6 months young broody Muscovy - not sure what to do

[Tatiana110]

A question for Muscovy keepers. Actually quite a few questions, LOL, as I am new to Muscovy!

I have 6 months old Muscovy hen, who started to lay eggs recently. I first took a few eggs, checked fertility, and they are fertile. So I left the rest in the nest, hoping she'd set. She laid 20 eggs so far, and seemed to set. But she continues to lay an egg every morning. I do not have any other ducks laying, so I know that's her! She is the smallest duck, so I am worried if she is able to cover this many eggs!

Is this normal for a Muscovy to set and continue laying? What should I do with the new eggs? Would not they be late to hatch? I marked each egg with the date, so I know which ones are new.

Some of the eggs are old, the oldest being from Sept 26. Are these too old to hatch successfully?

Another question is the time of the year. It looks like if she is successful, she will hatch by the end of November. Not the ideal weather, it will be cold and very rainy here. Are the ducklings going to be OK?

Thank you for your help!

 

[nchls school]

A question for Muscovy keepers. Actually quite a few questions, LOL, as I am new to Muscovy!

I have 6 months old Muscovy hen, who started to lay eggs recently. I first took a few eggs, checked fertility, and they are fertile. So I left the rest in the nest, hoping she'd set. She laid 20 eggs so far, and seemed to set. But she continues to lay an egg every morning. I do not have any other ducks laying, so I know that's her!  She is the smallest duck, so I am worried if she is able to cover this many eggs! 12 or less eggs would give a better hatch. If a hen can not cover all the eggs some will get chilled and each day more of the eggs will die in the shell.

Is this normal for a Muscovy to set and continue laying? No. What should I do with the new eggs? Would not they be late to hatch? I marked each egg with the date, so I know which ones are new.

Some of the eggs are old, the oldest being from Sept 26. Are these too old to hatch successfully? For the best success use eggs two weeks or less.

Another question is the time of the year. It looks like if she is successful, she will hatch by the end of November. Not the ideal weather, it will be cold and very rainy here. Are the ducklings going to be OK? You will need to provide a warmer environment. My advice is to not allow her to hatch ducklings if you do not have a warm place to keep them. Consider waiting until spring.

Thank you for your help! 

 

[Tatiana110]

thank you!

Should I wait for a few days, candle the eggs, and remove the ones that do not seem to develop? (Having said that, I have no idea how easy or difficult to candle Muscovy eggs)

 

[nchls school]

thank you!

Should I wait for a few days, candle the eggs, and remove the ones that do not seem to develop? (Having said that, I have no idea how easy or difficult to candle Muscovy eggs)

Yes. If you leave that many eggs, by the time the five week incubation period is done most, or all, the eggs will have become chilled at some point killing the embryo. When I had muscovies they laid white eggs that were easy to candle. You might want to mark the good eggs with a pencil so that if any more new eggs are added to the nest you will know which ones to remove without having to candle them.