MALLARD THREAD...not rouens, Mallards!

[tracyjg]

No dog house is just for ducks.

 

[NathanZee]

we have had them since they were babies. We move there pen twice a week. In process of making bigger pen.im worried they will fly away we live close to a river and duck hunters. They have got out before and we got them out Alot during the winter on cold nights and brought them in. They are my babies my girl started sitting a week ago and my boy is so lonely this is her first time and I don't know what to expect? We did get two pekin ducklings they are 4 wk old now.

Since they were raised on your place, I would doubt they would leave permanently. They might go to the river occasionally, but would return. If you want to be sure they can't leave, you could clip their wings so they could be outside and you wouldn't have to worry. But remember with clipped wings they are more vulnerable to predators.

As for your hen, is she getting out of the nest every day to eat, drink, and bathe?

Has your drake bonded with the ducklings yet?

 

[Kroelies]

Today is day 5 of incubation. Of course I couldn't wait to candle them and I didn't see any veins, the eggs do have a red blob in them that's about one third of the egg size. Now I'm worried

 

[Kroelies]

I checked again because and I am not seeing any veins in the egg, just clear on the bottom and orange on the top

 

[buff goose guy]

aww im sorry

 

[Kroelies]

There should have been something by now, right? They are 4 and a half day in the incubator. I really wanted babies from my Eduard ...

 

[buff goose guy]

i don't usually candel till day 14 so i can be like 100% sure that if i see veins they are veins and if there is nothing they are probably duds, but at 7 days you should definitely see something if anything was in there though.

 

[Kroelies]

I will keep them in the incubator but I don't have much hope. They are the first eggs of Eduard and I'm not finding new ones (she must have made a nest)

 

[lovemy mallards]

Since they were raised on your place, I would doubt they would leave permanently. They might go to the river occasionally, but would return. If you want to be sure they can't leave, you could clip their wings so they could be outside and you wouldn't have to worry. But remember with clipped wings they are more vulnerable to predators. 

As for your hen, is she getting out of the nest every day to eat, drink, and bathe?

Has your drake bonded with the ducklings yet?

Yes she is getting out of her nest a couple times a day and I've never seen her act like she does now in the pool. But she's sitting on eggs no babies yet! I'm worried what I do when the babies hatch with my male?

 

[NathanZee]

Yes she is getting out of her nest a couple times a day and I've never seen her act like she does now in the pool. But she's sitting on eggs no babies yet! I'm worried what I do when the babies hatch with my male?

You mean she is bathing like crazy? That's good she is coming out, as long as she doesn't stay out too long. If you know what day they will hatch I would separate the drake, but let him see the hen and ducklings through a wire fence or something. If he shows no aggression let him in with them, but stay there for a while to make sure he doesn't harm them. Some drakes love ducklings and some don't.