Niacin is a critical vitamin required for the correct development of ducklings and goslings. In fact, waterfowl have a higher requirement for niacin (also called nicotinic acid) than chickens. Niacin is formed from the amino acid tryptophan and waterfowl do not synthesize niacin well from tryptophan.
What do the birds look like if there is a niacin deficiency? If there is a lack of niacin in their feed, initially some birds are reluctant to move about. Eventually their hocks swell and their legs develop a bowed shape. It becomes very difficult for them to move about and they do not gain weight or thrive.
A series of pictures from the book, Nutrition and Management of Ducks, with permission of the authors, showing a normal duckling (A) and ducklings (B,C,D) that were fed Niacin deficient diets.
How can this happen? If you are not using a balanced chick starter designed for broiler chicks or game birds, you may have problems. If you are using a chick starter developed exclusively for laying chickens, it probably does not have enough niacin. Do not make their diet exclusively whole grains, like Chicken Scratch. On very rare occasions, the lack of niacin could be from a mistake at the feed mill.
So how much niacin do waterfowl require? It should be at least 60 parts per million (ppm). Oftentimes this is not on the label but if you contact the manufacturer of the feed, they should tell you the minimum guaranteed level in the feed. You can go to our website for a complete list of waterfowl nutrient requirements.
A bottle of Niacin tablets, 500 mgs per tablet.
How can I supplement niacin? Niacin can be easily purchased at a nutrition or drug store. Typically the pills contain 500 mgs of niacin per tablet. Assuming a duck is eating about .35 lbs per day (this is how much a Pekin is eating at about 3 -4 weeks of age) , they need 10 milligrams (mgs) of niacin a day. So, theoretically, one pill has enough niacin for 50 ducks. But if you are grinding up a pill and spreading it over pelleted feed, much of it will sift to the bottom and not be consumed. Add a little water to the feed and it will “stick” to the pellets.
An alternative is to add it to their drinking water (assuming they have no swimming water). If they drink 100% of the water you give them, you only need to add one 500 mg tablet to every 8 gallons of water. But we both know that does not happen. If you think they are wasting half their water, then add one 500 mg tablet to only four gallons of water. For your own calculations, go to the table on our website on daily feed and water consumption of ducklings.
Two broiler chicks, the one on the left was fed a niacin deficient diet.
Photo courtesy of DSM Nutritional Products.
Are there alternatives to pure Niacin? If you are concerned with the possibility that other vitamins may be missing, too, you can purchase Vitamin B liquid supplements. The GNC product I found had 20 mg of niacin per dropper full. This is enough for two ducks that are 3-4 weeks old. This might be the best way to administer niacin if your birds are exhibiting leg problems. By administering the niacin to each bird, you will know they are getting the required niacin.
A feed ingredient that is rich in niacin is dried brewers yeast. There is about 5mg niacin per 15 grams (one tablespoon) of human grade brewers yeast. Livestock grade brewers yeast is not as concentrated. There is only about 1.5mg niacin for each tablespoon of livestock grade brewers yeast.
What if only a few of my birds have leg problems? Variability within a flock is normal. Each bird varies on how well it forms niacin from tryptophan, either due to genetics or the different microflora in their gut. It would not be unusual to have a single flock of birds, with some exhibiting a niacin deficiency and others walking perfectly normally - but all eating the same feed.
Glory, a duck that was rescued by Majestic Waterfowl Sanctuary, arrived with leg problems due to a niacin deficient diet.
How long does it take for recovery? Except for the extreme cases such as the picture above, improvement is normally seen within several days and there can be complete recovery.
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ReplyDeleteThanks for the info!
ReplyDeleteThank you for the greatly informative website. I'm a 4H advisor with 2 members having duck projects. Their 8 ducks all have the leg issue described in this article. I ran to GNC today to get the Vit B/niacin drops for them. We'll keep our fingers crossed!
ReplyDeleteAre there any high quality brands that have niacin? I feed them flock raiser? Does it have Niacin? Or do I have to buy it?
ReplyDeleteMost commercially prepared feeds have adequate levels of niacin so I would not worry if that is what you are using. The concern is when someone tries to mix their own feed or a mistake is made at the feed mill (rare but does occur).
