RIMERSBURG – “He doesn’t think he’s a duck, he thinks he’s a person,” Stephanie Cooper of Rimersburg said of her pet duck, Squeaky.
Stephanie Cooper and Squeaky, along with Coopers boyfriend, have had an interesting year. The little duck has several handicaps, but isn’t afraid to chase a dog or two.
Indeed, Squeaky is a bit of an “odd duck.”
When not settled into his favorite easy chair near the fireplace in the living room, Squeaky is often moving about the house in his “wheelchair.”
Squeaky endured a tough start in life and ended up unable to stand or walk. Cooper and her boyfriend, however, never gave up on Squeaky, and now have a house pet who cries when left alone and is overjoyed when his humans return home from work.
Cooper and her boyfriend purchased four newborn ducks last spring at Tractor Supply near Clarion. The couple took the baby ducks home and placed them in a brooder, where the little ducks were kept under a heat lamp.
Early one morning, the couple found one of the baby ducks on his back with the other three ducks crying out.
“I was going hysterical,” recalled Cooper. “He was only four days old. We love animals. We brought him upstairs and he was experiencing seizure-like symptoms. He was sweating. He would stiffen up and then go limp. We had no idea what was wrong with him.”
Cooper said she contacted numerous veterinarians and even an animal sanctuary, with no success in finding help.
“The veterinarians said we were wasting our time and the people at the animal refuge were downright rude,” recalled Cooper. “(Squeaky) couldn’t walk – he wouldn’t eat. We started looking on the Internet and found some information and just started doing the best we could.”
The couple found a recipe for a mixture of finely pureed kale and water and fed it to Squeaky through an eye dropper.
“After two or three days of feeding him and rubbing him down, he really did a turn-around,” said Cooper. “We found the problem might have been a vitamin deficiency, so we made a vitamin mixture and started giving that to him and in a couple of weeks, he started gaining weight.”
While making gains, Squeaky still needed to be kept in an environment around 98-degrees. Cooper said she often held Squeaky on her chest while sleeping on the couch for about three weeks.
Squeaky survived those first weeks of life but he couldn’t walk, his growth was stunted and one wing was deformed. The deformed wing forced the little duck to sit in his box in an awkward position, which led to curvature in his spine.
“My boyfriend started to build Squeaky all kinds of contraptions,” said Cooper. “We would get one perfected and Squeaky would outgrow it.”
When Squeaky reached what would be his final height and weight, Cooper’s boyfriend designed and built the “wheelchair” that Squeaky has become adept at using.
Constructed of lightweight PVC pipe, with safety straps and easy-coasting wheels, the wheelchair is decorated with Superman decals.
Squeaky doesn’t seem to care for other animals. The couples’ other ducks and chickens live right outside, but Squeaky doesn’t visit.
The couple’s Labrador dog is no friend, either. Cooper said the dog is afraid of the mobile Squeaky and leaves the duck alone.
“He (Squeaky) will chase an 85-pound lab,” said Cooper. “The dog is afraid of the duck, but won’t hurt him either.”
Around the house
Squeaky is a Pekin duck and, of course, ducks make messes.
Squeaky wears a duck diaper – yes, such things exist – and Cooper and her boyfriend clean Squeaky’s beak and nose several times each day, as the duck cannot do it for himself.
A blanket and pillow on an easy chair make for a snug nest and Squeaky appeared quite happy to settle in when Cooper set him in the chair.
At night, Squeaky is placed in his wheelchair which is then set in a larger box in the bedroom.
“He knows when it’s bed time,” said Cooper. “He settles in for the night when the lights are turned off.”
As Cooper talked about Squeaky, she picked the little duck up and held him to her chest. Squeaky snuggled in and placed his head near Cooper’s shoulder and appeared to doze off.
Cooper, 26, said domesticated ducks can live for around 12 years.
“We’ve made a commitment to him,” said Cooper. “In a way, he is like a baby – we have to tend to his every need.”
Cooper, a therapeutic support staff member at various schools, said when she leaves in the morning for work, Squeaky, stationed in his nest, will scream out.
“He will stop if I come back and pet him,” said Cooper. “It’s daunting to leave for work in the morning.”
With the use of duck diapers, Squeaky spends his days in a very clean setting. Cooper said Squeaky’s care costs the couple about $70 per month.
“He has a lot of emotions,” Cooper said with a chuckle as Squeaky rested in his chair. “I can you tell this – we’ve learned a lot about ducks.”
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