Mallard with broken beak - How do I help her?

[ChelleBelFarms]

A young female mallard was brought to me with a broken lower beak. A portion of the beak near her throat is completely missing, while the rest is hanging on by a thread of skin at the end. I tried to glue the end back together but it will not hold. I am feeding her electrolyte water and medicated crumbles with an antibiotic mixed into a soup like consistency. She is eating and drinking well. But I'm not sure how to fix the broken piece of beak? Should I leave it alone and just keep her penned up until it heals? Will it heal? Any help or suggestions would be great!
PS - there are no aviary vets anywhere near me - I've already checked

 

[GitaBooks]

It is very nice that you are helping her (

), but I don't think she will heal unless she gets surgical vet care. Are there any wildlife rescues in the area?

I hope she gets better soon.

 

[ChelleBelFarms]

I have nursed so many hurt animals back to health... with a 100% cure rate so far... but this one baffles me... A friend of mine who is going to school for vet care said that there is wildlife rescue an hour from here, but she thinks they will just put her down... her advice was that she would be better off with me... but I'm just not sure what to do... I want to do what is best for her... she is unusually friendly for wild mallard... follows me all over the house. And my daughter who caught her said she came right up to her at the river... So, she probably could/should not be integrated back into the wild. I have ducks on my farm and a big creek that runs through the property that the ducks love. I believe this happened a week or so ago because there is no blood, it looks healed over and she manages to eat and drink just fine. With all of this new info... what do you think? Should I take a chance on the wildlife rescue?

 

[GitaBooks]

Yeah, wildlife vets do often put down animals they could cure, especially if it would be too expensive or if the animal is unreleasable so keeping her would be best. Try binding her lower beak to the upper beak. You could try the glue along with this. Feed her via stomach tube a special mixture with plenty of vitamins. Broken beaks hurt a ton! She may need some pain medication if you are going to do anything with the beak.
I'm really glad she is doing well and managing to eat and drink. I hope that you can find a way to fix it and she can heal up and become a great pet. Unreleasable wildlife can still thrive, many are put into educational facilities, and they can make awesome pets as well.


Best of luck!

 

[ChelleBelFarms]

Thank you for responding... I did think about that... might bind her tonight while she's sleeping...