My Marked Eggs Keep Going Missing.

[Duck Troubles]

I'm not exactly familiar with properly hatching eggs, as most of the times that I try they always fail. Currently, I have a broody duck, she has been broody for going on 4 months. Her original eggs failed so I decided to give her an egg from my first flock of ducks, however, each egg that I gave her ended up going missing! For each egg I give her I mark with an A, B, and so on. For the past 2 months or so each of her marked eggs has gone missing, this is only after about a week and a half of egg development. I've chalked it up to the chickens eating them but because theirs no evidence of them being eaten it seems odd. My coop has layer boxes sitting on the wall so a snake is a little out of the question, but even if it were in the question why is it only eating the eggs I mark? Just today I went to go check on one of my duck's eggs, I was thoroughly excited as I heard noises coming from the egg just a day before, but when I went to go check on the egg it was gone. My coop has two parts, one for the webbed feet and the other for the chickens. At the moment my duck is staying in the chicken area because she doesn't get along with the others, we don't have rats but we do have squirrels that live on the top of the webbed feet coop. I was wondering if it may be them stealing my marked eggs. Any help would be greatly appreciated!

 

[Blue is my chicken]

Being Broody for 4 months is not great for them as they don't really eat when broody, is she skinny?
Could magpies be getting in the coop and what di you mean you don't have rats how are you sure i never see rats only on a wildlife camera.
here in England the most common things that would be taking eggs are rats and magpies (and chickens/ducks).
It could be that your chickens think the marked eggs are bad because they look weird and so they remove them when your duck is not their.
I would recommend marking the eggs with pencil it is more discretion and if you say the thing taking your eggs only takes maked eggs it could help.
putting a camera up would help you know what is taking the eggs.
I would recommend moving your duck to a safe place like a box in your house and take her outside once a day so she can have food water a swim and go to the loo, i would read this https://www.tyrantfarms.com/why-and-how-to-make-a-duck-go-broody/
Good luck

 

[janiedoe]

I had this problem a few years ago. My coop and run are predator proof top to bottom, but I leave the door open to the yard during the day. One egg gone each day, the third day I lifted my broody and a rat snake almost got my hand.
I agree that without a camera you may never know what is getting the eggs, but it is most likely a rat or snake.

 

[Miss Lydia]

I saw squirrels going into a blue birds house and getting the eggs, so anything is possible. Oh and snakes can climb walls too I had one climb a wall in the coop and get to my OEGB nest of eggs. Couldn't figure why her eggs were going missing until I came in one day and caught the snake in the act of climbing the wall.

 

[Duck Troubles]

Being Broody for 4 months is not great for them as they don't really eat when broody, is she skinny?
Could magpies be getting in the coop and what di you mean you don't have rats how are you sure i never see rats only on a wildlife camera.
here in England the most common things that would be taking eggs are rats and magpies (and chickens/ducks).
It could be that your chickens think the marked eggs are bad because they look weird and so they remove them when your duck is not their.
I would recommend marking the eggs with pencil it is more discretion and if you say the thing taking your eggs only takes maked eggs it could help.
putting a camera up would help you know what is taking the eggs.
I would recommend moving your duck to a safe place like a box in your house and take her outside once a day so she can have food water a swim and go to the loo, i would read this https://www.tyrantfarms.com/why-and-how-to-make-a-duck-go-broody/
Good luck

She goes and comes as she pleases, so she is still fairly healthy. And for a muscovy, she has her normal weight. We don't have any magpies around our property or even in our neighborhood, but I'll try your suggestion and see if it works!

 

[nuthatched]

Any crows or ravens? Rats?

 

[Duck Troubles]

Any crows or ravens? Rats?

I don't believe we have rats or ravens, but we have crows. However, they rarely show up.

 

[deer trail duck farms]

a raven would def take a whole egg ive been battling one for a month now. lol but my vote the chickens are eating em or a duck. if the hen notices your markings she may roll them out of her nest.

 

[Miss Lydia]

I always mark the eggs my ducks sit on and have never had one roll an egg out. Maybe it's becasue they are Muscovy and are egg hoarders lol