Mr Flapper Duck

Look like anyone you know?

Kozmo Kirby has been gone for months now, but this is his look-alike or “doppelgänger.” He looks a lot like Kozzy I think. Our friend Jen saw him on vacation today and snapped this photo.

Here’s a photo of Kozmo from the archives for comparison.

It’s nice to know there are other good-lookin’ kids out there like Kozmo.

Thanks for sharing the photo, Jen.

Monday night at 9pm, Kozmo Kirby lost his long battle with cancer. He had seemed a little more uncomfortable in the last few days, and this evening, he was clearly in pain and was having trouble breathing. So sadly, it was time to say goodbye.

Kozmo Kirby was born on May 13, 2005 along with his two sisters, Bingo Baloo and Miss Murphy.

Kozmo was the last remaining duckling of Georgie and Flapper’s only hatch at home. Their two girls passed away from different problems in December 2005.

Kozmo grew fast and had many of the mannerisms of his papa Flapper.

Kozmo was always up for treats, and always asked for seconds. He could shovel in treats like nobody’s business.

In no time at all, Kozmo grew up to be a monster-sized ducky with a stylish toupee.

He was a favorite of the ladies and always threw great pool parties.

He was a super sweet duck. He was always gentle and sensitive.

He was a super strong duck. He was the biggest guy on the block.

And he had the most beautiful blue eyes.

Tonight before he passed away, he had a short splash in the pond and one of his very favorite treats, watermelon.

Kozmo had a rough last three months, but we prefer to remember him as the big strong lovable lug he was for so long, and will always be in our hearts. Thank you so much to everyone who sent him well-wishes, hope and even treats. It made a big difference.

Goodbye, sweet Kozmo. I love you and I’ll miss you so much.
______________________________________________________

In honor of Kozmo, we’re creating a fund in his memory, to help future rescued ducks who need veterinary care or help with transport. It’s nothing fancy, but any money donated in his name will be reserved solely for helping more ducks. He would have loved the idea, as long as he didn’t have to share his treats.

For anyone who would like to contribute to the fund in Kozmo’s memory, you can use the paypal donate link below.






Hmmm, originally uploaded by tifotter.

Kozmo ponders more treats. These days his favorite treat is a few handfuls of corn. We get unsalted canned corn for him. Nom nom nom.

Kozmo’s biopsy results came back today, and unfortunately there were no magical surprises. He is indeed on borrowed time. He has a very large seminoma tumor that is already affecting his other organs. The vets don’t recommend trying to remove it or treat it, because it’s too involved and too far gone. But… at least he’s done with vets poking at him. And after almost 3 months of various tests, treatments and ideas, the biopsy results were conclusive this time. So he lasted long enough for them to find out what’s killing him.

I mentioned to the vet that his one staple and many stitches could come out today and the vet said “I like to see surgery patients for a follow up to make sure they’re doing well.”

I replied, “Well we already know he’s not doing well, right? So you don’t really need to see him again.”

I don’t want to drag him back to the vet anymore. He’s had enough of them. So I removed the staple and some stitches myself. I left 2 stitches for another day or so… they didn’t look quite ready to come out. Kozmo had a great time splashing in the pond tonight and ate some extra corn treats as well as his normal duck crumble dinner.

He seemed happy as could be this evening, and didn’t even want me to preen his face for him because he wanted to do it himself. I feel like I’m kind of dragging out his long goodbye… but I don’t want to see him go yet. He’s not in pain right now and he seems pretty happy. So while it may be sad to see him go soon, let’s all try to enjoy the time we have left with him, okay? We’ll save the goodbyes for another day.

Corn treats all around. And three cheers for Kozzy.

on borrowed time, originally uploaded by tifotter.

Well, Kozmo is home with us tonight. His biopsy/tissue samples have been sent off to the lab for analysis.

He does have a huge mass. We’ve known that since the last x-rays. It is completely displacing his small intestines and growing up into where his lungs should be as well.

When I dropped him off for surgery this morning, I left a note with him that said “If you can remove the mass without killing him, do it. If you’re not confident it can be removed without killing him, just take the biopsy and close him back up. I want to take home a live duck tonight. I won’t discuss euthanasia today.”

When the surgery vet called, he said “I would have tried to take out the mass, but you wrote on the paper that you wanted a live duck back today, and taking it out could very well kill him. I would have euthanized any other duck in this condition today, but I know you want him home.”

So… Kozmo Kirby is on borrowed time.

We’ll see if this 2nd biopsy shows something that would be worth trying to remove. Even if it does, that surgery could kill him. He hasn’t lost much weight at all in the past two weeks, and yesterday he was having fun swimming in the pool, all on his own.

So for now, Kozmo will just be home. Today’s biopsy was harder for him than the last one. Hopefully he will bounce back from it like he did two weeks ago. If he does, his long-term prognosis isn’t good, but he could be comfortable and hang out with us for awhile. I’ve spoken with several people about when to euthanize a pet duck. I always thought if a duck of mine became immobile I would euthanize them immediately. But Kozmo… he seems happy, even though he can’t walk. He likes splashing in the pool and hanging out with the other ducks. He likes his treats and preening in the sunshine.

So for now, he stays. If Kozmo develops keel sores from lying on the ground all the time, or if he is otherwise in pain from his tumors, that will be his time to go. But as long as he is pain-free and seems happy, he will be with us.

Thanks for all the well-wishes and support. I know Kozzy appreciates them and I do too. I’m sorry the news isn’t better. We’re thankful for the borrowed time.

Kozzy in the Grass, originally uploaded by tifotter.

Kozzy is doing pretty well. He can’t walk, and there are still questions about his diagnosis, but he’s hanging in there. He may go in for another biopsy next Friday. They’ve offered to re-do it for free, because the samples they took were inconclusive. Kozmo and I are talking it over. We only want to do it again if there’s a chance it can offer him something new. We don’t want to do it just to satisfy anyone’s curiosity. The biopsy is tentatively scheduled for Friday, June 27th.