Laid egg in her swimming water?!

[lilstar]

Is that.. normal? my ducks are young. I have 2 and it may just be one who is laying. I have gotten one egg a day for the last week. This egg was either from this morning or yesterday morning, I can't be certain. I change the water about every other day. Some days the egg has just been sitting next to the pool, other days its been a foot or two back in a little nest area they made. I didn't see one yesterday. Course, I didn't check the pool! It was a little murky yesterday, but could see the bottom. I found an egg this morning when I changed the water. Anyway, two part question I guess. Is that really strange to lay an egg in the water? And, is it still safe to eat if it was potentially bathing in pooped-in water for 24+ hours? (Though it might have only been 6-7 hours)

 

[Kevin565]

1. It's normal for some ducks.

2.If it's been in pooped in water I would NOT eat it.

 

[70%cocoa]

Yeah, ditto to what Kevin said! Since eggs are porous they fairly quickly start to draw in water from the pool. If you crack the egg you may find that it is watery-er than your normal eggs because of the pond water that it's absorbed.

Ducks are so careless with their eggs sometimes

You can try leaving some eggs in the nest area for a bit to see if they get the idea. Do you have a nice, cosy place for them to lay in?

 

[fastrnrik]

Our duck are in a large pond, and I find eggs in the waters edge, usually a few inches deep, all the time. We find eggs everywhere LOL

 

[NovaAman]

If you can pinpoint the laying time, maybe you could have the girls cooped up during those times, with a nest box full of straw. When I had ducks, they'd always lay early enough in the morning. I never let them out till 9, and they were done laying by then... Only one time did I actually find an egg in the duck run during the 6 months that I had them...

 

[CelticOaksFarm]

You can also build and offer field nest boxes with golf balls and fake eggs in them to encourage laying out of the pool.

 

[Blondiega1]

Our duck are in a large pond, and I find eggs in the waters edge, usually a few inches deep, all the time. We find eggs everywhere LOL

Mine are the same way.
They free range on our 5 acre lake.
I go out every morning between 7am-7:30am and I'll find one, sometimes two eggs, pretty much in the same spot every time, about one step in to the lake under a few inches of water.
What I find amusing is that my two girls lay their eggs in the same area their temporary pen was when they were younger.
There's no pen there now, but I suppose they still consider that area their "home base".

 

[fastrnrik]

Quote:
Same here. Our pond is about 2 acres and the ducks & geese free range in it, but the usually lay their eggs in the same general area every day.

 

[Habibs Hens]

You can also build and offer field nest boxes with golf balls and fake eggs in them to encourage laying out of the pool.

when you say field nest boxes do you mean boxes where the ducks can go into dotted around the pasture

 

[CelticOaksFarm]

Yes, three side, sloped roof for rain run off. Nothing fancy boxes. Or plastic dog houses.