hatching ducks under broody hens

[Peebels]

Hi All

Just wondering if I might tap into the collective knowledge and experience of the group!

I have a hen (some kind of brahma cross, I suspect warran/brahma) who has gone very broody. In the effort to meet her motherly desires I have obtained some runner duck eggs for her to sit on. We have a currently empty run (intended for runner ducks this year) for her to be moved into and ill be modifying the coop tomorrow morning for her.

I would welcome any tips and or advice any might have to offer regarding hatching ducks under broody hens…

In particular…

- is she likely to sit for the full 28 days? (assuming it is 28 days for runners)
- will I need to do anything different
- and when they hatch, do I need to do anything special?

Thanks in advance

Ty

[Llamas]

I we hatched a runner and a pekin under out broody hen of doubious origin. She sat for the required length of time and everything went perfectly well, until this year.... Mr. runner has become rather enamored with another darkly coloured hen, much to Mrs. ducks disgust. Just be warned... :P

[Bramble-Poultry]

apart from the fact that ducks require greater humidity you should be fine. Just turf the broody off as per normal to do her "business" in the morning and splash a little water on the eggs to recreate the mother duck coming back from a swim.

DO NOT INTRODUCE THE DUCKLINGS TO WATER until they are fully featherd up otherwise they will get cold and die as they have no oil to protect them yet.

[frias]

What does mother hen do when ducklings do take to water?

[Bramble-Poultry]

keep them warm and dry and bale them out if they sink. however, in a grower pen you cant be there 24/7........ better to be safe than sorry

[petal]

I know someone who tried to hatch ducklings under a buff orpington but when they hatched they got strangled in her feathers. We hatched our ducks in incubator, then as soon as they were big enough gave them to Donald and Daffy to raise. (2 mallards who have had a civil partnership) It was amazing to see how the boys looked after them.

[Peebels]

Thanks for the info all.

I have her sat on the eggs now, she seamed a little disturbed about being moved to the spare run, but i popped her in the coop for a couple of hours and when i checked she had moved the eggs from where i had put them and was sat on them.

I took her off yesterday for some food, water and a smell poo. She does not appear to have any urgency about going back on the eggs until she see them again. But then she has always been a laid back chook!

Ty

[bendm]

I we hatched a runner and a pekin under out broody hen of doubious origin. She sat for the required length of time and everything went perfectly well, until this year.... Mr. runner has become rather enamored with another darkly coloured hen, much to Mrs. ducks disgust. Just be warned... :P

We had a Runner like that.....nothing was safe.

[MaureenHall]

I we hatched a runner and a pekin under out broody hen of doubious origin. She sat for the required length of time and everything went perfectly well, until this year.... Mr. runner has become rather enamored with another darkly coloured hen, much to Mrs. ducks disgust. Just be warned... :P

A silly thought I know, but if they did manage to fertilize some eggs, would the hatchlings be duckens or chucks?

[6sunrise]

ducklings and water

apart from the fact that ducks require greater humidity you should be fine. Just turf the broody off as per normal to do her "business" in the morning and splash a little water on the eggs to recreate the mother duck coming back from a swim.

DO NOT INTRODUCE THE DUCKLINGS TO WATER until they are fully featherd up otherwise they will get cold and die as they have no oil to protect them yet.

Hi -sorry, I don't understand this; other references i have seen have advised that ducklings should have shallow water to splash in to help prevent blocked cloaca from crumb feed; also, mother duck takes them on the water asap; ducklings love water - loook at them as they dart about catching insects - if they found swamping a problem, then they wouldn't last long in my pond...i think that surface tension plays a part, but they definitely don't drown unless they get exhausted and cold, and the broody will not let that happen. I very much doubt that any breeder or amateur does not put some kind of small 'pond' in the run for the ducklings. of course, observe them for the first few days, and slowly increase the time water that the 'pond' is available.
see url: Handy Hints for Raising Ducklings

[mrbadexample]

A silly thought I know, but if they did manage to fertilize some eggs, would the hatchlings be duckens or chucks?

If it's Mr Runner, & Mrs Hen, it would be a ducken.

Following the male-first logic of a liger (male lion & tigeress) and tiglon (male tiger & lioness).

[shirlthegirl43]

What does mother hen do when ducklings do take to water?

From an experience many years ago when our bantam hen hatched two ducklings - mum will scold you mercilessly for putting her babies into water!! She 'disowned' them later when she realised they liked it