Should I seperate Her?

[MommaMc]

Hi Everyone

I have 5 ducks....3 Welsh Harlequins (1 drake and 2 ducks) and 2 Buff Orpingtons (1 drake and 1 duck)

They have been all together up until about 2 week ago when 2 of the ducks (1 Harlequin and the Buff) had built themselves a nice little clutch each and were setting fairly regular on the nest. The drakes of course would not leave them alone and I was finding 1 or 2 eggs out of the nests and broken a few mornings in a row..I suspect it was the drakes, so I seperated them from the ducks.

My question is...what to do with the other duck...she shows no interest in brooding, but spends the days running around hunting insects, bathing, quacking and just living life lol...at night I shut her in with the Buff that is nesting inside the duck house..the Harlequine of course nested outside in some brush so I wrap some 1" welded wire around her area at night..

I don't want to leave her in with the 2 drakes as they will probably do her in...and I don't think she will be happy if I put her by herself....but by the same token I don't want her messing with the nesting Buff.....the odd time I see her sit on the nest when the Buff is out getting food and drink....will they co-sit effectively? Or should I keep her away from the 2 nesting ones?

MommaMc

 

[Pyxis]

The worry I have is that she's probably laying new eggs in the buff's nest, meaning you're going to get a staggered hatch, and the broody duck will either ignore the ducklings to keep brooding the unhatched eggs or abandon the eggs to take care of the ducklings that hatch. If you want to leave them together, mark the eggs she has so you can take out any new eggs laid. I doubt she will mess up the nest on the broody, but if you're worried you could pen her with the drakes with a fence to keep them separate so that they can still see and communicate, but the drakes can't get to her.

 

[MommaMc]

Thanks...that makes sense.
When I look in the nest I see that there are eggs within the circle, but more or less in a ring as opposed to nestled together.
Then there are more eggs covered with the straw on the outer ring of the nest....do you think the eggs will be getting enough heat from her to incubate? Because I am imagining her basicaly sitting on the floor with a double ring of eggs around her, rather than under her...

The duck that is nesting outside has hers all together in a bunch right under her breast