If my rouen hen JUST started to lay eggs (seems like one every day), how long and how many eggs will she produce? I'm curious if ducks are like chickens in that sense? Chickens lay all the time, but will ducks only do it during the "season"? We do have a drake, and I don't wish to have more ducks, so I've just been removing each egg. We haven't eaten any yet, but plan to......I was told that they won't show signs of fertilization if she's not sitting on them.
Hi, BarneyChick. Domestic Ducks, like all other domestic animals, have different breeds for different purposes. There are some breeds (Campbells, Harlequins, and Runners, Golden 300's) which lay almost year round, taking just a short break for molting and during the very darkest days. There are multi-purpose breeds which lay well during the season, but take a longer break over the dark months. Then there are meat breeds, which lay sparsely over a relatively short season. Rouens are a heavy-weight multi-purpose duck. According to Dave Metzer, of Metzer farms, Rouen ducks lay, on average, between 140 and 180 eggs a year. http://www.metzerfarms.com/DuckBreedComparison.cfm?CustID=650192. His numbers are based on experience with birds at his hatchery. Your experiences may run a bit lower, depending on feed quality and light supplementation. Good luck, and have fun! Tahai
I have 3 rouen hens and 4 mallard hens. One of the mallards and one of the rouens have not came to the roost pen in about a week. I am suspecting they both are sitting nests in the grownup field next to the pond. The 5 hens that are returning daily to the pen are laying an egg each just before I turn them out in the morning. I feed 22% gamebird finisher and cracked corn in the pen then they are foraging for worms, grubs, seeds and whatever they are finding in the pond bottom. The pond does get covered with duckweed when the weather warms and has some still on it during the winter. I have got to sell some eggs. I don't want to deal with the incubator and brooder til late next month.
