Duck egg humidity question

[fowlmood]

I have a broody White Rock hen sitting on a variety of 5 duck eggs. She has been on them now for 14 days. I candled them at day 8 and saw veins so all seems to be going well. Should I do anything about the humidity issue? I figure mother nature always knows best, but she is a chicken, what will she know about duck eggs? I know plenty of hens have been used to hatch eggs other than their own, including duck eggs. I just never gave the humidity issue a thought before. What do you think?

 

[asher]

I know a few people that I gave duck eggs to gave them to their chickens to brood and they had no problems at all. Not sure how, but they are way better at it than we are! hehe Good luck!

 

[fowlmood]

Thanks asher. I guess I just needed some reassurance of that. I'd like to believe that the birds really do know more about hatching eggs than I do!

 

[bock]

What is the humidity outside???

 

[fowlmood]

It's been unusually dry here for spring. Although it's still cold and there is still some snow on the ground in places, the fire danger is extremely high because we've had no rain and lots of wind. If it continues to stay dry should I be concerned?

 

[fowlmood]

Since my post dropped like a rock and I have a little over a week before hatching I would like to see if anyone else has any thoughts on this.

I have read where you are supposed to mist the eggs if a chicken is setting them. Unfortunatly the article I read didn't give any other information on that. I would appreciate any advice, thank you.

(P.S., I know it's spring and a lot of people have incubation questions---good luck everyone!)

 

[LillyBantam]

I am interested in how your duck eggs hatched in the end? My hen is sitting on 3 eggs, I have dabbed them with water on a couple of days as someone told me that the mother duck is naturally wet from the pond and so ducklings need higher humidity... but I figured mother duck might not swim is she is sitting. So do I need to continue with water? I don't want my hen to get a damp bottom, after all, she is a land bird not a water bird.

thanks. Wendy x

 

[3forfree]

I would just leave them alone, the chicken doesn't know it's sitting on duck eggs and the ducks don't know that a chicken is sitting on them so let them be. Over the years chickens and ducks and everything else that hatches from an egg have been doing a pretty good job not worring about temps and humidity, they just do what they do. Any pics?