Hobbling a Bowlegged Duckling High on the Legs UPDATE: Slipped Tendons

Hi, Everyone.

We are dealing with a three-week old duckling that is exhibiting fairly severe bowleggedness. We have another thread about this bird here with lots of videos. We have an appointment with our awesome avian vet but not until next Tuesday (she's on vacation).

BRIEF BACKGROUND: We noticed the issue on Day 11, and we started immediately with Vitamin B Complex and nutritional yeast added to Mazuri waterfowl starter. We do daily PT with the duckling, including swimming. We saw improvement initially, but now things have begun to slide, and we suspect a possible birth defect or other injury. Today is the first day the duckling is really having difficulty moving around much at all, and we feel we can't put off more aggressive action much longer.


NEXT STEP: At this point we are seriously considering what more aggressive, corrective actions we might consider prior to our vet appointment. Hobbling has been recommended to us, but we are unclear on exactly how to go about hobbling the duckling's upper legs, as that is where the issue is. We are thinking vetwrap, but we are looking for any and all tips, tricks and strategies.

Thanks in advance.

@casportpony always has good advice hopefully she'll see this tag.
@Pyxis

Miss Lydia said:

@casportpony always has good advice hopefully she'll see this tag.

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I was hoping we might here from @casportpony ! The decline between yesterday and today is dramatic.

Hip Malfunction​

Ducklings can suffer from hip issues that cause them to walk unnaturally from birth.

They can bear weight on their legs, but they have a noticeable limp or slow gait that is not natural.

This issue will affect a duckling’s feet negatively and hinder their ability to walk properly.

Causes​

Normally, a hip issue in a duckling is a genetic or incubation issue that the duckling has at the time of hatching.
You can try to massage the affected hip to encourage movement and loosen up tight muscles.


It may correct itself without other intervention. Contact your vet if it is causing a diminished quality of life for your duckling or if it appears to be in any pain.

This isn't much but all I could find so far.

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Our first effort.



Unfortunately, she had a lengthy swim first and was pretty tired, so we have not seen her try to get about with it. Thoughts?

Here is a brief video of our first effort:

Looks good. It's just going to take her a little bit to get the hang of it. Such a precious little one.
what do you think @ruthhope

Good job 3bird to you too!

That's how I would try to hobble a duckling with bow legs in the absence of an avian vet.

Do continue the high dose niacin; do continue to encourage the duckling to swim often; and continue to encourage walking -- a helping hand is always good for a duckling that is not afraid of hands

ruthhope said:

Good job 3bird to you too!

That's how I would try to hobble a duckling with bow legs in the absence of an avian vet.

Do continue the high dose niacin; do continue to encourage the duckling to swim often; and continue to encourage walking -- a helping hand is always good for a duckling that is not afraid of hands

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Thank you. They managed to get the vet wrap off in the brooder. This morning the duckling is worse--really 100% on its hocks when it tries to get around. I'm not sure how effective the hobble is in this situation. Water PT seems to be the best at this point. We were able to schedule an emergency avian vet consult for tomorrow morning (it's 1.5 hours away, and we don't know the vet, but we're hopeful).