I need to know about ducks.?

Question

I have a duck that lays eggs. But in the last 2 weeks we've found 1 egg. Do ducks stop laying? Can they stop?

She used to lay everyday. Shes only 2.

Do you think shes hiding them?

Shes a yard duck so theres no cage. She has a nest but she abandoned it and we cant find a new one...

So anything would be great. Thanks.

Answer 1

Oh yeah she has a nest and she is hiding those eggs be careful they don't rot and you find them unexpectedly they can be real stinkers.    

Answer 2

All poultry take a breather after laying a clutch of sggs ,this may well be the case with your duck,an abandoned nest would point to the same .Looking for a new nest in the yard is no easy task ,they can choose very secluded spots for comfort & safety.I think you will soon have a new clutch of eggs to follow as two is a young age to stop laying,however be prepared for a new nest site & be watchful & vigilant .

Incubator hatched roosters learn to crow & hand raised fledglings eventually fly,many traits are instinct relatedl & not learnt directly from parents ,i do not think quacking needs to be taught .

Answer 3

oh man just google it and find out for yourself..you can always eat the duck if it stops laying eggs entirely..

Answer 4

I don't know what breed your duck is, but some varieties of ducks and geese tend to lay eggs only seasonally (during breeding season), while others lay pretty reliably year round.

And yes, some breeds will take a break after collecting a clutch of eggs.  If you found an abandoned nest, chances are she was trying to brood a clutch of unfertilized eggs.  Instinct tells them to get up and move on after about 30 days if the eggs haven't hatched.  Seeing that there's no male around, she did what instinct told her to do, and she's not ready to start laying reliably again just yet.  Had her eggs been fertile and hatched, she would be busy tending to her ducklings for the next month or two.

In the future, try to collect the eggs daily and don't let her try to set.  This can be kind of like an easter egg hunt every day of the year.  Generally, ducks like to find a place with tall grass, shrubs or a spot close to a building that's protected if they're trying to hide a nest.  Over time, she'll also start finding where her "favorite" spots are, and this will make finding eggs much easier.

You may want to use some kind of enclosure for her at night, as a friend of mine was losing many of his hen ducks to owls and coyotes.  A small dog house and a little enclosed yard would work great for her, and this might also encourage her to lay her eggs there instead of all over the yard.

Answer 5

I know that birds do start to lay less after a certain age, but two is pretty young to stop laying. Sounds like she is hiding her eggs somewhere... I know that chooks go broody and stop laying eggs so they can sit on them- maybe it goes the same for ducks if she has access to a drake?

Look under the house, in hollows, in long grass, in pots etc- she should have her nest somewhere!!!

Answer 6

Hi,

I can probably help you with your question. We have a pet Mascovy duck which we rescued from a drugo family that severely neglected her.  Our duck was close to dying when we saved her. She had never seen the sky because her pen was a tiny concrete slab that had trees covering her and she was fed pizza shapes and her only friend was a little dog that would come visit her (it was very sad).  We nursed her back to health and kept her as a pet (she doesn't know shes a duck either). She started laying eggs for a few years, until it got to the point where she was laying once every 3 months, then it turned into once every 6 months, and now she has stopped laying altogether. At the time, I gathered alot of information as to whether this is normal for a duck, and apparently ducks can stop laying for 2 main reasons, the most common one is early menopause - yep, even ducks go through menopause and they can even become moody as well. This can happen alot earlier if your duck has gone through any traumatic experience (like ours had before we got her) and another reason is change in weather, as this can put them off from laying for some time, and also, if they have been brought up alot differently to the life of a duck (like mine and yours have) they can just forget to lay because they sometimes don't know that they're meant to.  We didn't care when our duckie daddles laid or didn't lay, we just loved her as a pet and she is now happily retired. I hope this information helps you.