ReplyDeleteCan you tell me if inositol hexanicotinate (flush free niacin) will work as the niacin for ducks and geese? I heard only Nicontinic Acid or niacimide will work for them but can't find any actual info...PS.I love my 300s! They are the beautiful ducks.
ReplyDeleteSarah:
ReplyDeleteI passed your inquiry to our feed company's nutritionist (Dr. John Throckmorton of LA Hearne, King Brand Feeds). Following is his response:
The signs of niacin deficiency related to leg problems are enlarged hock joints and slipped tendons (called perosis) so the leg splays out.
We do know that ducks have a higher requirement for niacin than chickens. NRC requirements for ducklings = 55 mg/kg niacin compared to only 27-35 mg/kg for chicks. On top of that, the niacin in corn has a very low bioavailability; although corn contains 24 mg/kg of niacin, I use a value of 2 mg/kg for formulation.
In your duck starter, we add 45 mg/kg of niacinamide to fortify the niacin found in raw ingredients, aiming for a total "Available Niacin" content of 90 mg/kg.
If niacin sounds like your customer's problem, I suggest they contact their feed manufacturer & enquire as to which poultry products have a similar level of niacin fortification. If that info is not available, I would recommend that they use a Turkey Starter formula since young turkeys (0-4 wks of age) have a niacin requirement of 60 mg/kg.
As for using "flush-free niacin", I would be skeptical & not recommend using as a replacement for niacinamide.
Where do ducks and geese in the wild get their Niacin from? Are there any natural foods that contain niacin?
ReplyDeleteMeats have the largest amounts of niacin, so for ducks that means insects, worms, snails, slugs, small fish, etc. Niacin can also be found in plant material but not as concentrated as in animal sources: wheat, rice, potato skins.
ReplyDeleteI usually have a cow liver every year. I have been boiling this up and cutting into tiny pieces to feed to my ducklings and chicks in the spring. Is there any problems with this?
ReplyDeleteNo, that is fine as long as they don't get too much at one time.
DeleteDo adult ducks need niacin? I have a female that can't walk good, she is big and healthy but she can't keep up with the rest of the ducks,if I give her Niacin now will she improve. Also, I throw cheerios out to my ducks from time to time, will that hurt them, its plain cheerios....no sugar. I noticed the box says there is niacin in the cheerios.
ReplyDeleteYes, adult ducks need niacin. If she is getting a mixed poultry feed, there is probably enough niacin in the feed. But you can always supplement as a trial to see if it helps. If she is large, it might be her weight that is causing problems with her legs. Cheerios should not be a problem as a treat as it is basically a grain.
ReplyDeleteIs it possible to give my ducklings too much niacin? I am feeding them a non-medicated chick, duck, and turkey stater feed. They also are getting electrolytes with niacin added to the water. My understanding is that niacin being a b vitamin is water soluble, and any extra is passed in the urine. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteYes, you can give too much niacin, but I don't know that level. But if your only additional niacin is in a packet of electrolytes added to the water, I doubt very much if it will be too much. Whoever formulates the electrolyte package should assume the birds are getting a normal level of niacin in their diet.
DeleteI again spoke to Dr. John Throckmorton, our feed company's nutritionist and he provided the following:
DeleteIn regards to tolerance levels on niacin, I'm going to stick with NRC's Nutrient Requirements of Poultry comments:
"Niacin, riboflavin and pantothenic acid are generally tolerated at levels as great as 10- to 20-fold their nutritional requirements. NRC niacin requirements are:
Ducks (all classes): 55 mg/kg of total diet.
Growing Chickens: from 35 mg/kg at 0-6 weeks to 11-25 mg/kg at 6+ weeks (higher levels for broilers than pullet layers).
Currently, we have some show poultry formulas with niacin levels at 325 mg/kg (acts as calming agent) with no problems.
There is potential for niacin deficiency in ducks if customers are feeding a poultry feed that is formulated to minimum requirements.
I did come across a recipe for additional niacin supplementation through the water. Dissolve 100-150 milligrams of nicotinic acid (niacin supplements have different types-stick with nicotinic acid) into 1 gallon of drinking water. That should hopefully cover an deficiency from low level diet.
I've been searching for information about niacin and ducklings, could not find what I wanted, I am a new at keeping ducks. You information helped with all of the questions I have had.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much, your site is a lifesaver.