Sadly we were unable to keep him alive long enough to discover what was really wrong. We tried the antibiotics which are usually given to poultry, and which on the rare occasions we have needed to use them, have worked.  Anyway, I suppose the up side is that we have now wormed all the poultry, although I'm not sure they needed it, they will probably benefit from it. I would like to find out more about the mystery thing which was killing muscovys, but we couldn't find anything on line, except that they very rarely get ill.  We've found this to be true over the last 40 years or so - our last one was in his 20s when he died.  Although he was only a duck, he was part of our mix and a great character, we shall miss him.  I will put some recent pics of him with our hens on our f/b pages later.  Thanks again.

[goosepimple]

Sorry to hear that mmu, it sounds like you take excellent care of your stock.