LAME DUCK NIGHT OUT



My Big with her funny right leg.

 If you ever wondered how Suburban Homesteader's Friday Nights look like, here is an example:

Our poor Big is still limping about. Something is not quite right with her right leg. She cannot walk or stand on it. And it keeps getting worse. Most of the time, she simply sits around and she only appears to be somewhat normal - for a duck - when in the pond. But even then, I have noticed, she is not using her leg correctly anymore.

What's wrong with my Big?

Previously, I had taken her to the Vet and he found nothing wrong with her. Stunning, eh?

Since I have been bugging Roberto forever (he is an Osteopathic physician), last night (Friday night), he again checked on my Big and found she may have septic arthritis, which ducks apparently are prone to.


Treating Big

After checking on our feathered girlie, he said, she needed Antibios. But which will work for ducks and which dosage? Apparently ducks with SA respond well to Amoxicillin.
However, it has to be given in a particular way, unlike how you give it to humans:

Day 1: 3 times a day 20mg per kg of the bird's bodyweight.

Day 2: Do nothing.

Day 3: 3 times a day 20mg per kg of the bird's bodyweight.

Afterwards she should be better.

It's a bit tricky to get the meds into the duck, though. It is recommended to dilute the antibios with water. For that you will have to separate the sick duck to ensure the others won't drink the meds.
BUT: we used a dripper right into Big's beak and she simply LOVED the strawberry flavor. What is good enough for kids, is good enough for ducks. For our 3 lbs bird, it means1.5ml three times a day.

Here is where we got the information:
http://www.karizoo.com/arxius/productes/12478d5998f26bc053daa0fde5da6134.pdf

So, how to get the Antibios on a Friday night at 10pm?

At 10pm on Friday night, Robert called the pharmacy and called the medication in under my name.When the pharmacist heard about the low dosage (infant) and my age (40 ... in December), he said, "That won't do anything!" Errr.... correct! So, Roberto had to explain that the meds indeed were for our duck. Then the pharmacist inquired what was wrong with our duck and Roberto explained that it had septic arthritis. This led the pharmacist to ask Roberto how he knew and my man responded that he was an osteopathic physician and that he could feel it in his hands. Yeah, ladies, it's not in his kiss (although IT IS...), it's (also) in his hands... THAT'S WHERE IT IS, OH YEAH!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VwGGZTZ-3pM

At around 11pm, we arrived at the pharmacy (of course we got lost along the way) ....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H58tcUznWHY

I told the pharmacist, that I wanted to pick up the medication under my name.

Pharmacist, "Is this for the duck?"

Me. "Yes!"

Pharmacist, "Do you have it as a pet for the kids?"

Me. "Yes!"

Pharmicist, "Is your husband the Osteopath?"

Me, "Yes!"

Pharmicist, "I have some chickens. I have raised them from when they were only a few days old!"

Me, "Oh, we have those as well! We hatched them."

And then we had an extended conversation about ducks, chickens and another pharmacist joined talking about her mother's goat.

Ahhh, country living!!!! I sure love it!!!


"Nature never says one thing and wisdom another." Decimus Junius Juvenalis