why have my ducks stopped laying?

[canaan]

only have a handful of ducks that like to sleep in the chicken coop witht he other birds. they have always been pretty consistent egg layers until a couple weeks ago.

they would make a nest below the chicken boxes and we'd collect everything at the same time, etc.. at first i thought they might have found a new spot, but i kept the pen closed for a few days and still found nothing. so i know they are not going anywhere else, they just plain stopped laying. they're only about 1 -1 1/2 yrs old.

so anyone know whats going on?

 

[Mahonri]

end of season?

 

[BarnSweet]

Are they molting?
(and like avove, lots stop over winter).

 

[Wifezilla]

What breed are they? They makes a big difference.

 

[DuckLady]

If they are molting, they will temporarily stop.

Mine slam their vents shut in protest at the first cold snap, but soon get over it.

 

[buck431397]

hmmmm, i am having a similar problem. I only have one duck and she was laying very consistetly, but i havent gotten an egg in almost a week!!!

I wonder if she's laying them somewhere else, but shes usually an early layer, and they are still locked up.... hmmm....

 

[canaan]

hi all... they are cayuga, rouen, and pekin.

i didnt know they would/could stop all together. its not even all that cold... as i am pretty sure they layed throughout the cold last fall/winter.

slowing down ( like the chickens ) would be one thing, i guess...

but i didnt know if they were done for good or not... didnt seem like they should be.

 

[Dances with Ducks]

I'm going through this too, the last eggs I saw were in mid August!! They all went into a molt then but I thought molts usually don't last more than six weeks. They have looked like they are completely finished molting for a while now. I also have two new hens that are not quite old enough to start so I have some hope yet.
Here are some other thoughts:
*Terry Lacy mentioned in a post that it's the first year ducks she expects eggs from in winter. Three of my hens are over a year old.
*People usually figure the reason ducks don't lay as much in winter because of the cold, but Holderread and the breeder I know say the amount of daylight the ducks get has a large impact too. I lock my ducks up in a dark house every night and I am reluctant to let them out before 7 am because I worry their noise may bother the neighbors too early.
*Sometime there can be a lack of nutrients in their diet.
*The breed of duck you have matters too, as Wifezilla said. Some are much more seasonal layers.