We have a Muscovy duck (1 of 2 ducklings who adopted us last summer, from a neighboring farm), who appears not to have any oil on his (or her?) feathers for the last few days. The duck acts otherwise normally, grooming, eating, foraging, moving about, sleeping, etc. They are pretty tame and easy to pick up, and we notice he seems wet all the time now. Is this something we need to worry about, and if so, how should we help him/her? We have found no vets in our area who 'see' waterfowl! Thanks for any help anyone can give!
Hi,some ducks do lose oil for a while.I have a couple calls that sink like a rock.But all you have to do to get it back is,(when it gets warm)put the duck in some water for 10 to 15 minutes a day untill the oil comes back.I can't garentee this but it worked for me.If you get thier feathers back in the water,then when it molts in the spring the new feathers should have oil on them.GOOD LUCK,hope this helps,Callpen
By Callpen on Monday, January 29, 2001 - 11:28 pm: