If you figure that a duck lays at most one egg a day, then she naturally will not sit on those eggs for about two weeks so as to get a full nest. I read somewhere that as long as the temperature doesn't get too low (about 50F or so?), fertile eggs will still hatch even if left unheated for up to a month before getting incubation temperatures. Do not turn after day 25, possibly a little earlier. I don't remember what other differences might matter, but I've seen pictures of niacin deficiencies and did not want that for my flock. Ducks need more Niacin than chickens, and will not develop properly without it. Lastly, when you do feed them, get duck starter food and NOT chicken starter (unless supplementing). They expect momma duck to stay sitting on them until everyone has hatched out and is on their feet. You do not need to feed them for a couple days. You will want to get the shells out of their way. I made the mistake of trying to clean her up too soon and all that did was leave her with a little downless patch. I had one that did not fully absorb all the yolk and some stuck to her down. When they hatch, they may well look like they are near death - all weak and wet and miserable. I've never seen a bird manage to convey embarrassment and disgust before that event nor since. We had a mama duck sit on a bad egg until it exploded, and. Then you have a bunch of bad eggs instead of just one. If an egg changes color (brownish or greenish or such compared to the rest), it is probably bad. After day 25 you really better try to keep them in one position. If it is still 5 or more days before hatching, you probably want to go online and figure out for yourself if you'd be more comfortable turning them or not, but if they don't really start making noise until day 24 or 25, I'd stop then. Not only will this help them bond with you, but it will give you an idea how ready they are. My advice is to talk to the eggs (seriously!) and see if the ducklings inside respond by peeping back. I have seen recommendations to stop turning anywhere from 2-4 days before the due date. Turning keeps the membrane from sticking to one side, but once they are close to hatching, the would-be ducklings have to get in position to get out and turning at that point will make it hard on them and/or them may not hatch. I think I mainly turned once a day and sometimes twice. I hear people say to turn at least 3xs a day and always an odd number of times, but I was to lazy for that. Turn the eggs at least once a day for MOST of the incubation, but not at all for the end. My eggs turned out fine despite the occasional cooling. I also took the eggs out a few times to candle them (checking for development - you need a reasonably bright light and a thick piece of cardboard or similarly opaque substance with a small hole to do this, but it is not a necessary task). Mama duck DOES leave her next, so I was not too worried about having the incubator off for the half hour it took to get it fixed up. I also had to drain the water out and give the incubator a light cleaning mid-incubation because the water became slimy. I put water in the bottom of my incubator to keep the humidity up, and had to replenish it daily. Those eggs expect to have wet feathers on them. Duck eggs have less water content than chicken eggs because mama duck is going to leave the nest at least once a day to grab a bite, poop, and get her feathers wet to moisten her clutch. Sure they look dirty, but that film on them is there to keep out bad stuff. Keep the incubator somewhere with as little draft and as stable a room-temperature as possible so you don't end up with some eggs cooler than others, or have the thermostat tripping needlessly.ĭo NOT wash the eggs! I hope it is not too late to mention that, and you'll probably be fine if you rinsed them in water, but they come out coated for their own protection. I had intentionally small clutches so I put an extra thermometer in with the eggs to ensure the temperature was even. Your incubator is one of those Styrofoam boxes, yes? I've used one these successfully for two different emergency hatchings. I hope we are talking about farem-style ducks and not 'rescued' wild ones - but I think the details are the same. Sorry for the late reply, but I'm just reading this now.
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