Mandarin ducks always impress with their bright colors and calm nature. But in nature, they are completely defenseless against predators. Reynaldo Grivol, an employee of a park in São Paulo, Brazil, once noticed a bird floundering helplessly in the water, unable to find food. When he caught it, he was horrified to see that the duck had no feet.
Instead of webbed feet, it had bleeding stumps. Apparently, the bird had been attacked by a predator — possibly a fish or an otter — which had torn off its feet while it was still alive. Reinaldo took the injured duck to veterinarian Vilma Pinatti. It was not difficult to heal the wounds, but how could it live without feet? In the wild or even on a farm, the bird would be doomed.
So the veterinarian decided to make prosthetic feet for it. She turned to a friend, a specialist in dental prosthetics, for advice. They needed to come up with a lightweight, durable, and waterproof design that would mimic feet and allow the duck to not only swim but also walk. Silicone resin, which is safe for living tissue, was chosen as the base, and the prostheses themselves were made in the shape of boots with webbed feet. They were painted yellow for brightness.
The installation took about 40 minutes. To the surprise of the doctors, the duck quickly got used to them: she was not afraid and almost immediately began to run on her new “feet.” There is still a period of rehabilitation ahead, but experts are confident that the mandarin duck has a chance to return to a full life. In the meantime, everyone is delighted with her new look — the little duck in bright yellow boots has become a symbol of hope and care.
