my ducks won't lay eggs??? PLEASE HELP!

[DUCKGIRL89]

Well im planing on making this big pen for mine so when they lay eggs I can get them. Plus im getting 6 new ones and I need them in a pen so my dog doesn't get anymore.

 

[jdchickens125]

I got an 18month old duck off a friend he has always lived with chickens , I have filled up a big wooden box with a lining and filled it with water but he isnt interested he has a bucket and constantly dips his head in and drinks well. Could someone please help me with my duck , hes a big female duck white with an orange beak. Im not sure what breed she is. Thanks john.

 

[Amiga]

Sounds like a Pekin.

Does he or she quack loudly, or have a quiet voice?

Ducks don't always take to a nest, so don't worry about that part. What are you feeding the duck? Are you in the northern hemisphere (where it is now winter) or southern hemisphere (summer)?

 

[jdchickens125]

Im in warrington in england . Yes its now winter he actually goes in a big wooden shed at nights with the chickens he does have a loud quak. He eats corn layers pellets and dried meal worm as a treat. He seems happy but just wont swim. ?

 

[jdchickens125]

Im new to having chickens and ducks. Any help will be great

 

[Amiga]

Well, I can offer some guesses.

We have some different terms and types of feed where I live. Are corn layers pellets all corn, or half corn and half other materials? The treats sound good.

Seems to me based on reading and experience with my flock, that individual ducks have slightly different nutritional needs. A few of my ducks have had trouble getting enough calcium or using it efficiently. Some ducks are very sensitive to low niacin levels. Those are just two examples.

So If I were you, I would get some poultry vitamins with electrolytes and probiotics, and a source of free choice calcium (crushed oyster shell, some use clean ground egg shells) and try to boost the levels of major nutrients a layer would need.

Also, low grade infections can affect laying. Extreme cold, parasites, all take a toll on a duck's health.

I found my runners did not do well at all in temperatures below freezing. Once I got them into a shelter that stayed above 40F, they started laying again. I had thought it was the short daylight, but it is a number of factors.

From what I have read here on the forum, some ducks just take their sweet time before they lay. You might find a dummy egg (wooden ones are nice) and place it in a corner of the shelter with some bedding fluffed up around it to see if she will respond to that.

 

[Backyard Munith]

It took my Pekin ducks around 24 weeks to start laying.

 

[chicknluverr]

i have white pekin 2 hens 1 drake first they layed any where because they couldnt find a nest the drake usuall helps the hen like when you see a hen leave with a drake o a spot its propably looking for a nest l

 

[jdchickens125]

My duck has laid this morning fantastic over the moon with her lovely big egg.

 

[Amiga]

My duck has laid this morning fantastic over the moon with her lovely big egg.