lots of pekin questions

[spyshot]

i have raised up two pekin ducks since they were chicks on my 3/4 acre pond. recently someone gave me 4 more. the first two are males and hatched around 4/1/13 and the other 4 i'm not sure of but they seam a little smaller and from what i've read, i have a couple females. i'm interested in gathering the eggs to eat but i have questions. i see that they won't lay until they're around 6 months old, but when they do...

how do i know if an egg is fertilized or not?

will they roost on the egg even if it is not fertilized?

do ducks mate only one time a year?

if it is fertilized and i gather them daily and put them in the fridge, will i even notice if one was fertilized anyway?

thanks for your help on this.
adam

 

[Miss Lydia]

i have raised up two pekin ducks since they were chicks on my 3/4 acre pond. recently someone gave me 4 more. the first two are males and hatched around 4/1/13 and the other 4 i'm not sure of but they seam a little smaller and from what i've read, i have a couple females. i'm interested in gathering the eggs to eat but i have questions. i see that they won't lay until they're around 6 months old, but when they do...

how do i know if an egg is fertilized or not?

will they roost on the egg even if it is not fertilized?

do ducks mate only one time a year?

if it is fertilized and i gather them daily and put them in the fridge, will i even notice if one was fertilized anyway?

thanks for your help on this.
adam

I am thinking you'll get all your questions answered right here https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/742668/pekin-duck-club

 

[Haunted55]

i have raised up two pekin ducks since they were chicks on my 3/4 acre pond. recently someone gave me 4 more. the first two are males and hatched around 4/1/13 and the other 4 i'm not sure of but they seam a little smaller and from what i've read, i have a couple females. i'm interested in gathering the eggs to eat but i have questions. i see that they won't lay until they're around 6 months old, but when they do...

how do i know if an egg is fertilized or not?
You don't really, all you can do is guess. If you see them mating, then chances are good that at least some will be fertile.

will they roost on the egg even if it is not fertilized?
Not all Pekin ducks will go broody. I have one who is constantly doing so and another who is on again and off again. It depends on the duck and how she feels.

do ducks mate only one time a year?
Pekins? Uh....no. Pekins are to my mind the most sexually active of all the ducks I have. I will see a bit of a slow down in the late Fall, but they never really stop.

if it is fertilized and i gather them daily and put them in the fridge, will i even notice if one was fertilized anyway?
Not really. I've never been able to tell at least. Some will tell you the blood spots you sometimes see are proof that the egg was fertile. This is just not true. This is usually a sign that the duck is being over bred or that something else may be going on.

thanks for your help on this.
adam