Duck Egg Laying Dilemma

[SeasideDuckMan]

Hi all-

As some of you may know, i have 6 ducks (3 males 3 females)... I keep them at the local lake... They are very well fed, and very healthy. Last summer, my female cayuga started to lay eggs...i kept some eggs before she went broody and one baby hatched. my neighbor and i had built a house for her....To make a long story short, after she was eaten by a possum, i moved the house to the lake in hopes that my ducks would lay eggs in it in spring....

A few weeks ago, they started laying eggs. However, they are laying eggs in the shallow water around the island on the lake. I have been putting the eggs from the water in the house. they have shown interest in both the house and the eggs i am putting in the house, but everyday i find eggs in the water! i was hoping that one of the girls would go broody in the house but that wont happen until they start laying eggs in the house.

Any suggestions? i would really like to encourage them to lay ina certain area but so far i am not having any luck.

Alex

 

[cassidy22]

I wish I knew! Mine were laying in their coop, until the pond melted for the spring, and now that they have a pond to swim in, they lay on the edge of it, and I think they are laying some so close, they are rolling in and sinking. I would LOVE if someone had ideas on how to convince a duck to lay someplace specific!

 

[jdywntr]

If you don't have a house that they are confined in, it is unlikely that they will just use an open shelter. And unfortunately, if they are not housed at night, you will continue to lose them to predators.