What are you feeding them? Is it possible that this is caused by a nutritional deficiency...? Someone with more duck knowledge than I will be along soon. Meanwhile, do some research online to check your ducks' nutritional requirements to help rule out problems such as Rickets.

Also, do you see any obvious injury or swelling? Can you pick up the ducks and palpate their legs--squeeze gently and see how they react, and start at the top of each leg and work your way down. Be alert for any reaction from the ducks. Compare the 'bad' leg to the good one--look for anything out of the ordinary. Lastly, any other symptoms such as listlessness, strange poops, not eating, etc?

You say 'they'--are both injured ducks female, and are they both injured in exactly the same way this time? Try to rule out egg binding--research the symptoms online to see if they match your situation.

Good luck!

Velvet ~:>

It's not anything we are feeding them because we still feed them the same thing we fed them when they were just a couple of weeks old. They're legs don't look swollen we picked them up and looked them over and didn't see any wounds or scratches. But we didn't feel around on them to see if we could feel any broken bones...It is just strange that it happened to both of them at the same time.....I would appreciate any more help or suggestions any one else has. Thank you Genny

It could still be the feed: ducks' nutritional needs change as they get older. This is why there are different kinds of chicken feed (for example): starter, grower, layer, etc.

With geese, I know that if they get the wrong amount of protein in their diets, their wings can droop. This doesn't show up for months.

Will you tell us what you are feeding them?

Katey

I'm no expert on ducks, but the fact that both ducks developed this problem at the same time and that in both it is getting gradually worse, leads me to think it is a nutritional deficiency, as Velvet and Katey suggested. Is it the same leg that is damaged in both? Too many similarities for all this to be coincidence, in my opinion.

Get advice from a duck expert if you can. If not, I would try to get some good info on duck nutrition and a breakdown of what is in your current duck feed and compare the two...

I'm just very certain it is not the food. My grandmother raised several ducks when she was young and my mom raised several when she was a kid and now we have some and we feed them the same thing my mother and grandmother fed theirs. They are almost 2 years old and I think that if it were the food this would have happened way before now. But, I will go ahead and let you know what we are feeding them anyways. When they were little we let them peck outside and fed them worms and bugs and baby chicken cracked grain. NOW, we feed them bread, grain, fish, crackers, cereal and they eat bugs all day outside. One of the ducks (the one that is walking still) is looking better today. (But the other one that couldn't walk still cannot walk) We felt around for broken bones. I didn't feel any and both of the legs looked the same....

On one of the ducks it is her right and on the other duck it is her left.

I am hoping they will get better day by day. I don't know of any web sites to go to and get any info. from avian vets. Does anyone know of any...Again any advice or info. is appreciated....Genny

Just wanted to let you know the ducks are getting better and both of them can walk now. Thank goodness!

1 Q...can you tell baby muscovies apart by male and female by the size and length of their legs? We think we have 4 female ducks and 1 male. 1 mallard (female) and 3 muscovies (female) and 1 male muscovie..We don't want any babies....because we have a lot of hawks, owls & snakes around here..Wierd Q I know but can you fix a boy duck so he can't have babies?? Thanks...

We also have a handful of Muscovies and I don't want ducklings around for the reasons stated above.

I don't know about fixing a boy duck - but collecting the eggs works just fine, plus you have all those eggs to eat! If we have more eggs than we care to eat, I sometimes feed them whole and raw to the dogs, one or two a day to 50-100 lb dogs.

Well, thanks for the replies everyone..

MELEEAL, what kind of big dogs do you have? Do they get along w/ your ducks ok? That is one of my biggest concerns for my dogs and ducks to get along and so far they do..they are only 8 months old (my dogs) bloodhound and a great dane but get along ok with the ducks...

Genny, I have a Rottweiler and an Aussie mix. The Aussie mix is just naturally protective towards any animals we've ever had. She seems to figure out which animals 'belong' and takes care of them.

The Rottie was different. She was a stray who showed up on our doorstep as an adult. Shortly after she arrived, someone dropped off 3 6-month-old kittens at the end of our driveway, and we decided to keep them. The Rottie REALLY wanted to eat those kittens :) but she figured out that they were off-limits and now they are best buddies. We didn't have to take any extreme measures, just kept her on a leash around the kittens until they seemed to bond, and scolded her when she gave them 'the eye', looked like she was about to lunge at them.

Same story with the ducklings, her instinct was to munch them up but she has learned to ignore them. She is a VERY obedient and sober dog, we just got lucky. She very much wants to please, things could have been a lot different otherwise.

ok thanks..we got Anna and Gracie (our dogs) st a young age...5 wks. old..so I am glad they are doing so well...
)

I too, have big dogs (2 Great Pyrenees) and 6 ducks (Swedish Blue, Rouen, Cuyuga, Crested Saxony). The Pyrs are watchful of all our "fowl family" ( that also includes chickens, banties and guineas. If any of them let out an unexpected squawk the Pyrs are in action, barking and circling to make sure that nothing is bothering their birds.

Wonderful dogs and nice birds, too

aawww. I use to have a great pyrenees named Mufassa a couple of years ago but he passed away. He was a great dog they are wonderful kinds of dogs.