A duck trolley? You must be quackers
Canterbury the duck quack another day.
The deformed duck from Oxford, in the region that gave him his name, grabbed the sympathy of bird-lovers after his plight was publicised on social media. He can’t walk, he can’t fly, he can’t swim – but he has been taken by bus and ferry from the South Island to the North Island for a life-changing prosthetic.
North Canterbury woman Bronwyn Kilroy was moved to take on the task of getting Canterbury’s hips fixed, ensuring he could have a better standard of life.
‘‘The duck belongs to a friend of mine and when I went around there and saw it, it just affected me. It was such a lovely natured animal and aside from this condition seemed so well and full of life.’’
Her first move was to post a picture to Facebook, asking for donations to fund a hip operation for the duck. But that was going to cost a breathtaking $6000. Absolutely quackers, you might say.
That’s when Sunday Star-Times saw the plight of the duck and contacted the SPCA. The SPCA suggested ‘‘Duck Man’’ Craig Shepherd was the best bet to save Canterbury.
‘‘I haven’t seen this condition quite to this extent before,’’ said Shepherd, after seeing pictures of the duck. ‘‘It’s hard to say what might have caused it, it could be congenital, or as a result of its diet.’’
Shepherd was eager to take on the challenge, but he is based in Wellington.
That’s when two people, also touched by the tale, stepped in. will live to Karyn McLauchlan, the owner of NZ Pet Bus which transports animals around the country, offered transportation at half price. And North Canterbury businessman Michael Heaven paid the cut-price fare.
Shepherd is the chair of Wildlife Rehabilitators Network and has been chair of Wellington SPCA and runs the charity, Wellington Bird Rehabilitation Trust.
Through his trust, he arranged for x-rays for Canterbury, which revealed extensive deformities in the lower extremities.
‘‘It is a severe case,’’ he said, ‘‘one of the worst I’ve seen.’’
‘‘Wildbase checked over the x-rays and decided surgery is not an option as the deformity is too severe to be corrected.’’
That was when he came up with Plan B: to use an artificial aid to help the duck gain mobility.
Shepherd had another duck which they devised a cart for that helped it walk. ‘‘And it lived a very happy life.’’
Canterbury does not appear to be in any pain, even though it can be difficult to detect pain in animals.
‘‘Canterbury seems to be having a lot of fun in his cage,’’ Shepherd said. ‘‘They are conditioned not to show signs of pain as that can make them easy prey, also it can result in them being kicked out of the family as it makes the other family members more susceptible to prey.
‘‘However, signs of pain in an animal would be a reluctance to eat and put on weight. This duck is eating well and in good condition.’’
This weekend, the plan took flight, so to speak. Shepherd completed the trolley – and Canterbury was installed in the driver’s seat.