Can i move a duck when she is sitting on eggs?
Question by ronan: Can i move a duck when she is sitting on eggs?
I have a muscovy duck who has just sat on a clutch of eggs under a old turf shed but i have fears that a fox or rats may harm her or her eggs. If i can move her is there any way i should move her. is it safe ?
What do you think? Answer below!
5 Responses to Can i move a duck when she is sitting on eggs?
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YES!!!!
Sisyphus
June 9, 2013 at 8:27 pm
Yes. Unless the duck is heavier than what your 2 hands can hold. That would be a different story.
ThatsMyTummy
June 9, 2013 at 9:06 pm
yes you can
Marmar
June 9, 2013 at 9:49 pm
I have done this many times before. But you will get a defensive display most likely as the duck try to protect its eggs. Don’t worry. Ducks don’t have teeth and its just a little pinch if you are bit. They act more scary then they are when protecting eggs. I think geese and turkeys are the meanest when trying to move when on eggs.
Anthony Church
June 9, 2013 at 9:51 pm
The duck imprints on the area where the eggs are laid. To be successful in the move, she must be involved in the process to make it viable. Farmers will put wooden eggs in the nests and the fowl can’t tell the difference. Other fowl will lay eggs in the nest and the birds can’t decipher the difference. Move the eggs and she’ll go back to the old nest.
However, by moving her and the eggs at the same time, where she can watch and be part of the move, she will set in the area. Keep her contained for a few days in the new area with the eggs until she is comfortable in the new location. Let her out and she should return to the new area you have selected to set on the eggs after she has eaten etc. She may check out the old nest, but the maternal instincts will bring her back to the new safe nesting area.
Beekeepers move their bees over 6 miles or under 6 ft. If you move the bees less than the 6 miles they will pass over an old route and return to the original hive to an empty spot. They will never find the new hive location again. If you move the hive over 6 ft they will return to the area of the old hive and never find it only 8 or 9 feet away. They imprint the paths and follow clues to return. Your duck has to be trained the same way only with more latitude. Once she is familiar to the new location she’ll soon forget about the old one. It may take you a couple of times returning her to the nest if you let her out to quickly. Watch her and you should have no problems. It is safe to move her and the eggs. Does this answer all the questions you had about how to make the move successful?
We always had free range ducks and chickens. My dad said we had learn to be smarter than the birds or we’d never be successful raising them or farming them. He’d keep a close eye on our methods and only intervene when we were in danger of harming or losing some of the flocks. He’d ask questions to make us think about why some solutions worked and some failed. Good luck.
texter
June 9, 2013 at 9:53 pm