Tips on hatching call ducks in incubator

[ChrisNOK]

I am getting started in raising call ducks and when Spring gets here i would be informed on what i need to do to hatch eggs successfully in the incubator. I also want to know about nestboxes on how they r built. Thanks

[Evy]

Follow the incubator instructions carefully or let the duck set them. They don't need a ''box''. A pile of hay in a quiet corner of the coop is fine.

[Patrick]

Start with buying yourself Storey's Guide to Raising Ducks by Dave Holderread. It has all of the basics, then some.
You'll find several very experienced people here willing to help you from where the book leaves off, but you'll get a much better response from some if you show that you're also willing to educate yourself, rather than expecting that everything you need to know will be spoonfed to you without any effort.

[ChrisNOK]

I do have that book and i have it for about 2 yrs now but it don't go much into details on how to breed the call ducks. I know that the takes higher humidity and thats why i was wondering if i should buy a Roll-X incubator since i've read that people uses those for exotic hard-2-hatch birds instead of the cabinet incubators like what i have.

[Evy]

I tried a roll-x & went back to a redwood. I still have the best luck using broodies or letting them set.

[MKG]

How do bantam chicken hens work for hatching bantam duck eggs?

[turbo]

Almost as good as using East Indies or Wood Ducks...

[Evy]

I've used chickens, but I think for the extra humidity & cooling periods that Call eggs need, duck broodies work best. I had to take the hen off the nest, lock her out & mist the eggs daily. More work even than the incubator.

[kenmisk]

We have silkies and they say that they are pretty good to set call ducks with, any experience on that one? Also what types of ducks are pretty good and reliable setters for call eggs? We have not had any luck at all with hatching calls and we have had them for almost 3 years now. It is getting discouraging to say the least. Thanks for any advice
Ken.

[Evy]

I've used about everything from Mallards to Woodducks & Mandarins. Mallards can cover more & seem willing to set more clutches. The wild ones are good for at least 2 clutches.
As I said above, duck eggs require 20 min. or more cooling daily & the humidity that the duck brings back to the nest. A chicken doesn't provide that. Calls seem to be more sensitive to these needs than other domestics. Likewise, most wild species don't do well at all in an incubator except for the final 2-3 days before hatch.

[duckluck]

I like nest boxes for my Calls...mine are either wooden boxes built with a lid and an entry hole to fit in one end of the breeding pen, or one end of the breeding pen boxed in on the sides with plywood, which I like better because it wastes less space. I like the nest boxes because the ducks disturb/trample the eggs less that way, and it encourages them to lay in one place rather than in a high traffic area or worse, in their pools.

[judyc]

I set BEI eggs this year in my Roll-X. I took them because I was worried they would freeze in this freakish weather. I sprayed them with water and turned them by hand 3 times a day. Temp was 98.5. I kept water inthe entire bottom of the incubator to get the humidity I needed. Had a great hatch rate. I used an old Brower incubator as the hatcher, but only because I was staging eggs, and the Roll-Xs are hard to clean. I bought one of the new Roll-Xs this Spring, with the rollers. It is doing even better, since I don't have to turn by hand. I do spray with water 3x a day, though.