Shedding is a normal phenomenon in the animal kingdom. Animals with scales shed their old scales to make room for new scales, and animals with fur on their bodies shed to make way for a thinner summer coat.
This article looks into whether duck bills shed and why this happens.
Table of Contents
Do duck bills shed:
Shedding is a necessary process, it allows animals to change something about their appearance when needed. Duck’s bills do shed, this may be why this is happening:
Normal skin peeling:
Duck bills peel sometimes, this is normal. The peeling of a duck’s bill does not coincide with molting but this peeling does happen a couple of times, the peeling is more common on drakes.
A duck’s beak, while peeling, may look more orange than yellow underneath, or even green. The bill may look flakey, especially around the nostrils area. This change in appearance is quite normal.
The peeling happens as a way to get rid of the build-up of dead skin cells on the duck’s beak. This doesn’t look too pretty but as long as the bird does seem to be in pain or in distress then you don’t have anything to worry about.
What to do:
As long as the bird’s bill does not look raw, doesn’t start to bleed and the bird does not seem to be in distress then the bird should be fine.
Keep an eye on the bird to make sure that its behavior doesn’t change while its beak is peeling.
If the bird does show signs of being in distress, if the bird starts to isolate itself, act lethargic, close its eyes, and starts to act unresponsive then you’d need to get your bird to the vet to be examined and diagnosed.
Infection:
A little peeling on the duck’s bill is normal but if the duck’s bill starts to peel in an extreme way then this may indicate a bacterial or fungal infection on the outer layer of the bird’s beak.
What to do:
If you suspect that the bird has an infection on its beak then you can treat the bird’s beak at home using a topical antifungal or topical antibacterial cream. This should be sufficient to clear the infection up
Manuka honey can also be used as a natural alternative antibiotic for your bird’s infected bill. You can use a manuka honey cream on the bird’s bill and this can be found online, at the pharmacy, or at your local health food store.
Other treatments for this condition in your bird include Neosporin cream, colloidal silver, and 1% silvadene cream which needs a prescription. Apply the treatment until the bird’s bill goes back to normal.
Avoid using an ointment to treat his condition as the oily ointment will get all over the bird’s feathers when the bird tries to preen itself.
If at home remedies do not treat your bird’s beak then you’d need to take the bird to the vet.
If you enjoyed this article then you may also be interested in other chicken related articles. Here are some articles that you may be interested in: Ducks Beak Is Peeling, Duck Suddenly Can’t Walk, How Can You Tell If A Duck Is In Pain