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Hatching Ducks Hatching ducks is quite different to chickens. Different breeds of ducks have different brooding times. Many breeds will not go broody, this trait having been bred out to improve laying. Breeds like Khaki Campbells are unreliable as mothers and usually their eggs are hatched artificially or under hens or other ducks. While chook eggs take 21 days to hatch, ducks take at least a week longer, with Muscovies needing 35 days to hatch. If you have reliable broody ducks, then you can let them do the job with little or no input from you, with very good results. Broody hens are good at hatching duck eggs too. Muscovy ducks make excellent mothers of other breeds, with the added bonus that ducklings raised by Muscovies are often quieter and more docile than those raised by their own kind. Artificially incubated eggs need special attention. Firstly, before placing any eggs in the machine, it is important to run it for at least three days to make sure the temperature is correct and remains steady. In a forced air incubator, the following temperatures and conditions are recommended:
Humidity reading is by a wet bulb thermometer. You can make easily your own wet bulb by placing the end of a short, hollow shoestring (called the wick) over the end of an ordinary thermometer. Have the shoestring long enough that it can be placed in a container of water. Put the thermometer and water container in the incubator. As water evaporates from the wick, the thermometer is cooled. When the air is dryer, more water evaporates from the cloth, cooling the thermometer. When the air is very humid, there is less evaporation with a resultant higher temperature. You can adjust the humidity by increasing the amount of water in the incubator or reducing ventilation. Some folks spray fine misted water over the eggs each day, but if you do this, do not start before day 7 or beyond day 25. Misting alters the rate of moisture evaporation from the egg. Ideally about 13-14% moisture is lost during incubation. Too much or too little evaporation lowers the hatchability of the eggs. If you plan to artificially incubate your eggs, then storage of the eggs is important. It is best to store the eggs in sawdust with the points downwards at a temperature of about 60F. Turn them each day and do not store eggs for longer than a week from the day they were laid. Eggs stored longer than this have usually lost too much moisture from evaporation through the shell and lower hatchability results. |
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