My ducks are laying eggs IN the pond

[phelpcd1]

My ducks that I got a few months ago are now laying eggs IN the pond. My husband and teen are getting them out and eating them.....I cannot bring myself to do that. It's a very large pond out in the woods so they spend majority of the time in it. How can I get them to lay eggs on the ground? We do feed them on the ground and have a large, nice coop but they don't use it - we also have a dog who sometimes chases them into the pond. And Q2 - how can we tell if they are safe to eat? Other than the obvious - cracks etc.

 

[Miss Lydia]

My ducks that I got a few months ago are now laying eggs IN the pond. My husband and teen are getting them out and eating them.....I cannot bring myself to do that. It's a very large pond out in the woods so they spend majority of the time in it. How can I get them to lay eggs on the ground? We do feed them on the ground and have a large, nice coop but they don't use it - we also have a dog who sometimes chases them into the pond. And Q2 - how can we tell if they are safe to eat? Other than the obvious - cracks etc.

First of all keep the dog away from your ducks or train it to leave them alone sooner or later the game will escalate to ducks being killed. I can understand why they lay in the pond now they don't feel safe on land. My ducks like a nice quite place to lay most of mine have already laid by the time I let them out of a morning usually around 7:30 this time of year, Mine are Muscovy so they haven't start to lay yet. but when they are laying they lay in their houses they feel safe there. If I was you I'd have my ducks locked up at night a duck has to be trained to go inside at night but they learn fast, but a duck will not sleep in a house that hasn't a door or the door doesn't get shut because they are prey and don't want to become a preds dinner. I would not eat eggs laid in water bacteria can seep through the shell and could make who ever eats it sick. Unless of course you were right there to get it as soon as it was laid but if it's been in the water for a while i wouldn't eat it.

 

[collingwood]

My ducks that I got a few months ago are now laying eggs IN the pond. My husband and teen are getting them out and eating them.....I cannot bring myself to do that. It's a very large pond out in the woods so they spend majority of the time in it. How can I get them to lay eggs on the ground? We do feed them on the ground and have a large, nice coop but they don't use it - we also have a dog who sometimes chases them into the pond. And Q2 - how can we tell if they are safe to eat? Other than the obvious - cracks etc.

I saw this thread and went outside and cleaned my pond and found an egg!

 

[Mrs.H]

I would also suggest keeping the dog away from them. My ducks are pretty skittish about everything even the slightest change in the run/house. I would create a safe place for them to lay and to be on land and give them time to realize that they are safe. But don't wait till they are use to the pond being a nesting area

 

[phelpcd1]

Well, yesterday and today, we found several eggs actually on the bank. We found a bunch that were obviously raided by racoons or something too. They are laying at night, which is odd because our dog is kenneled all day, and only runs loose at night. We actually took our old city chicken coop and turned it into a duck house, but the ducks don't go in it. I was feeding them in it, until we took in the dog. He doesn't bother them too much, but every now and then, he will chase them into the pond. I would love to get them to go into the duck house at night - it has doors obviously and they'd be safe, and might lay their eggs in there. How can I encourage them to go in at night?

 

[Mrs.H]

I had to herd mine in a couple nights in a row to get them to go in their house. Now when they see me coming every night they all run into the house. Other ppl use treats also peas etc to get them to go in.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Well, yesterday and today, we found several eggs actually on the bank. We found a bunch that were obviously raided by racoons or something too. They are laying at night, which is odd because our dog is kenneled all day, and only runs loose at night. We actually took our old city chicken coop and turned it into a duck house, but the ducks don't go in it. I was feeding them in it, until we took in the dog. He doesn't bother them too much, but every now and then, he will chase them into the pond. I would love to get them to go into the duck house at night - it has doors obviously and they'd be safe, and might lay their eggs in there. How can I encourage them to go in at night?

Ducks herd real well so what i do is use a long bamboo pole you can use broom handles mop handles etc, some use 2 I use one but you start behind them and slowly begin walking them where you want them to go, it's something that takes time to get down for you and the ducks so you might want to get help for the first week until the ducks figure out what you are wanting them to do they learn fast though but you have to move slowly they don't like to be hurried and may scatter if hurried. But herd them into their house use some kind of yummy treat to reward them once inside, only thing about giving them something to eat though is they always need water when eating so you might have to forget the treat unless you provide water. If the coop has fencing around it once inside the fence you could put snack down close to the door to their house then after they have had their reward for herding you could get them the rest of the way inside close the door make sure it's secured with bolt of somekind and say goodnight till morning. If you give them plenty of shaving or straw what ever you use most ducks will use this to lay their eggs in. I even help them out by placing a piece of scrap plywood up with screws so they can have a place to themselves to lay their eggs you can even just lean it up against the wall and secure just something for them to get under to lay. Just remeber to make this work you have to always be there to get them inside before dark. Once raccoons figure there is a good meal there they won't stop at eggs, they are one of the worst preds of ducks probably right up there with domestic dogs.

 

[BattyAngel]

Ducks herd real well so what i do is use a long bamboo pole you can use broom handles mop handles etc, some use 2 I use one but you start behind them and slowly begin walking them where you want them to go, it's something that takes time to get down for you and the ducks so you might want to get help for the first week until the ducks figure out what you are wanting them to do they learn fast though but you have to move slowly they don't like to be hurried and may scatter if hurried. But herd them into their house use some kind of yummy treat to reward them once inside, only thing about giving them something to eat though is they always need water when eating so you might have to forget the treat unless you provide water. If the coop has fencing around it once inside the fence you could put snack down close to the door to their house then after they have had their reward for herding you could get them the rest of the way inside close the door make sure it's secured with bolt of somekind and say goodnight till morning. If you give them plenty of shaving or straw what ever you use most ducks will use this to lay their eggs in. I even help them out by placing a piece of scrap plywood up with screws so they can have a place to themselves to lay their eggs you can even just lean it up against the wall and secure just something for them to get under to lay. Just remeber to make this work you have to always be there to get them inside before dark. Once raccoons figure there is a good meal there they won't stop at eggs, they are one of the worst preds of ducks probably right up there with domestic dogs.

