Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Two weeks ago, we found a duckling on our driveway. It was alone and it was a rainy day, so we brought him into the house. There are no duck families in the neighboorhood, so we decided to keep him. I have no idea about ducks, that's why I am reading and following all suggestions people give online. Duckling looked like 1-2 weeks old. Now it has grown a good deal, but lately, something happened to him -- with no obvious reason, his legs became weak; he cannot walk or stand at all. First, his left leg was like that, but than it got better after a few days, but today, both of them do not move. What should we do? I am very very worried, since we planned to bring him to a local arboretum after he grows a little. I am so afraid he is going to die... Please please respond...

Hey

Can i ask what have you been feeding the duckling? Has it had enough calcium? Ducklings at that age grow very fast and need calcium to ensure they have strong and healthy bones.

I seriously would suggest getting the duckling checked out by a Vet. Or phone around for any wildlife hospitals for advice.
Maybe any local duck or poultry breeders or farmers might be able to offer some advice.

Please keep us updated... I hope the lil duckling does ok.
Mel x

Dear Mel,

We have been giving him cooked cous-cous, eggs, thinly sliced carrots, fresh gras... We also tried to feed him with cottage cheese, but he won't eat.
He eats well, drinks a lot, grows fast and seems to do well, except for that problem with his legs... We also let him swim a little (5 min) in a tub with warm water every day.

Hey

I'd really suggest then that you try and get the duckling to a Vet. It sounds that he could need treatment... and getting professional advice would be best.

Mel x

Hey. Sorry to hear about your baby duck. I don't know what you could do for him/her. But, I'm just sharing my advice. We got a baby duck about 1 year ago. She was fine walking around and eating normally. Then, oneday she couldn't walk. We tried to wrap her leg up and called the Vet. about it. But, there was nothing that they could do for her. That was all about 1 year ago and she is still like that. She gets around by hopping on one foot and by using her wings at times to support her body. We can't ever take her back into the wild, because she would die. Luckily, only one of her legs is like that and not both of them. She seems really happy though and gets along well with our other ducks. What kind of duck is yours? I wonder if someone bought it at a Tradeday/store and it got loose?? I'm glad you found it and are taking care of it. Let us know how it goes. Good Luck,
Genny

Dear Genny,

Thanks for your message. Our lil ducklin' seems to get better, he stands on one of his feet -- the left one is still weak though. But he, too, seems happy, his little wings have grown, so he helps himself We got him special food now, which contains everything he needs and we were told before that there is nothing a vet can do about... The last week, we were trying to feed him with as much calcium as possible. That seems to have helped. Today, I passed my qualifying exam for the PhD in German, and he congratulated me with standing on his feet and looking out of the box. So I am pretty happy. We will see how it goes... I will update you in the news.
P.S. I really have no idea where the duckling came from, I just know for sure that he would be dead by now if we didn't take him into the house back on May 20th. This makes me feel good...

Hey. You found him on May 20th? That's my Birthday!

I'm so glad to hear he is doing better. That's great! Are you planning on keeping him or returning him back into the wild since his foot is better? Let me know what kind of duck he is once you find out; sometimes it takes a while to be able to tell what kind they are until they are almost grown and have their feathers.
(Troy) My duck that has the hurt leg is a muscovy. She is the sweetest duck I have. Most people say that muscovy ducks are more aggressive and they really are. But, Troy is the sweetest duck I ahve and I have several different kinds. I guess because her foot is hurt is the reason she is more sweeter than the rest. Anyway, I love her!

Let us know how everything goes with him. Have you named it? Talk to you later,
Genny.

Hey, I can't believe it -- May 20th is MY birthday as well!!! He was my best guest and present. Until now, I can't say anything about what kind he is. But I guess, he is really SHE -- has a grayish tale and little gray feathers. Sooo cute We didn't name him/her yet, just calling our lil ducklin' I don't know whether we should keep him/her: I study and work at UC Davis, and we have a nice arboretum there with many many different ducks. I wish I could keep him, but I also understand that he would have a better life with others ducks than with me. We will see.

I can't believe it either! That's weird! LOL
Your baby duck sounds sweet. Well, whether you keep him/her or not I'm sure either way he/she will be happy.

We had 3 boy muscovies that we raised from babies. Their names are Shadow, Sue, and Snowflake. We kept them amost 2 years, but decided that we couldn't keep them any longer because we also have girl muscovies and the boys were bothering them all the time.
So, we decided that we would take them to the river. Some people on the enternet have told me that it was a bad idea, not to do it. but, my family told me that it would be the best thing to do. When my mom was a little girl she raised 2 muscovies and released them into the wild when they grew up.

