ducks just started laying....

[sunflower]

I found 2 eggs in their water and one in the mud. Is it ok to eat the eggs that were floating in the muddy water for 2 days? I am concerned about their safety since the were submerged for a while.

Any ideas how I can get them to lay in a drier place?

Thanks!

Tiffany

[Evy]

I wouldn't use them. Egg shells are porous & will absorb bacteria from dirty water. If you break them, you may even find a tiny amount of the water itself, depending on the length of time they were submerged.

Giving them piles of hay in their shelter, including with a few dummy eggs may help. If you shut them in at night, keeping them in longer in the morning may also help, although ducks don't lay as regularly as chickens.

[sunflower]

Thanks. That is what I was thinking. I put a bunch of wood chips in their pen, and made a little "duck nest" with the eggs that they laid (since I won't be eating them). I put the water downhill, so theoretically, it will keep the upper part of the pen (where I put the eggs) drier.

[lmd]

Well, my problem is that my ducks quit laying. I usually miss out on eggs for a month in mid winter. This fall, when I let the few hatched youngsters into the flock, the egg laying stopped in about a week. These are runners and crosses, but even up to the end of August, they were giving 10 a day. Any reason for the stopping? My dogs and I sure miss our eggs.

[Katy]

I occasionally find an egg in the pond but normally unless they are let out extremely early, they lay in the shed, which has a floor covered with aspen or pine wood shavings. They make their nests in the corner and sometimes bury the egg under the bedding. As Evy stated, the water logged eggs aren't likely a healthy choice for consumption. One of my 3 Runners who hatched on April 29th this year started laying about a month ago...she is the first duck I ever had who layed at such an early age (barely 5 months). The other two from the same hatch have not yet layed. I'm thankful for even one egg per day at this time of year when I normally don't have any with my older hens. Fresh eggs are so nice to have any time of year! I'm hoping she (and perhaps the other two) will be laying around Christmas time so I can use duck eggs to make my cookies :mrgreen: