All advice for raising ducklings please

[junior67]

The air cells look good I find that my duck egg air cells don't draw down till after lockdown

That is weird but if it has pipped then it is a weight and see moment
Also I would candle the eggs every time I roll them just to be sure their are no internal pips
Good luck with your duck/chicks

I swear I candled them all on Thurs night and didn't notice any internal pips.... So either it was a time I didn't look at all or these babies internally pipped and then external within the 24 hrs. Lol

 

[junior67]

Any possibility there are Call Duck eggs in there? They hatch up to a week earlier...

How are they doing this morning?

I have six duck eggs in lockdown right now, most of them already internally pipped. These were tricky as their development was delayed due to a three day power outage. Some of the air cells had started to descend a few days ago. I always try to candle daily in the last week, just to make sure.

I have candled basically every day since I have been cooling and misting. But some days I would only look at a few instead of all. I started the eggs in 2 different incubators and even though my thermometer/hygrometers showed same temp some didn't show any development till a couple days later. Once they all fit in my 360 I moved them in there.

She just said she has a mixed flock. I think when I asked if she had bantam chickens since a few of the eggs she sent were tiny she said she had call ducks but didn't know if she gave me any of those eggs, but the tiny ones are really tiny so guessing bantam chickens. These eggs are basically the same size as all the other eggs, not sure if it showed in the pics

 

[junior67]

So 1 chick has hatched, one egg I can see a little beak, the screamer egg, the one that peeps very loud, I can't see anything yet. Lol. I don't see any other external pips so hopefully those are the only 3

 

[Canadian Wind]

So 1 chick has hatched, one egg I can see a little beak, the screamer egg, the one that peeps very loud, I can't see anything yet. Lol. I don't see any other external pips so hopefully those are the only 3

So it IS a chick? Wow, I would be so miffed with the lady you're hatching for! Charge her double for the mental anguish!!

 

[Bentleyriot]

So we have 4 runner duck all should be female any tips on them. We got them from our farm and home just about a week ago

 

[junior67]

So it IS a chick? Wow, I would be so miffed with the lady you're hatching for! Charge her double for the mental anguish!!

Lmao. Sure was a surprise!!!!! If I was hatching for me or to sell them I would be miffed. But she gave them to me for free if I gave them back to her. I just wanted ducklings to play with for a bit so it worked out. But 47 "duck" eggs set (think she collected over 2 or 3 weeks) around half started then was down to 14 with quitters, then I think one quit the other day, so only had 13, now 3 are chicks not ducklings so down to hopefully 10 ducklings

 

[Canadian Wind]

So we have 4 runner duck all should be female any tips on them. We got them from our farm and home just about a week ago

What kind of advice do you need? Do you have pictures of the set up? What are you feeding them?

 

[junior67]

now that I am in the last week I am trying to get everything in order. My local TSC doesn't have duckling food. they have duck crumble but not duckling. does that work or should I order some duckling starter from amazon?

 

[Canadian Wind]

now that I am in the last week I am trying to get everything in order. My local TSC doesn't have duckling food. they have duck crumble but not duckling. does that work or should I order some duckling starter from amazon?

Duckling Starter is always preferable, imo, due to its higher protein content. Over here I think the difference is from 18% to 22%.

Some say higher protein causes angelwing, but I have yet to experience this (knock on wood). Heck, I even feed it to the chicks.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Does any where on the bag say for ducklings ? I don't think I have ever seen just duck crumble before.