Will we have to wait until spring for eggs?

[newchickmom09]

My female Cocoa is 12 weeks and my male Ebony is 14 weeks old now. Man how they grow so fast.

My question is since it will be in the middle of Nov when my female finaly is old enough to lay will she or will she wait until it gets warmer in spring. We don't have harsh winters here at all. They usualy are 60-70 degrees during the day and range from 25-40 degrees at night. It only actualy freezes a few times. We get one good snow (meaning 3-4 inches

) but that usually isn't until Feb.

Another question, should I be giving her oyster shell before or after I find her first egg?


Off topic, Ebony just got his drake feathers in, for sure a little guy.

 

[Wifezilla]

Offer the shells before they start laying.

If they lay or not this fall will depend on the breed, so what do you have?

 

[newchickmom09]

Sorry told you everything but that. I am guessing a Swedish mix. Both of my ducks are just guesses on what they are. My male is the black duck (black swedish) and my female is the brown one (swedish mix??). I don't know enough about telling the breeds apart, the more I look the more I can't tell the difference between them.

Since they came from the same poeple I am just assuming they are the same breeds. The friend that I got them from didn't ask anything when she bought them.


Here they are about 4 weeks ago: Cocoa is the brown one

 

[Wifezilla]

Pretty

They might not lay until spring, but I m not an expert on this breed. Allegedly they only lay about 150 eggs/year.

 

[newchickmom09]

Thanks

I guess good things come in time....waiting just stinks.

 

[TK Poultry]

depending on the mix you should have eggs my swedes lay all year but not well so you might get eggs this fall if the mix is right here are my swedes to compare yours look very swedish like

 

[newchickmom09]

greencastle_ducks~
I love your blue swedish! They are all very pretty.

I noticed that they have yellow legs, do all of your have yellow legs?

 

[DuckLady]

I always got eggs in winter from my first year ducks.

 

[BarnSweet]

This is my first time w/fowl. Raised a dozen chick-hens and five ducks (three are female). One of the females has been laying for a few weeks (so started when she was ~17 weeks). I assume it's only one laying as the egg is pretty much in the same place each morning and is the same color/size. I think it's the blue Swedish that is laying. But, the egg is pinkish cream color (thought I read on another waterfowl link that her eggs should be blue).
The other two females are a black runner(supposed to lay bue eggs) and a Cayuga (who's supposed to lay black eggs).

Anyhow, she's been laying consistently, one a day (got one shelless one, really weird looking

) and found one broken, empty shelless one in their "pond". .

 

[newchickmom09]

terrielacy~ Woo Hoo!!! There is hope.

BarnSweet~ I am hoping that she doesn't start laying in the pond because it will take forever for me to figure that out.