magilacudy
Posted : 4/21/2006 1:10:15 PM
I can only help them when they have piped their bills through an air sac in the end of the egg. Then I can poke a hole there so they get air. If nothing happens after 24 hours I can slowly remove the shell a small piece every hour. I had to do this for 13 eggs last year. The problem is getting them to at least make it to that point.
I can tell when one dies because I use a flash light to shine through every night and when i see no movement I put the egg in a warm bowl of water. If the egg does not bounce up and down it is dead. There are many reasons for this, most common would be that the duckling would have been a weak duck. I raise Call ducks which are a show duck, although I do not have show quality because my bills are too big. I'm trying to correct that now. Call ducks have a very hard time hatching for some reason. Some of the top breeders I ahve spoke with told me it is very difficult, and even though they have been doing it for years, they still have a hard time with hatching.
I breed them for myself. I do sell some at a bird show when I get too many. They are just pets to me. This year my son wants to show them, but if I can't get a show quality bird this season, we are out of luck. There is me and one other man that raises calls around here. I would have to travel pretty far, and pay a pretty penny to get another bird.