Prolapsed Vent on Four Year Old Silver Appleyard Duck - Extended Care

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3bird

Crowing
5 Years
Apr 2, 2017
1,559
3,577
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Rockland, Maine
My Coop
My Coop
Hi, BYC Friends.

We've been flat out planting 300 seedlings, opening our gallery for the first time since 2019 and trying to keep up with all the regular spring farm chores, so we've not been on here much. Unfortunately, yesterday morning (Tuesday), we went out to let the ducks out and Mouse (one of our 4-year-old) silver Appleyards was sitting uncomfortably by the water bucket in the run. She was slow to get going, but then she went to follow the rest of the flock, and I saw a great deal of blood. Long story short, she had a pretty major prolapsed vent. We called our vet who said to bring her right in (she's just 5 minutes away), and so we took her.

Our vet is amazing!

The vet sedated her and got her going on some antibiotics. The bleeding was pretty severe. She wrapped her and kind of situated her on her back, and the bleeding subsided and the tissue swelling reduced. Unfortunately, there was some trauma to the membrane, so a couple sutures were needed. She spent last night at the vet and is on her way home today. According ti the vet, she is defecating okay and drinking well. She's doing some preening. She's not eating much (but she's at the vets).

We plan to crate her indoors in a bathroom. We will be doing oral antibiotics 3x/day, pain meds 2x/day and cloacal cream via syringe 1x/day (silver sulfadiazine cream/2-3 cc). What do you think about letting her swim in the tub some? Also, we've never done the cloacal cream via syringe thing--any tip or tricks? Anything else? Our vet is off the rest of today (well she's off all of today, but she's spent half of it with us!), so if we have an emergency, we'll be managing on our own mostly and using the emergency clinic (and you guys!).

Here is Mouse in better times with her best boy Angus (who is missing her VERY much).

angus and mouse snow.jpg
 
OK - so is this vet an avian vet?
Did they tell you that you need to try to keep her from laying? I lost a prize winning duck to prolapse - it happened 3 times in total...and wish I had known this.

Read up on how to get a chicken or duck to molt and stop laying eggs. (2 different subjects, but you need to do both) Quiet, dark, confined space for a specific amount of time - feed reduction, etc.

Good luck.
 
OK - so is this vet an avian vet?
Did they tell you that you need to try to keep her from laying? I lost a prize winning duck to prolapse - it happened 3 times in total...and wish I had known this.

Read up on how to get a chicken or duck to molt and stop laying eggs. (2 different subjects, but you need to do both) Quiet, dark, confined space for a specific amount of time - feed reduction, etc.

Good luck.
Yes. An avian vet. I have not read up on either, but I will! Thanks!
 
I'm sorry to hear about Mouse.

My Pigweed regularly has minor prolapses. I think hers are so much different from yours that I may just be offering support. They don't bleed, and our vet has never recommended stitches - though Pigweed goes to the vet regularly and we've discussed the condition regularly and she's even had extensive testing including a barium swallow. We just put the SSD cream on the outside, and the part hanging outside that should be inside. It pulses out at times about an inch and then goes back in. But if I had to use a syringe I think I would lube it up a bit on the outside of the syringe with the cream to make insertion more comfortable. I'm just assuming from having similar anatomy.

My vet has also never recommended that I attempt to reduce Pigweed's laying, but she has recommended that for my other duck who had life threatening reproductive issues. I'm happy to message the protocol to you, but I'd check with your vet before starting. It worked for us, stopped reproductive activity, and prolonged my duck's life by years. I'm unaware if it is indicated in this situation.

I would guess that bathing in clean water in a bathtub would be ok! She sure looks happy! 💖🦆
 
I'm sorry to hear about Mouse.

My Pigweed regularly has minor prolapses. I think hers are so much different from yours that I may just be offering support. They don't bleed, and our vet has never recommended stitches - though Pigweed goes to the vet regularly and we've discussed the condition regularly and she's even had extensive testing including a barium swallow. We just put the SSD cream on the outside, and the part hanging outside that should be inside. It pulses out at times about an inch and then goes back in. But if I had to use a syringe I think I would lube it up a bit on the outside of the syringe with the cream to make insertion more comfortable. I'm just assuming from having similar anatomy.

My vet has also never recommended that I attempt to reduce Pigweed's laying, but she has recommended that for my other duck who had life threatening reproductive issues. I'm happy to message the protocol to you, but I'd check with your vet before starting. It worked for us, stopped reproductive activity, and prolonged my duck's life by years. I'm unaware if it is indicated in this situation.

I would guess that bathing in clean water in a bathtub would be ok! She sure looks happy! 💖🦆
Thanks, @KaleIAm ! Please do pass along the protocol either here or via message. We are on day 2 of 14 days inside before heading back to the vet (hopefully not before). Mouse does seem to enjoy her bathtub swim, and she is preening, which is good! She has a good appetite and is drinking well.
 
DAY 2: Mouse was alert this morning. We filled the bath tub and gave her time to swim and then preen. Then she got her two oral meds (Clavamox and Rimadyl) and had her "Soup for Ducks" (indoor edition). We feel bad for her being so alert and not being able to be outside. We have the bathroom window open so she can hear all the familiar sounds. We had our coffee together this morning.

Mouse 24 June 2021.jpeg


Her feces looked good overnight--pretty watery with just a little blood in one.

Mouse Poop 24 June Morning.jpeg

 

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