u/justdoughitnow

Very worried duck mom looking for possible botulism treatment and how to care.

We’ve had a blistering heat wave since the beginning of August and it got pretty bad last week. I have a 4 year old domestic drake who suddenly became very unusually quiet last week on Wednesday. He was not wanting to eat (he loves food and even rejected his treats) and would only take sips of water. Otherwise he looked fine. I suspected maybe he had an impacted crop and tried the water syringes and massage to no avail. He was pooping clear with bits of light green so he was not eating. I separated him from the rest of the flock.

By Friday, I noticed that he was visibly limping and became concerned for botulism. He preferred to always stand on one leg, not sit. He usually likes to sit in the garden for shade and roams in the grassy area. He’s usually a very active duck and always on his feet but he was sitting down every chance he got when there was no one around. I began doing activated charcoal flushes twice a day since then. I purchased poultry electrolytes for his water. By the evening, he was extremely lathargic and sleepy, and would fall over when trying to stand up to drink water. This was the worst I’ve ever seen him on Friday and Saturday. Despite being very weak, he still had that fight or flight instinct in him and would still attempt to run away if he thought he was being chased or in danger. He would still run even if he was falling down. He would only preen if he was in the shallow pool water, never in his cage. He continued like this on Saturday.

Yesterday evening (Sunday), he began to have a slight appetite but still primarily would drink water and eat treats (dried mealworms). He was standing up again and limping slightly but still preferred to sit down if he wasn’t stimulated by his surroundings (other people, noises, etc). If he was stimulated or saw new people, he would happily run and greet them, quack, and was even able to go in and out of the shallow pool on his own.

Today (Monday), he is able to eat food sometimes (it takes a loooong time, a few hours) but still leaves it mostly uneaten. His poop is now his regular colour, and still liquidy. The poop situation has improved, as it’s not 100% clear anymore but he still prefers to sit down and sticks his leg out. He is more responsive with his quacking and talks back. There are moments he prefers to stand and he does so now with both feet on the ground instead of just one. He still has a limp but walks around more in general. This is the biggest improvement.

Is there anything I should do in addition to my charcoal flushes? I’ve reduced them to once a day now but I can’t tell if he’s significantly improving enough to do this.

Very worried duck mom looking for possible botulism treatment and how to care.

We’ve had a blistering heat wave since the beginning of August and it got pretty bad last week. I have a 4 year old domestic drake who suddenly became very unusually quiet last week on Wednesday. He was not wanting to eat (he loves food and even rejected his treats) and would only take sips of water. Otherwise he looked fine. I suspected maybe he had an impacted crop and tried the water syringes and massage to no avail. He was pooping clear with bits of light green so he was not eating. I separated him from the rest of the flock.

By Friday, I noticed that he was visibly limping and became concerned for botulism. He preferred to always stand on one leg, not sit. He usually likes to sit in the garden for shade and roams in the grassy area. He’s usually a very active duck and always on his feet but he was sitting down every chance he got when there was no one around. I began doing activated charcoal flushes twice a day since then. I purchased poultry electrolytes for his water. By the evening, he was extremely lathargic and sleepy, and would fall over when trying to stand up to drink water. This was the worst I’ve ever seen him on Friday and Saturday. Despite being very weak, he still had that fight or flight instinct in him and would still attempt to run away if he thought he was being chased or in danger. He would still run even if he was falling down. He would only preen if he was in the shallow pool water, never in his cage. He continued like this on Saturday.

Yesterday evening (Sunday), he began to have a slight appetite but still primarily would drink water and eat treats (dried mealworms). He was standing up again and limping slightly but still preferred to sit down if he wasn’t stimulated by his surroundings (other people, noises, etc). If he was stimulated or saw new people, he would happily run and greet them, quack, and was even able to go in and out of the shallow pool on his own.

Today (Monday), he is able to eat food sometimes (it takes a loooong time, a few hours) but still leaves it mostly uneaten. His poop is now his regular colour, and still liquidy. The poop situation has improved, as it’s not 100% clear anymore but he still prefers to sit down and sticks his leg out. He is more responsive with his quacking and talks back. There are moments he prefers to stand and he does so now with both feet on the ground instead of just one. He still has a limp but walks around more in general. This is the biggest improvement.

Is there anything I should do in addition to my charcoal flushes? I’ve reduced them to once a day now but I can’t tell if he’s significantly improving enough to do this.