Duck Bill Peeling - Is This Normal?

[sarahgray18]

Hello, I just noticed today that my 8-month-old Welsh Harlequin drake has some peeling on his bill in front of his nostril (not sure how else to describe it). This is on his right side. The left side looks normal. It feels a bit softer than the rest of his bill but doesn't seem to cause any pain. He is eating/drinking and otherwise normal. I have attached a photo. Is this normal, or is it something I should be worried about?

 

[Jenbirdee]

Hello, I just noticed today that my 8-month-old Welsh Harlequin drake has some peeling on his bill in front of his nostril (not sure how else to describe it). This is on his right side. The left side looks normal. It feels a bit softer than the rest of his bill but doesn't seem to cause any pain. He is eating/drinking and otherwise normal. I have attached a photo. Is this normal, or is it something I should be worried about?

View attachment 4044034

Have you seen him getting any little fights with other ducks? It might just be a loose piece that got kind of scraped off by being bitten. You can see along the side there’s other loose bits. I think it’s pretty normal but we can get other opinions. Let me tag a few duck people.
@ruthhope @HollowOfWisps

 

[ruthhope]

Any little knock can cause a little flaking. Bills are basically keratin, like our nails. Some folks nails tend to flakiness and some ducks bills do too

 

[sarahgray18]

Have you seen him getting any little fights with other ducks? It might just be a loose piece that got kind of scraped off by being bitten. You can see along the side there’s other loose bits. I think it’s pretty normal but we can get other opinions. Let me tag a few duck people.
@ruthhope @HollowOfWisps

Thank you for your reply, that makes me feel better! This was the first time I'd seen anything like this, so I just wanted to make sure it wasn't something to be too worried about.

I haven't seen him get into any fights, but knowing him, it's very possible he did something stupid and banged it.

Recently, the ladies have been lying flat with their necks stretched out by their water bowl, making mating quacks. He will stand on one sideways (like a skateboard) and then bop his head up and down at all the other ladies.

We have one other male in the flock (named Tequila; the one with the peeling bill is named Coke) outside with him (plus seven females). However, Tequila is quite the baby and doesn't like violence. On the rare occasion someone picks a fight with Tequila, he runs away. Most of the time, it's the ladies telling him to stop bopping his head at them because all seven ladies have claimed Coke as their man. They have a very strange flock dynamic going on lol.

 

[ruthhope]

He will stand on one sideways (like a skateboard) and then bop his head up and down at all the other ladies.

Skate-boarding drake LOL