Incubating & hatching Call Ducks

[Marty81]

Hi all, this is my first post and hoping for some advice on incubating/hatching.

I'm having a lot of trouble with hatching call ducks

I have hatched lots of chickens, quail, guineas but the times i have tried to hatch call ducks I have limited success/total failure. Generally all seems to go well until lockdown. My last attempt I could hear cheeping on day 26 and ended up with a total failure. I opened the eggs and the ducklings are fully formed but hadn't internally pipped. I have a Janoel 24 which i have used a few times and hatch 1 or 2 out of a dozen, also a new borotto with humidity controller.

I have tried different humidity and temp that i read on the internet but nothing seems to work.

thanks in advance
Marty

 

[WVduckchick]

Call duck hatching is definitely a challenge. More so with higher show quality ducklings because they have such short necks and bills, it causes them trouble making a pip.

Mine are more pet quality, so I’ve had pretty good luck, but they still often need assistance. My recommendation is to watch closely for drawdown, then for internal pips. Once they break thru the membrane, I give them about 18 hours to break the shell. If they don’t, I proceed with a tiny safe hole to allow for extra air. I watch for a few more hours for shell breakage. If that doesn’t happen, I slowly start assisting. The key to assisting is to not rush it. Make a big enough hole to moisten the membrane (I prefer Vaseline) and wait. Watch for veins to recede and wait. Peel some membrane around the head and wait. Slow progress.
Check out this article for more details:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/guide-to-assisted-hatching-for-all-poultry.72886/

 

[nchls school]

Hi all, this is my first post and hoping for some advice on incubating/hatching.

I'm having a lot of trouble with hatching call ducks

I have hatched lots of chickens, quail, guineas but the times i have tried to hatch call ducks I have limited success/total failure. Generally all seems to go well until lockdown. My last attempt I could hear cheeping on day 26 and ended up with a total failure. I opened the eggs and the ducklings are fully formed but hadn't internally pipped. I have a Janoel 24 which i have used a few times and hatch 1 or 2 out of a dozen, also a new borotto with humidity controller.

I have tried different humidity and temp that i read on the internet but nothing seems to work.

thanks in advance
Marty

Which state do you call home? I started, again, with ducks last spring. I got my start from shipped eggs from WVduckchick (Good morning WV) and had quite a few ducklings hatch. It does seem that the eggs are somewhat touchy with humidity. I'm in TN and the humidity is high. When I quit putting so much water in the 'bator I had better luck. I also quit spray/dampening the duck eggs right before they hatch. The eggs that DIS were filled with moisture when I open the eggs. I also have better luck hatching the eggs under bantams. As to short bills, I don't know. That may be the reason some ducklings have been unable to hatch. I did not know of the short bill issue until yesterday, so it will be something to read up on and be prepared for with my next Call hatch. Not internally pipping sounds, to me, to be a humidity problem. Even with short bills, duckling should at least be able to internally pip. Good luck with your next hatch!