Indian runner female problem

[websteranddaisysmomma]

Hi! We have a female and male indian runner. They are both 6 months old. She had started laying for the first time near the end of summer. We were taking the eggs because she seemed to have no interest. However, lately she has been sitting on them. We do not think they are fertilized because we have been candling. She has recently become very quiet. My husband is worried that she is spending too much time sitting on them and in the coop and not out drinking and eating and is becoming malnourished. Can this happen? Should we just take the eggs away from her so she isn't distracted? Thanks!

 

[Loopeend]

Hi!

Some of my female Indian runners keep laying on their eggs if you do not remove them. Not because they are brooding; but because the eggs just lay where they want to sleep/sit.

A brooding Indian runner often has made a nest. With feathers and twigs and all sorts of stuff she can find. And really lays on it 24/7. Spurting out only to do cleaning/drinking/eating in a hurry while she thinks noones watching.

She could just feel not so good, feel weird because she just started laying, the weather may have changed. She is young and just becoming fertile can be weird and chaotic for a duck. If the male just became an adult too and fertile; that could be different too then before.

I would remove the eggs daily. Feed her more snacks. Keep an eye out.

And get more females. 1 female is too little. It can be too heavy to live with 1 horney man for a female ducks. Sometimes even deadly. She might be scared to get out because he is keeping her there with his behaviour.

I do not know where you live; but full mating and breeding season often fully starts the next spring. Allthough they start laying at 4 or 6 or 8 months; the first before the first spring when becoming an adult are often "light".

She might just being reacting to all those changes. Taking away the eggs daily is never a problem though.

Good luck!

 

[Beaglegal]

Hi! We have a female and male indian runner. They are both 6 months old. She had started laying for the first time near the end of summer. We were taking the eggs because she seemed to have no interest. However, lately she has been sitting on them. We do not think they are fertilized because we have been candling. She has recently become very quiet. My husband is worried that she is spending too much time sitting on them and in the coop and not out drinking and eating and is becoming malnourished. Can this happen? Should we just take the eggs away from her so she isn't distracted? Thanks!

How long has she been sitting? I had a broody Cayuga sit on an empty nest for over a month before she finally gave up. I chased her off the nest daily and she would go get water and food. She eventually worked it out in her own

 

[websteranddaisysmomma]

How long has she been sitting? I had a broody Cayuga sit on an empty nest for over a month before she finally gave up. I chased her off the nest daily and she would go get water and food. She eventually worked it out in her own

She had been sitting on it for about the same. We took the eggs and she is doing much better. We think she was prioritizing sitting on the eggs over going outside to get food and water.

 

[Loopeend]

She had been sitting on it for about the same. We took the eggs and she is doing much better. We think she was prioritizing sitting on the eggs over going outside to get food and water.

Good to hear that your duck is doing better!