Humane Society rescues four-legged duck

By CHARLES W. JOHNSON / News Editor for the Southern Standard

This four-legged duck named Quaddle was helped by the local Humane Society. (Charles W. Johnson photo)

Everyone knows the Humane Society is dedicated to rescuing their four-legged friends, though most people might find it pretty unusual when that four-legged friend happens to be a duck instead of a dog or cat.

But that’s exactly what happened last week when local Humane Society animal shelter manager Beth Farmer picked up a rather extraordinary animal to take along on a rescue trip to the Knoxville area. Even though it sounds bizarre, Farmer did indeed pick up a young four-legged duck, called, not surprisingly, Quaddie. Quaddie was traveling with “sister” duck Kaddie, who was, to all appearances, quite normal.

Farmer found out about the duck with the genetic aberration on a Yahoo group she was visiting while trying to find rescue organizations to take some of the animals remaining in the Humane Society shelter, which was recently forced to close due to a lack of funds.

“For the last three weeks, this is the fourth weekend, I’ve been driving Warren County dogs and cats all over Tennessee, Kentucky and Indiana,” Farmer said. “Rescues from other states have been meeting me, basically, halfway.”

When she heard about Quaddie, Farmer said, since she was headed that way anyway, she decided to help. Farmer said when she first heard out about Quaddie it was a bit hard to believe, but after contacting the duck’s rescuers she found out it was for real.

“Apparently it’s a genetic mutation,” Farmer said. “I don’t know a whole lot about that part of it. I do know that a lady was going to sell them on eBay to the highest bidder, as a freak show kind of thing. But Carolina Waterfowl put the money together and bought the ducks.”

Farmer said she heard the price was around $200.

Quaddie’s extra legs truly do exist, but are fused together and unusable, actually crippling her and making it hard for her to get around. Farmer says veterinarians affiliated with Carolina Waterfowl Rescue should be able to help.

“She is going to a waterfowl specialist in North Carolina,” Farmer said, “and there’s a possibility those two legs may be amputated. It’s just not very healthy.”

And according to Farmer, Quaddie’s freakish genetic nature doesn’t end with the extra appendages. Though people tend to refer to the duck as “she,” it turns out Quaddie has both male and female organs as part of her mutation.

“I’ve never seen anything like this,” Farmer said. “In fact, I’ve never heard of anything like it. I just thought it would be kind of neat to help out.”