Need help with Abandonded Duck Eggs PLEASE!

[dd62]

Hi There, I need help please! I have two nests full off eggs that the mothers have abandoned. I believe the eggs are at least 3 weeks old, most likely a little older. After the mother ducks abandoned them last night (eggs were in neighbors yard, neighbors moved eggs to my yard, mother ducks would not take back) I brought them into my garage hoping it would be hot enough. Did not have lamp or heating pad but i am in south Florida and it's hot and humid here. Problem is this morning it was 82 degrees in garage. I am hoping they are still ok. I now have a heating lamp set up over the eggs. I have tried to Candle them but not sure if they are alive. On some of them I do not see an air pocket at all, I actually cant see anything it's completely dark, no light is getting through. On others I see an air pocket, but no movement from the other side. I am not sure if these eggs are alive or not. They don't seem to be moving and I don't hear peeping. Is it possible they are still alive? Is there anything else I can do so if they are still alive they will make it. I have been trying to find a wildlife place that has incubators but so far no luck. PLEASE HELP!

 

[Dirt Road]

Are the eggs from ducks that belong to you, or are they from wild ducks?

Jim

 

[dd62]

They are wild ducks, but they are used to people. We live in a community with lakes and canals, so there are alot of ducks around.

 

[Dirt Road]

While it is possible that they are still alive their prospects are going downhill pretty fast at this point. You could try laying them on a heating pad on low, or just continue with the heat lamp. They will need humidity, so you might try laying a damp cloth over them. Don't feel too bad about the whole thing, the mother ducks will probably start a new nest somewhere else, and hopefully will have better luck with their next effort. If the any of the eggs do hatch, they will need a fair amount of attention. There are many threads on this forum about raising little ducks, just do a search or ask for some suggestions. Except for mallards, baby wild ducks can be kind of a pain in the neck to get started. Good luck with them.

Jim

 

[Andora]

They need to be at 99-100 degrees with humidity! 82 is way too cool. It might be too late for them, but if you want to it's not hard at all to build an incubator in a few hours out of a cooler. You just need a bottle lamp kit, a thermometer and hygrometer, a water heater thermostat, and a water dish. There are instructions on here, if you are interested let me know and I'll find it for you!

 

[dd62]

Well I currently have them in a cooler with a heat lamp over them, with a water dish in there, and I am misting the eggs with water They are being kept at approx. 100 degrees. I only had them in the garage for the 1st night with no heating device because it was when the mother's first abandoned them and I didnt have anything to heat them with. So yea I'm hoping they made it too! BTW there are 30 of them. And if any of them do make it, I will be taking them to a wildlife organization that accepts ducks.

 

[CritterBazaar]

If the Mother duck abandoned them there is a good possibility that they were not fertile or the babies had died prior to hatching. Especially if she stuck with them for around 3 weeks. Something could have disturbed her too but usually the nest gets destroyed. I know this does not help on how to save the eggs but - I wanted to attempt to give you some peace of mind that you did all you could.

 

[dd62]

Well the mother ducks abandoned them because the neighbor moved the eggs. They were on the side of his house and he moved them to behind my property. The ducks couldnt find the eggs and it looked like they were looking for them, so I moved them close to where the old nests were, and to where the ducks were now standing. They went to the eggs and messed with them a little bit so i though it would be ok. But they did not sit on them, they were just standing around. So when it got dark I figured they would take to the eggs. But I went back after dark, and they were completly gone.

I really feel bad for the mother ducks actually.

 

[Dirt Road]

Fortunately, they are programmed to get over it very quickly. "Nature" is positively crawling with nest predators, so they have to be able to forget it and move on to the next attempt.

Jim

 

[dd62]

Thanks. That makes me feel a little bit better. But the Mother ducks are still hanging around out side. But I have alot of ducks hanging around the house since we feed them so I guess that nothing new. But I still I want to go and give the eggs back, but I know that they will not take to them.