Found a duck egg, what do i do?!?

Question

i live at the lake and i was walking and found an egg right by the water. i know it is a duck egg because its big and we have alot of ducks that live by our house. so i looked around evrywhere for a nest and found nothing. so i thought i should take it rather than let a racoon or something eat it. i dont have a heating lamp, but i have it in a shoe box in a towel and have a regular lamp on top of it, because its one of those lamps you can bend. i hope its still alive and i can save it but how can i tell, i put it up to the light and i think i saw a feather? does that mean its pretty far along already? do you think its alive? and what do i need to do to keep it alive? i have a electric blanket i was thinking that would be good to like put it on top of a thin towel to keep it warm but not like burning up. what do you think? please please please helppp!

Answer 1

Contact your local wild animal control right away

Answer 2

There is no possible way you saw a feather, simply because baby ducks do not have feathes, plus the fact that when they are far enough along to have down, the egg looks solid black and you can't tell anything about it.

Take it down to the lake and put it back where you found it. The females lay 10-13 eggs before they begin to set on them and before they build up the nest. When you picked it up, was the egg cold? If so that means the mother has not been setting on it so nothing can be formed in there. Its empty.

Are these wild mallard ducks? If so, it is a felony (up to 5 years in prison and a 10,000 dollar fine) for taking a duck or its egg from the wild. Also, once you raise a duckling, it can never be "set free" because it won't recognise predators and won't know how to find enough food for survival. The best thing for you to do is just put the egg back, unless you are prepared to spend 500+ dollars building a predator proof pen and buying feed every month.

EDIT:

LOL! YOU DID NOT SEE A FEATHER! I don't know how to make that any clearer to you! I have rasied over 50 ducks in the past 6 years and only about 6 of those were ones I did not hatch myself, believe me I have candled many eggs and know what I am talking about. Ducks do not even grow feathers until about 1 month of age. It is possible you saw veins though.

Here is what you should see:

Infertile egg: http://www.backyardchickens.com/images/c...

Fertile Egg: http://www.eurekalert.org/multimedia/pub...

http://images.newsquest.co.uk/image.php?...

Notice the veins and the embryo.

Duck eggs need to stay at a constant 99 degree temperature, not higher not lower. They also need humidity. So you're going to have to fingure out a way to get some humidity with it. Normally that is done by putting a wet sponge or rag near the egg in the incubator, but you can't do this if your are using a heating pad or blanket.

Wild ducks are protected by a federal law and its a 10,000 dollar fine, not 500. When ducks are raised by humans, they inprint. That means they not only think they are human, the loose all of their natural instincts which allow them to recognise predators and find their own food. The duck will most likely die within a few weeks if you just release it.

Answer 3

I think you should keep doing what youre doing and contact animal control. I honestly dont think the egg is warm enough but Im not sure what temperature duck eggs need to stay at.

Answer 4

Make sure that you keep an eye on that blanket because lamps, well light bulbs in general get pretty hot so you don't want to start a fire. If you hold an egg up to a bright light you might see either the yolk or perhaps a duckling fetus. But then again the egg could be bad too :/

Answer 5

you should deffinaly keep it like your doing it now your doing great you should put the heat up blankit over it right away and put the towel over that to keep it warm as possible it should be ready to go soon because it is so late in breeding season and if you say you saw a feather it should be less than a week you should keep it for a few mounths after it has hatched because other mother ducks will not take it because it is not there own,keep it untile it can fly they usualy learn to by themself do to instink hope this info helped good luck!