Duck laying 2 eggs per day

[KCNC06]

I'm hoping this is an issue that will resolve itself but... figured I'd ask about it. One of my girls, Pipsqueak, started laying January 27. She hatched September 19 so she was just over 4 months when she started laying which seemed a smidge early, her older sister Bill Bill was 5 months old when she started laying. Anyway, back to Pipsqueak. Her first few eggs were small but I didn't think anything of that because she was young and just started laying. After about a week Pip's eggs were the same size as Bill's. Both girls have laid an egg every morning since they started laying. Bill actually laid two her first day, the second was a soft shelled egg, but since then it's a normal egg every morning. Over the past 2.5-ish weeks Pips has laid two eggs in one day 4 or 5 times. The second one is always soft shelled. She lays them almost exactly 12 hrs apart and they're smaller than normal eggs. The fact that they're smaller and have softer shells hasn't surprised me since she's laying them 12 hrs early. If I'm remembering correctly, there's usually a few days in between when she has a double egg day but now it's happened two days in a row and her egg this morning had a soft shell too. Well, nope, now she just laid another one. She laid two soft shelled eggs this evening, about 30 minutes apart. She has access to oyster shell 24/7...but I don't really think calcium is the issue since her eggs shells are nice and hard on days when she only lays one. It's these "bonus" eggs that are soft. I don't understand why she would be laying so many eggs in one day. I mean... she's up to 3 today! She doesn't seem to be in any sort of pain. Her vent area is nice and clean. Her belly doesn't feel weird, not hard or anything. She's just...the opposite of egg bound? She's been laying for almost a month, seems the links should be worked out by now doesn't it? I don't know. I worry about my babies. Anyway. She hatched from my white layer adults last fall so she's...white layer offspring. Not sure if her breed matters but I thought I'd go ahead and mention it.

Any thoughts on what could cause eggs to come so quickly?

Thanks!

 

[Miss Lydia]

Sounds like she’s having reproduction problems. Which can happen in these heavy layers. I don’t know if there is anything you can do. @casportpony May know

 

[CoriM]

Maybe just give it a little time. One of my pekins laid a hard and soft-shelled both on the same day several times also when they were starting up laying - the soft one would be totally random places and times. Now, a few months into it, I just get the one hard egg in the morning. I hope it settles down for your girl as well!

 

[Miss Lydia]

That’s great. @CoriM

 

[KCNC06]

So, is there a "normal" amount of time it usually takes for their hormones to balance out? She's getting close to the end of her first month of laying. Maybe she just needs a little more time? I'm guessing it's likely different from duck to duck. I know it's different from person to person even with sisters (or it was with me and my sisters anyway), so it makes sense ducks would be different.
Pips "cries" about her morning egg, but doesn't seem to even notice the extra eggs when they fall out. The first extra egg she laid today, she was standing by the water bowl and turned around, saw the egg and tapped it with her bill like she was trying to figure out what it was. The morning "crying" is probably just her egg song...so I'm told. It started because she wanted to lay her egg in Bill's nest but Bill won't share. She used to cry about it from about 4:45 until around 7:00...every morning. Now she just cries for a few minutes. Her eggs are very clean, no blood or poo ever, so I don't think she's really crying...just complaining. Or announcing.

 

[KCNC06]

I was starting to relax a bit about Pipsqueak's extra eggs, after laying 3 last Sunday she went back to being regular all week. Only one egg per day. Until yesterday. She laid 2 eggs yesterday and 3 today. Today was the same as last Sunday. She dropped her second egg around 5:45 and the third about 30 minutes later.

If this continues, is this something I should be concerned about? Will it hurt her or cause health problems? She doesn't seem bothered by it. She's not losing weight or anything. The shells are just soft with so many eggs coming so close together so I'm trying to make sure she's getting plenty of calcium. I figure having a shell break on its way out would be bad. I'm just not sure what else to do for her.

 

[Miss Lydia]

It definitely sounds like reproductive problems. I am not sure if there is anything you can do. Has she taken a break at all from egg laying?

 

[KCNC06]

She didn't lay an egg on Monday last week, so the day after laying 3. Hopefully she won't lay any tomorrow. She actually seems a little happier after dropping the extra eggs. Like maybe she felt a little egg bloated before she let them all out. She also doesn't seem like she even noticed the extra eggs when they plop out. The one yesterday looked like it fell out as she was walking behind the couch on the way to her water. Then tonight, she dropped one in the middle of the livingroom floor and the other in the water dish.
Bill Bill also lays an egg every day, no breaks since she started the day before Thanksgiving. But Bill hasn't had extra egg issues like this.

 

[Miss Lydia]

That’s amazing when my Runner laid the soft shell she acted lethargic and hung out by herself half the day till she laid it. Your making sure she’s getting the oyster shell only other thing would be adding some calcium citrate but that isn’t going to stop her from laying the extra eggs I am at a loss. @casportpony ever had this with any of your females?

 

[KCNC06]

Yeah, I do give them a crushed calcium pill mixed in their food just to make sure she's getting enough calcium. She doesn't always seem interested in the oyster shell bowl. They have 2 bowls of oyster shell. One in the kitchen and one in the bathroom so they can get to it at night. They also get shells from chicken eggs.
The extra egg thing seems to be increasing I guess. The first 3 weeks she laid one extra egg each week, now she's up to 3 extras. She definitely doesn't seem bothered by it though.