Hi there!

Yes, I know that this post is over 7 years old... but I ran accross it and want to add some of my thoughts for others who may also run accross it.



So with that thought in mind...



I'm able to herd my ducks into their enclosure by walking behind them and using only my arms. If I want them to turn left I hold my right arm out to my side, parallel to the ground... if i want them to go to the right, I hold my left arm out. If you've seen how airplanes are directed by people holding lights, it's a lot like that... but without the lights.



Ducks are actually quite easy to train... once you understand them and the things that motivate them.



Spend some time just watching them, they’re hilarious in my opinion... they remind me of old women in the beauty parlor gossiping and griping... they just seem to complain constantly... which makes me laugh. I think it's nearly impossible to make a duck happy. They are such funny creatures... well except for the mating. That is quite disturbing actually, it's certainly not for the faint of heart. People tend to think of ducks as sweet and innocent, at least they do until they know better... their mating definitely leans more towards bdsm!



One thing to be careful about is the ratio of male to female. If you have too many drakes they will gang up on the females and horrible injuries, including death is likely to be the result.



As for your ducks laying in water... my girl has her own indoor pool and she lays a couple a week in there, the rest she lays in her nest. My theory as to why she does that is that those eggs were unfertilized and since they aren't going to become ducklings, it's just easier for her to lay in the water.



But I could be off base about that, it's really just theory...



Definitely don't eat those eggs! Cold water greatly increases the likelihood of bacteria entering the egg and because of that also increases the chance of contracting Salmonella from them. Salmonella has been found to be the cause of death of more than one person who ate duck eggs that weren't properly cleaned/sanitized.



I will most likely take what I'm adding here and make it part of a new, and hopefully more complete post about the pros and cons of keeping ducks in your flock.



There are many things I wish I had known in advance that could be the deciding factor for many people considering getting ducks.



My sister included.



She thought they would be more like chickens and even raised them in the house, and she didn't realize that they might imprint on her. When she sent them to live outdoors, she didn't understand why they wouldn't leave the back porch and just go forage. It drove her nuts. She felt like she had to be there constantly and the pressure that feeling this way added to her was more than she could deal with, on top of her already full plate.



She ended up re-homing them, which I personally felt was not the right thing to do. For me I was sad for those babies... They thought she was their mother and she sent them away.



Getting ducks is a serious decision and once made, should not be taken lightly. I believe one should follow through with a commitment like that.



So on that note... I suppose I'll begin writing for that next post!



I hope everything turned out well for you and for your ducks. I'm curious about what came after... if you get this, I'd love to know the rest of the story...

Sincerely,
From South Dakota ♡

 

[BattyAngel]

Hi there!

Yes, I know that this post is over 7 years old... but I ran accross it and want to add some of my thoughts for others who may also run accross it.



So with that thought in mind...



I'm able to herd my ducks into their enclosure by walking behind them and using only my arms. If I want them to turn left I hold my right arm out to my side, parallel to the ground... if i want them to go to the right, I hold my left arm out. If you've seen how airplanes are directed by people holding lights, it's a lot like that... but without the lights.



Ducks are actually quite easy to train... once you understand them and the things that motivate them.



Spend some time just watching them, they’re hilarious in my opinion... they remind me of old women in the beauty parlor gossiping and griping... they just seem to complain constantly... which makes me laugh. I think it's nearly impossible to make a duck happy. They are such funny creatures... well except for the mating. That is quite disturbing actually, it's certainly not for the faint of heart. People tend to think of ducks as sweet and innocent, at least they do until they know better... their mating definitely leans more towards bdsm!



One thing to be careful about is the ratio of male to female. If you have too many drakes they will gang up on the females and horrible injuries, including death is likely to be the result.



As for your ducks laying in water... my girl has her own indoor pool and she lays a couple a week in there, the rest she lays in her nest. My theory as to why she does that is that those eggs were unfertilized and since they aren't going to become ducklings, it's just easier for her to lay in the water.



But I could be off base about that, it's really just theory...



Definitely don't eat those eggs! Cold water greatly increases the likelihood of bacteria entering the egg and because of that also increases the chance of contracting Salmonella from them. Salmonella has been found to be the cause of death of more than one person who ate duck eggs that weren't properly cleaned/sanitized.



I will most likely take what I'm adding here and make it part of a new, and hopefully more complete post about the pros and cons of keeping ducks in your flock.



There are many things I wish I had known in advance that could be the deciding factor for many people considering getting ducks.



My sister included.



She thought they would be more like chickens and even raised them in the house, and she didn't realize that they might imprint on her. When she sent them to live outdoors, she didn't understand why they wouldn't leave the back porch and just go forage. It drove her nuts. She felt like she had to be there constantly and the pressure that feeling this way added to her was more than she could deal with, on top of her already full plate.



She ended up re-homing them, which I personally felt was not the right thing to do. For me I was sad for those babies... They thought she was their mother and she sent them away.



Getting ducks is a serious decision and once made, should not be taken lightly. I believe one should follow through with a commitment like that.



So on that note... I suppose I'll begin writing for that next post!



I hope everything turned out well for you and for your ducks. I'm curious about what came after... if you get this, I'd love to know the rest of the story...