The Migratory/Ornamental Waterfowl INFO Thread

[destinduck]

What Waterdog said. Im a southern boy with little "snow" experience. Thats why I said hay instead of straw.

 

[exoticduckluvr]

I don't use anything but straw. When it breaks down just add more. Hay will get wet and moldy. I usually add fresh straw spring and fall in the areas most used where it is needed. They love to sit on pine straw bales or go inside tunnels made with the bales. I cover 1/2 my cage in plastic too. The north end and half way down the east & west sides where the winds comes.

Shawn post that pic of your whistlers with the Wood Duck box with the hole in the center to show Eric what he need to build

 

[KansasKid]

Thanks Destin, ended up doing what you said when i was doing my practice run on the chicken eggs. I've been keeping rags and sponges in the bator and keep the humidity short of raining to prevent shrink wrapping,and candle every once in a while to watch for the internal pip. Thing about it though is that both the one that internally pipped then died and the one that was positioned wrong but still externally pipped, both died within a very short period of doing so. Which got me thinking about something BBB said on scotts thread about artificial vs. natural and dying before hatching could be a sign of bacteria, so i took about a half of a teaspoon of bleach and mixed it into some water to dilute and filled up my water wells so i guess we will see what happens in a couple weeks when my other 4 eggs are due.


p.s. its about time to move these two little boogers outside into the stock tank, The younger one is LOUD and has been trying to "jump out of the nest"

I swear they would win the world record for highest jump compared to body size.

 

[Riffecreek]

Quote:
That would be great, I remember reading the measurements some where.. I'm still looking to find it!
I should be ready to add nest boxes by the weekend!

 

[kangababy]

So I have eggs and getting lots of eggs...

My question is we have some that are laying eggs but no one wants to go broody and set on them... We were told to watch them and after a couple of days pull them out and put them under a chicken or in an incubator, but we are running out of chickens due to Turkey eggs...

I have always heard the waterfowl didn't do good in a incubator. Any suggestions?

We do have one Appricot Wood duck sitting religious so hopefully babies in two weeks!!


Thanks

 

[destinduck]

the first pic is the box the blackbellied used last year 5in hole opening. The second photo is a woodduck box. But I would make the opening lower and larger (5-6 inches) like the first pic for the treeducks. These boxes are 12-14in wide and 2ft tall

 

[destinduck]

Karen most all wild waterfowl will "set". They may take 2-3weeks,( mostly 2 weeks) before they set. Also they may skip a day or 2 while laying. If they're eggs that are not in a nest and just laying on the ground by all means pick them up and put them under a broody. Most eggs dont do good in an incubator unless they are "started under a broody for about 10-14 days. I have done it but nowhere near the hatch rate and I only achieved it by misting and cooling the eggs. Let me also say there was no exact time schedule for this .I just kinda went by feel (trying to act like a duck

) You will get better at IDing eggs and on some of your rarer species you can put them under woodies and manderins and hatch those more common ones in your incubator or broody hens

 

[waterdog]

Kanga, like destin said if they are in a nest give them some time to lay more they may skip several days, we have not had good success starting eggs in the incubator but what works good for us is to let the ducks sit for about two to two and a half weeks then put them in the incubator this works really well for us, and unless you want to try to double clutch your woodies and mandies pull them after a couple of weeks and use them for broodies we do this sometimes letting them brood two more clutches of other species.

 

[destinduck]

Waterdog I hope you have some redbrested geese lay for you. so I can talk to you in the fall

 

[Riffecreek]

Thanks for the photos of the nest boxes!! you have some good looking waterfowl too!! Really like the pics in your other waterfowl post!