Luna had a tough day today after a good start to a really tough process yesterday. Her leg is more swollen, and she is not eating. This happened with Ana Sophia though. For several days, she wouldn’t eat very much, if at all. I was very worried about losing her when I finally convinced her back to food with bites of Ron’s homemade whole grain bread. After we got some of that in her, she perked up and did so well. Even though she would have months to go in the house, once we got her to really eat for us, I knew she would be okay.
Because of my experience with Ana Sophia, who broke or severely sprained her leg in 2019 and is going strong still with the flock, I thought I would do my best to chronicle Luna’s rehabilitation process (I mean, hopefully, I can heal her) in the hopes that it might help someone else in a similar situation.
I feel I should first explain why we have not taken Luna to the vet, just in case some are wondering. I have taken a duck to the vet one time and a chicken to the vet one time. The only thing I got that was helpful to me was a prescription for antibiotics, and honestly, I now know that those weren’t the best decision in the situation. I hope this does not sound arrogant, but I knew more than the vet in both situations. I was, honestly, devastated to learn this. I needed someone to know everything I didn’t about the animals I love.
In one case, there was nothing that could be done, as I had thought, and I had to pay the $100 office visit bill. In another case, the vet wanted to do an x-ray on something that I was like 99 percent sure was bumble foot, but it was my very first time to experience it. The x-ray was going to cost $450 on top of the visit and the meds. I paid for the visit and the meds and passed on the x-ray. The vet bill was nearly $300. We had to make the decision that we could not really afford vet bills for all of our farm birds but that we would do our best to learn how to treat everything we could and always consider quality of life for the animal.
I have spent the last ten years reading everything from Facebook posts to scientific journal articles. I took an online class from the University of Edinburgh. I studied our animals as much as I could. There is still so very much I don’t know, but I did help a duck recover from a broken or severely sprained leg in 2019 and have since learned that duck leg injuries are not uncommon in backyard ducks, so I am going to chronicle what I do with Luna and record what works and doesn’t work and hope that most everything works well and that Luna will have many good years in front of her.
I won’t blog about Luna every day, as I will have other stories to tell, but I will chronicle Luna’s journey until she, hopefully, recovers.
On Day 1, she was run over accidentally by our young Per who was playing near the ducks. Ron was there at the time of the incident, so she was put into a soak tub within minutes while we assessed the damage. It is easier to assess leg damage when they are floating and their little legs can dangle. We decided it is severely sprained or slightly broken. Within an hour or so of the incident, we swelling was super noticeable. She did very well in the house the first day, to my surprise. She ate well.
On Day 2, she has been in more pain, so I researched pain management. I read a lot of conflicting information, but without a prescription, most people recommended aspirin. Of course, the internet is like the Wild West, so I kept looking until I found a site I trusted. I looked for something from a university cooperative extension because, truly, they are the best, and I found helpful information from Mississippi State University Cooperative Extension, so Luna now has a dose aspirin, as per the instructions on the site, in her drinking water. I did not use aspirin with Ana Sophia, so I am nervous about this; however, Luna’s leg is worse than Ana Maria’s was. It seemed necessary to do something for Luna’s pain.
As I mentioned before, she has not eaten well at all, so I am hoping a little pain management will help. We have brought her inside to live in the house until she is healed. She stays in our bathroom when we are away from home to keep her safe from our dogs and cats. When we are home, she is either floating in the tub or in her bin where she is in a nest of straw the ready access to food and water. Right now, we are just keeping her off of her leg while also making sure she gets enough tub time to keep her nostrils good and wet throughout the day.
Listening to cello music calms her down a lot, though she was hand raised and knows us pretty well. Still, she is an Indian Runner Duck and, therefore, very high strung in general. This is not an easy experience for her, so we are doing everything we can to keep her comfortable while still living our lives. She likes to be around us and not be alone. Ducks are social animals, so, even though we are not her ideal people, we are still people. She is definitely happier when she is with us.
Those are the key things I can think of right now. Hopefully, they will be helpful to someone, somewhere, at some time. And, hopefully, little Luna will get better. uc
Was she ok. I can’t see the next days post
Jane, she was okay and has a little hitch in her gait but is still with us. Luna ended up staying in the house for a couple of months, but she has been back with the flock for over a year now and doing well in her old age. Thank you so much for asking about her!