My ducks stopped laying, 3 questions

[LilDucky85]

My ducks started laying this winter in December, but stopped laying last month (March). I removed their heat lamp last month but cant remember if they stopped laying before or after I did that. I totally forgot that could be the cause as to why they stopped laying until I began to type this. So now, I have three questions...

1. Does molting cause ducks to stop laying?

2. How much daylight hours do they need before they start to produce eggs again?

3. Is there anything I can do to promote the egg laying to start such as hay, brooder box, etc.?

 

[momma's chickens]

I dont' know what your weather has been like, but we had a really warm late winter when I started getting duck and goose eggs and then it turned cold and rainy and they stop laying. Driving me crazy as I have orders for those eggs.

Molting does cause a stop in egg production for a while because they are busy growing new feathers.

 

[crowbirdwoman]

molting will cause all poultry to stop laying chickens need 16 hours of light for optinmun laying ducks i do not know about. if you were taking the eggs from the duck she might have stopped because she is done, ducks lay only so many eggs a year.

 

[nissa_loves_cats]

Is it possible your ducks have gone broody? (Are they trying to kill you lately?) If they are Pekins they would be laying 125-225 eggs a year so they wouldn't be 'done'. I don't know about the heat lamp as a factor as I have never used a heat lamp with ducks old enough to lay eggs.

 

[LilDucky85]

Quote:
LoL That made me laugh...no my ducks havent been trying to kill me yet! They will really get that mean? Ive seen what they can do to eachother but didnt really think they would turn on Mama.

I'm in Illinois so Winters are very cold here. December through most of February was pretty much below zero. Suddenly we have practically an early Summer! It went from 40's to 85 literally overnight! Then it went to 80 and then 70's. I never expected an egg until Spring [if ever being my first time owning poultry] so you can imagine how surprised I was to find an egg in Winter. When they were laying the males were beating up the girls pretty bad and ripping their neck feathers out. I had to separate them for a few weeks. When the girls were healed I reintroduced the males and females together and after that the males never hurt the females again! Shortly after this the girls stopped laying.