Preparing to set call and pekin duck eggs! Hatch day should be March 4, 2021 if all goes well!

[FunnyfarmMidwest]

I really do think they would be fine without it. But I don't want you to go against your instincts..
Depends on the size of the house you're going to have them in and what kind of bulb you're using.
I would not get it any warmer in there than what your daytime temperature is going to be.
Mamma will keep them warm underneath her. It is good for them to be under her getting her oil spread on their down.

I would probably only use a 125v bulb. They have a pretty big house. I’ll keep that in mind. I will only use it if they need it. I’ll check them periodically throughout the night and only turn it on if they seem cold.
Thanks again!

 

[shawluvsbirds]

Thanks so much for the great advice. I think I’ll leave them without but if they seem cold I’ll turn it on. They can! I found one this morning had found a tiny gap in the fence and escaped! Peeping up a storm, I put it right back in with her. I couldn’t even see the gap!
I’m new to this, as these are my first broody raised ducklings. I’ve always had jumbo pekins till I got the calls last year. The Jumbo pekins just don’t go broody often.
I bet she’ll take them swimming this week!

Last summer I kept having a duckling getting out of the palace which is all hardware cloth so I just could not believe it and could NOT figure out where it was getting out. I thought maybe the tiny gap where the door closes was where it got out.
So I put a board up there to keep that from happening next thing I know there's one out again.
I finally realized it came out the tiny hole where we cut one little wire piece of hardware cloth out to fit the cord through for the winter water warmer.
What is hardware cloth half inch?
So removing one tiny piece made a one inch hole. So that gives you an idea. No gaps or holes over half inch.

 

[FunnyfarmMidwest]

Last summer I kept having a duckling getting out of the palace which is all hardware cloth so I just could not believe it and could NOT figure out where it was getting out. I thought maybe the tiny gap where the door closes was where it got out.
So I put a board up there to keep that from happening next thing I know there's one out again.
I finally realized it came out the tiny hole where we cut one little wire piece of hardware cloth out to fit the cord through for the winter water warmer.
What is hardware cloth half inch?
So removing one tiny piece made a one inch hole. So that gives you an idea. No gaps or holes over half inch.

Wow!

It’s crazy the small places they can squeeze through! Guess they’re mostly fluff! I have hardware cloth lining the bottom of the outside pen for when it gets warmer. I’ll have to make sure none can escape. They certainly are little escape artists!

 

[FunnyfarmMidwest]

So for the egg that I couldn’t tell if it internally pipped.
I could hear that egg peeping loudly so I went in with a safety hole. I think the bill is way over on the right side which makes it hard to see. Was this the right call? It had been tapping since yesterday. If it was peeping it surely had to be internally pipped right?

@Pyxis @BirdsBeesTrees @shawluvsbirds
@WVduckchick

 

[Miss Lydia]

Internally pipped would mean peeping.

 

[FunnyfarmMidwest]

Internally pipped would mean peeping.

Ok thanks!
Hope this little fella makes it out safely! It’s a few days late and I wasn’t expecting it to hatch! It was a pleasant surprise when I heard it peeping!

 

[FunnyfarmMidwest]

Here’s the other two babies. Seem to be doing well. I named them Pipsqueek (tiny black bib) and Pickle (blue fawn?)

 

[Miss Lydia]

They are precious.

 

[FunnyfarmMidwest]

They are precious.

Thanks so much! They are such sweeties!

 

[FunnyfarmMidwest]