How do i know if my Muscovy eggs are still alive?

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Brookenheil

Brookenheil

In the Brooder
Aug 14, 2015
20
0
35
Vancouver, WA
We have had one of our Muscovies sitting on a nest of around 7 eggs for 35 days. I know the time might be off by 1-3 days since I was not watching her 24/7 to see when she started sitting full time. I candled some of them a couple of weeks ago and saw veins and movement in one for sure. My question is how do I know if they are still alive? If they are dead, I would really like to remove them and start another hen on some eggs.
 
Last edited:
Amiga said:
Can you sneak over with the light when she takes a potty break? @Miss Lydia may have some ideas.
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That is exactly what i do I take a basket with me and take a few out at a time candle mark with pencil so I know which ones I have candled and put them back if living then get the rest. It doesn't take long but I have to take the eggs to a dark room which is my feed room. I have also used a closet to candle.
 
I candled them last night and couldn't see much so this afternoon my husband and i water candled them. None of them moved and only one had an air pocket (floated). We then decided they must all have died so we cracked them open. All had ducklings in various stages of growth (2 even had feathers already), but none of them were moving and all of them stank so badly that our neighbors even smelled them. What could have happened? We did notice our drake 'kicking' our brooder out of her box so the last week and a half we have been keeping her in a secluded area away from him. Were we perhaps too late in giving her more privacy?
 
Brookenheil said:
I candled them last night and couldn't see much so this afternoon my husband and i water candled them. None of them moved and only one had an air pocket (floated). We then decided they must all have died so we cracked them open. All had ducklings in various stages of growth (2 even had feathers already), but none of them were moving and all of them stank so badly that our neighbors even smelled them. What could have happened? We did notice our drake 'kicking' our brooder out of her box so the last week and a half we have been keeping her in a secluded area away from him. Were we perhaps too late in giving her more privacy?
Click to expand...
Really hard to say what went wrong. But I doubt it was your drakes fault. I'd try and keep him from disturbing the females when they are on the nest though. I actually put a plastic step stool in front of the door where my broody is sitting she can easily go in and out He is way to large. I am sorry none made it, I am sure she'll try again if you give her a chance after she has recovered from sitting for so long.
 
So things have gone from bad to worse unfortunately. Our hen that had been brooding until we determined all of the eggs were dead has been acting a bit stressed (not surprising) the last 2 days since we took the eggs. This morning I noticed she has a large number of feathers missing on her back and around her oil gland. Not only that but she also is missing a couple of patches of skin that look like a feather was pulled out too roughly. I have searched the internet and found nothing that could tell me what this is. I don't know if perhaps she was fighting with the other hens and/or drake, if it's some kind of infection which also killed the eggs, or if she is doing it to herself because of stress and/or trying to build another nest (which I have found). We don't know if a vet around our area would even know about ducks so any help would be appreciated. We just really don't want to spread something to our other fowl.
 

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