muscovy ducks

[shinalee]

I have 2 mathmoth muscovy ducks and a muscovy drake they are over a year old but have not laid an egg!! What are the best boxes to use to encourage them too lay? I have a plastic dog basket with shreeded paper but they use it too sleep in. Can I have chooks and ducks running together they are free range.

 

[houndit]

Chickens and ducks can run together. Just make sure that the chickens do not attack the Muscovies. Our Muscovies prefer above all else, our chicken nest boxes. Especially the high ones.

They just fly up and build a nest. Are you sure they are not hiding their eggs?

 

[goosedragon]

Quote:
I suspect (because you used the term 'chooks')that you are down under in Australia? If I am mistaken and you are in the USA be advised that muscovies like to lay in warmer temperatures. Without being insulting I have to ask if you are sure your "mathmoth" ducks are in fact females? the female muscovy is usually only about 60% of the size of the drakes and would not be considered by most as being VERY large. If they are all drakes there will be no eggs! Yes you can run muscovies with chickens, when we added them to our chicken flock they claimed the higest roosts and the upper nest boxes for their eggs. (in the wild they roost in trees and like hollow trees or woodpecker holes for their nests.) When free ranged the females are famous for their nest hiding. A duck would come up missing only to appear 5 weeks later with a whole mess of ducklings following her. Good luck and if you are down under are you having a hot summer?

 

[lovesduckies]

muscovy females also don't have as much crauncling (? sp) as males. i have a pair of muscovies. my drake was a few days younger than my duck, so he was smaller than her, one day i woke up and he was huge!!!! i knew then for sure i had a pair. it's not hard to tell them apart when they are fill grown. as for laying, i can't answer lol. these are my first two. i don't even know when crauncling starts but i can see a bit on red in their faces!!!! i don't even know how old they start laying. i guess it depends on the weather? i have read tons of stories about mussies hiding nests and showing up with babies. good luck!!