Sorry we just now got this email. Unfortunately, many things could be wrong with the cygnet and he needs to get to a vet as soon as possible. If he sprained his leg, he is going to need weeks of recuperative and daily care by you or someone else. If a swan cannot stand due to a leg injury, the prognosis is not good. Having said this, if it is a mild sprain, with rest and care, he can recover. If something bit his foot or he has something embedded in his foot, this could be a cause for not being able to stand. In any case, the parents are not going to readily accept him whether you take him to the vet or not. In Nature, if young cannot keep up with the family, the young will either be abandoned or killed by the parents so that the rest of the family is not followed by predators, etc.

Having the cygnet nearby will only cause great stress to the parents, the sibling and the cygnet. Get him away from the parents so that they will worry about the remaining sibling and continue to watch it. Swan parents will usually sleep in the water, but with young, the young will drown overnight because they do not have the feathers to remain water repellent so the parents will keep them out of the water overnight. This is why we strongly suggest a pen (half on water and half on land, covered with fencing under and above to prevent predator access and a feeder inside). The young can be raised to a good size and then can be taken out onto the lake by the parents with less worry from predators or injury once they are much older (3-4 months of age).

Now, back to the cygnet. If the cause of standing is not a sprain or strain, but spraddle leg, vet care with taping the leg in place is an immediate concern. Spraddle leg can be fatal and surgery does not produce great results. We have unfortunately been placed in this situation and the prognosis was not good.

Other concerns are neurological due to infections especially aspergilliosis with results not good. The cygnet may not be able to stand and by this morning, you will see it listing to the side, unable to right itself and within a few hours it will succumb. This is unfortunately not something that is readily treatable and once again the prognosis is not good.

The other possibility is neurological due to malnutrition. If the swan is not getting enough vitamin A (cracked corn or other yellow grain), the inability to remain stable, upright, walk or stand can be the result. If given proper and quick nutritional care, this may be reversible. Because we do not have the opportunity to check the young cygnet for injuries or infection, it is imperative that you get it to a veterinarian as soon as possible. Please let us know how it is doing. Hopefully, it is a mild sprain, but this means that you will now become the swan parent until it can be raised to about 6 months of age to be released onto a pond. However, once raised by humans, the swan will need to be placed in a habitat that it will not be too trusting to other humans or domesticated pets. Otherwise, it will go up to anyone or anything which is not good for its survival. The Regal Swan