Broody Duck

[96lexi]

I've had my ducks since late May of 2016. My female duck (Molly) had been laying eggs everyday since mid November. She has a total of 3 full nests. Will she be broody on her own or is there a way to help her become broody? Her partner (Duck Vader) lives in the coop with her and I've seen them mating almost every morning so her eggs must be fertilized. I have an incubator filled with 12 of her eggs but I can't seem to get them to hatch. Any advice?

 

[Pyxis]

Can you give us your incubator statistics? Like what kind, the temp, the humidity, etc? Have you actually cracked one open to check that they are really fertile? How long have the eggs been in the incubator? Have you been candling them? Do they start developing and then die or do they never start?

 

[chickens really]

Collect the eggs daily and put in an egg carton with one end of the carton up on a book and switch ends up and down 3 times a day.... Keep in a cool place...Once you have collected the desired amount of eggs put them in the incubator.....If the eggs have been laid and not turned regularly they die or rot.....

You can candle a Duck egg at 5 days......


Cheers!

 

[96lexi]

Can you give us your incubator statistics? Like what kind, the temp, the humidity, etc? Have you actually cracked one open to check that they are really fertile? How long have the eggs been in the incubator? Have you been candling them? Do they start developing and then die or do they never start?

I bought a fully automatic incubator. the temp is kept at 37.5 degrees celsius and the humidity is kept at a constant 56%. With the last batch of eggs I had in the incubator, I cracked one open and I saw no veining. My current batch of eggs have been in the incubator for 12 days. I candle them once every 2 days and have seen a few darkened yolks but no veins. So far, I haven't seen any real development in the eggs.

 

[Pyxis]

Sounds like they might not be fertile. Take a fresh one, crack it open, and look for a white spot on the yolk. If it just looks like a dot, it is not fertile. If you see a dot with a ring around it, giving the appearance of a bulls-eye, it it fertile. Perhaps your drake is not yet mating quite right, they can take some time to get it down correctly.

 

[chickens really]

How have the eggs been stored?......You need to collect and store eggs properly and turn them before they go in an incubator...Maybe you missed a step or two?

OOps also they need to be turned 3 to 4 times a day once in the incubator depending on the type you bought?

Cheers!

 

[chickens really]

I am very excited....I started Duck eggs under my Broody Chickens...My Oldest egg has a jumping Baby in it....My other eggs are fertile and the embryo are forming...Stupid Chickens, one decided to kick out 3 eggs so I broke the Broodiness and put my eggs in the incubator..........To cold here to deal with Hens....What breeds do you have?....Try eggs that are 5 to 10 days old to candle....




Cheers!