When to start egg laying formula?

[Accidentally Ducked]

I have three domestic mallards - two females and one male. They are 6 months old. Is it all right to start the females on a specific egg laying/breeder feed? I am not looking for egg production, I just don’t want the females to become egg bound or have soft shell eggs. I am trying to prevent any health problems associated with laying eggs.

I was thinking of starting them on Mazuri Waterfowl Breeder Duck & Geese Food. Is there anything else I should be feeding them at this time? Please advise. Thanks!

 

[fatty and friends]

if possible feed a normal duck pellet (for example mazuri maintenance diet) because the layer feed can cause kidney issues for your boy. oyster shells in a seperate bowl available to them 24/7. that should keep them all healthy and their eggs strong

my girls don’t lay anymore, when they did though we would scramble the eggs (shell included) up for the girls so they got the nutrients back that they lost from laying

 

[Accidentally Ducked]

if possible feed a normal duck pellet (for example mazuri maintenance diet) because the layer feed can cause kidney issues for your boy. oyster shells in a seperate bowl available to them 24/7. that should keep them all healthy and their eggs strong

my girls don’t lay anymore, when they did though we would scramble the eggs (shell included) up for the girls so they got the nutrients back that they lost from laying

The girls don’t seem to be eating the oyster shell that I put out for them. I was planning on separating the girls from the boy all spring, so the girls would only have access to the laying formula. They are already separated at night with individual food containers. This is why I thought the laying formula would be ok to start them on.

Also, how does the layer feed cause kidney issues for the boy? Is it the higher protein content?

Thanks!

 

[fatty and friends]

The girls don’t seem to be eating the oyster shell that I put out for them. I was planning on separating the girls from the boy all spring, so the girls would only have access to the laying formula. They are already separated at night with individual food containers. This is why I thought the laying formula would be ok to start them on.

Also, how does the layer feed cause kidney issues for the boy? Is it the higher protein content?

Thanks!

not 100% sure why it causes kidney issues, but yes might be the protein. why are you gonna seperate your boy? as long as he isn’t overmating the girls they’ll all be much happier together, my khaki drake has just two girls and has always been great with them

 

[NatJ]

The girls don’t seem to be eating the oyster shell that I put out for them.

They are probably eating the right amount (which might be very little, if they are not laying yet.)

how does the layer feed cause kidney issues for the boy? Is it the higher protein content?

In chickens, the problem is the calcium: the amount that is right for laying females can be harmful to males or to young ones of either gender. I would assume the same is true for ducks.

@Miss Lydia can you please check what I just said? I'm answering from my knowledge of chickens, but ducks might be different.

 

[Miss Lydia]

I have heard that too @NatJ about layer being harmful to drakes roos and ganders.
I can only tell my experience The feed I buy is Non GMO and only comes in starter,
layer and scratch. I can only get a starter in spring and summer. I feed layer to all my birds. I have a drake that is going on 11 yrs old and a gander who is going on 15. Both healthy. I am not saying do this with your birds Just giving my experience. If I could get an all flock in this feed I would def go with that. And keep Oyster shell out just like I do now. Sorry forgot to say start your ducks on layer around 4.5 -5 months old. My Runner started laying at 4.5 months not all females will though some even start laying earlier some later.

 

[cheezenkwackers]

I have heard that too @NatJ about layer being harmful to drakes roos and ganders.
I can only tell my experience The feed I buy is Non GMO and only comes in starter,
layer and scratch. I can only get a starter in spring and summer. I feed layer to all my birds. I have a drake that is going on 11 yrs old and a gander who is going on 15. Both healthy. I am not saying do this with your birds Just giving my experience. If I could get an all flock in this feed I would def go with that. And keep Oyster shell out just like I do now. Sorry forgot to say start your ducks on layer around 4.5 -5 months old. My Runner started laying at 4.5 months not all females will though some even start laying earlier some later.

I am curious what brand you use? I used to feed my ducks (both genders) duck breeder pellets and they did well for a year or two. Then, my feed store stopped carrying it. They suggested chicken layer feed (to which I added brewers yeast), it led to lots of egg and health problems. I currently feed Purina duck I found at another feed store and things have been much better.

Accidentally Ducky, I do leave oyster shell out too. They will eat it when they are laying and need it. My girls prefer one brand of oyster shell over another though. They like the one that has actual shells in it and looks like a bag of concrete. They never would eat the brand with pieces that looked like fish gravel.

 

[Miss Lydia]

https://tuckermilling.com/product-items/naturecrest-layer-feed/
I do add Nutritional yeast to my birds feed.
If I only had ducks and geese I would feed a Non GMO waterfowl feed if I could find it. I buy their 6 way scratch too.

 

[indianaducks]

I’m not sure if this is recommended or not but mix or rotate between layer and duck pellets (tho right now I’m using all flock and duck pellets due to minimal eggs). I keep oyster shell in case any egg issues crop up. But I had heard not to feed my drakes layer feed so this was my compromise. Since I can find a couple brands of duck specific food locally, I also feel better feeding that with layer feed. Not sure if the more experienced people here would recommend my approach but mentioning it.

 

[Miss Lydia]

if it works for your ducks then that is a good approach. I mix 6way scratch in with my layer. 3to1, 3 layer to 1 scratch. Just to bring the calcium down some for my boys. I have pretty old birds now. And I have been feeding this way for about 6 yrs. when I switched from All flock to non GMO poultry layer feed.