is my duck gay? and broody duck question.

[dally]

clearly i'm new to ducks.

we just got a little call duck (daisy) as a friend for our female welsh harlequin (lily). they are both adults, and the little call duck was SUPPOSED to be a female. she tried to mate with lily the first week or so here, haven't noticed it since.

but now lily who lays eggs daily, has gone broody. is this timing coincidence or do ducks somehow "know" when eggs are fertilized. if not, is it normal for females to try to mate with others? we just have the 2 ducks.

thanks for any advice.

 

[tonini3059]

She could have been asserting her dominance...mine have done that and they are just fine and produce fertile eggs and are not gay.

ETA: Did you crack one of the eggs open to see if it was fertile and how old is the call duck and does it have curly tail feathers?

 

[Dances with Ducks]

Last night I was looking at a UK site for Welsh Harlequins information that said if they are kept in pairs or trios will they go broody. I'm not sure if it is fertilized eggs, or the presence of the male (and apparantly in the right ratio).
On the other hand it is common for female ducks to mount each other as they first work out their social heirarchy, and it is also very normal for hens to lay eggs without the presence of a drake.

 

[Dances with Ducks]

What kind of broody behavior are you seeing?

 

[dally]

call duck is 2yrs old, no curly tail feathers, and does quack. LOUD!

so if that's normal for females to attain status, i'll assume she is a girl then.

just the breeder was very adamant i should get a male (i wanted a female), which is why i thought he may have told me the wrong sex. oh, and that she doesn't lay eggs, but we've only had her a few weeks, and i know calls don't lay much.

lily was never broody with her previous best friend (dally). and by broody, i normally let them out of their house in the am, and take the egg. this am she wouldn't leave, and hissed at me when i tried to make her.

she's only on one egg (laid overnight). how long until you can tell wether it's fertilized?

 

[Dances with Ducks]

That does sound like a broody hen! Look for the bulls-eye on the yolk. I think you will see it already.

 

[tonini3059]

yeah it should be there already