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New Muscovy keeper - breeding advice

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Author Topic: New Muscovy keeper - breeding advice  (Read 493 times)
eveshakti
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« on: July 16, 2013, 04:01:36 pm »

Hi there,
We just got our Muscovies in October (9 months ago). We have 3 ducks and 1 drake. The Drake and 2 of the ducks are 2.5 years old and the other duck is their offspring so she's just over a year old. She came to us a few months ago from a friend as they had problems with predators. All the ducks have been laying great!

We'd like to hatch some ducklings - 1 - so we have more layers next spring  2- so we can have a duck for holiday dinner (or early January).

I'm seeing that the best course of action is to let one of the ducks just sit on her eggs and collect from the other two? is that right? Is brooding dangerous? I've seen a few posts about ducks dying (I was thinking of letting my favourite one sit). They are quite broody and seem to really want to sit.  My friends have cayugas and pekins, I was thinking of trying to put a couple of their eggs in there about a week after she starts to sit (those breeds are 28 days).

Just seeking general advice as well.
Thanks!
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Vintage Chix
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This is a picture of my first Muscovy, Ducky Lucky


« Reply #1 on: August 06, 2013, 01:36:51 pm »

Eva, IME, it would be best to set out dummy eggs rather than allow eggs to collect outside. Ducks will exhibit broodiness by staying on the nest for longer than usual and behaving "rather badly"...huffing up feathers, hissing at other ducks and in general, being anti-social. If they haven't shown an interest in brooding eggs yet, they may not before cold weather comes.

Do you see any breeding going on? You must see breeding to be sure the eggs are fertile.

So, to start, collect eggs every day. Mark all eggs with PENCIL: the date laid and which duck laid them. Set the eggs into an egg box and elevate one end on a brick so the eggs are tilted. Rotate ends every day. I never know who laid what egg. Knowing who laid what isn't as important as how you store the eggs. They should be stored at room temp or between 55 - 75 degrees. Duck eggs will remain in good viability for about 14 days.

Get some dummy eggs the same size as your ducks lay (can be found at craft stores and mill stores). I like to paint mine to seal the wood. Better sealed so they don't harbor bad germs and are easily cleaned. There are some eggs made out of stone that work very well. Plastic, not so much. Take the duck egg out of the nest and replace it with the dummy egg. Every time you remove an egg, replace it with a dummy egg. Keep your eye on the duck to see if she shows extra interest in adding her breast feathers to the bedding. When the number of eggs you want to hatch have been laid and replaced with dummy eggs, stop adding eggs but continue to collect newly laid eggs.

The brooding duck should be kept from the rest of the flock, sequestered in an easily accessible (to you), predator proof area. The other ducks should NOT be able to lay eggs in her nest once she has become broody. This will remove the probability that eggs will break on the nest while the ducks are fighting over the nest box.

Brooding ducks should be removed once daily and placed away from the nest (to facilitate exercise). They should have access to fresh bathing water and food (eggs need to be wet for best viability). You will need to keep your eye on her while she is off the nest to prevent any other ducks from raiding the nest and to be sure she finds her way back to the right nest. They should have a shady area for their  brooding house to prevent overheating. Muscovy eggs take between 32 - 35 days to hatch. You can candle the eggs after 7 - 10 days of incubation and discard any that are "duds" to prevent unwanted explosions in the nest and again after 21 days.

If the eggs do not hatch after 35 days, they should be removed and replaced with clean, empty duck egg shells. I save the shells when I crack them for eating. The duck will think the nest has been raided by predators and abandon the nest.

I broke up three broody ducks this year. Only one was persistent and had to be put into "broody prison".

I hope this helps...
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kelliszoo
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« Reply #2 on: August 26, 2013, 09:24:59 pm »

I let all my girls set their own eggs, and they are in a coop with attached large runs along with my chickens.  they are separated into breeding groups, each in a separate pen with one drake and 3 to 4 hens, along with a breeding group of chickens.
 
I let my girls brood their own eggs in whatever way they see fit, I provide nice closed in nest boxes for them and don't bother them any more than necessary. They are excellent broodies and will look after things all on their own.  My girls all leave their nests for at least an hour a day to bathe and eat and drop their big disgusting broody poops. 

Because mine are confined, I do take them away from the moms once they hatch and brood them in a brooder.  The drakes can get nasty with the little ones in a confined area, and my fencing is chain link which the babies can get out of, but not the moms, so it's not safe for them.  By brooding the ducklings I get more ducklings per hen each year as well, as they start laying again rather than raising ducklings. My girls are all just finishing their second batch of eggs each this season and they will probably set one more batch before winter comes.  By taking the ducklings away, they will leave the nest and usually start laying again within a couple of weeks and start the cycle all over again.
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