Anyway, we carried our 3 boys to the river. Where we carried them to it is so beautiful there. There are many isnalnds that they can swim to for protection or just to get away from everything. People come all the time to feed them. We carry big, huge loads of bread every couple of days. I belive our boys are much happier at the river than they were here. It was so hard to let them go, but I wanted to do what was best for them and for the girl ducks.
We go see them almost everyday and they are always so happy looking. I am so glad we did it now. But, I don't think our girls would be happy somewhere like that. When we had our boys they wouldn't dare let you touch them or get near them, but our girls love for us to walk by and give them a pat or pick them up. They are precious, so I don't think they would be happy in the wild, but I know that our boys love it.

It was hard to carry them, but they are very happy. So, if you decide to keep your baby duck I'm sure him/her will make an awesome pet. Ducks are one of my favorite animals. But, if you decide not to keep him, I'm sure he will be ok.
Let me know how he does.
Take care,
Genny

That's a nice story... I am glad you still can see your boy-ducks where you let them out. That's what they promise me in arboretum at UC Davis: I will be able to see them whenever I want. Right now, it is a nice evening and we are planning to go for a little walk with our ducklin' in our backyard, because his legs seem better. I believe the problem with the left leg will remain, though. But she/he can walk!!! And, by the way, ducks have always been my favorite animals (along with parrots) -- that must be because you and me both have our birthdays on May 20th

It probably is the reason I just love ducks. Do you have parrots? We have 2 cockatiels and just got a cokcatoo. His name is Ivory. A friend gave him to us. I love birds, too & dogs & ducks! I love all animals really, but those are some of my favorites.

We have 2 mallards, 11 baby muscovies, 4 grown muscovies, a khaki campbell, a blue swedish/ pekin mix, a pekin, a blue swedish, and a canadian goose.

They are all so special, they all have their own names and all have different personalities. The babies that turn out to be boys we will have to take down to the river to be with their daddys. But, we are gonna keep the girls here with their moms. We just don't really need anymore babies and so that is the best thing. They are very happy at the river

I'm glad he is walking again!
talk to you later,
Genny

Yes, we have great news -- she gets better every day, and today there seems to be no problem with neither of her legs whatsoever.

We are sooooo happy!

We don't have parrots right now, but I think we will get one later. I love cacatoos and jacos, but all other are also great. I also like dogs, but cats not so much...
Right now, we are both working, so we don't want to much responsibility, but sometime later of course we are going to have pets... For now, we are just so glad we saved the life of our little duckling!

I'm so glad!

Hi, is how you little duck, is he still doing ok? I hope so..
Did you find a name for him?

We just lost one of our ducks. She was the very first duck I've ever had, the duck that made me want more ducks. Her name was Topaz. We have 2 big dogs out in the back yard and the ducks are all in the front. I had no idea that there was a hole that my dogs had dug up under the fence just big enough for Topaz to squeeze through. She did and the dogs killed her. I wasn't out there when it happened. I just went out to give the dogs some water and there was little Topaz. They had her. I went and got her. I cried & cried..I still cry when I think about her. It is so hard, because I was closer to her more than I was to the 2 big dogs. I've never really had a very strong bond with my 2 big dogs,( I love my 3 little dogs to death) but just never bonded with the 2 big ones. But, I loved my ducks, especially Topaz. I'm sure all she was doing was looking for some bugs to eat. She loved to eat worms and creepy crawly bugs I miss her so much...she wouldn't ever hardly take a bath. She loved to be dirty. We buried her up under a tree that she use to sit up under and wait for bugs to craw by so she could catch them.
A few weeks ago she had 11 babies. All I can do is care for them and love them the way I loved her. I know she would want that. Thanks for listening...It is nice to have someone to talk to about things like this.

Bye,
Genny

Hi, is how you little duck, is he still doing ok? I hope so..
Did you find a name for him?

We just lost one of our ducks. She was the very first duck I've ever had, the duck that made me want more ducks. Her name was Topaz. We have 2 big dogs out in the back yard and the ducks are all in the front. I had no idea that there was a hole that my dogs had dug up under the fence just big enough for Topaz to squeeze through. She did and the dogs killed her. I wasn't out there when it happened. I just went out to give the dogs some water and there was little Topaz. They had her. I went and got her. I cried & cried..I still cry when I think about her. It is so hard, because I was closer to her more than I was to the 2 big dogs. I've never really had a very strong bond with my 2 big dogs,( I love my 3 little dogs to death) but just never bonded with the 2 big ones. But, I loved my ducks, especially Topaz. I'm sure all she was doing was looking for some bugs to eat. She loved to eat worms and creepy crawly bugs I miss her so much...she wouldn't ever hardly take a bath. She loved to be dirty. We buried her up under a tree that she use to sit up under and wait for bugs to craw by so she could catch them.
A few weeks ago she had 11 babies. All I can do is care for them and love them the way I loved her. I know she would want that. Thanks for listening...It is nice to have someone to talk to about things like this.

Bye,
Genny