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December 22, 2017

Why Has My Duck Stopped Laying Eggs?


Around mid Autumn we get a lot of questions on egg laying. Many duck owners do not know why their ducks have slowed down or stopped laying all together. The simple answer is that ducks are similar to chickens as laying is heaviest during the spring into summer and starts to decline or even stop during the fall and winter.

Keep in mind that this is for ducks not raised under artificial lighting. Ducks need at least 17 hours of light in order to continuously lay year-round. Without it production drops. If you would like to learn more about ducks under artificial lighting, please read.

Breed and environment are the two main factors when it comes to a duck laying eggs. Some breeds naturally lay more eggs than others. They also require a relatively stress-free environment and adequate day length.

Different breeds can lay a different number of eggs. A Khaki Campbell lays a lot of eggs throughout the year and is even likely to lay year-round. On the other hand, a Mallard does not lay as many eggs and is likely to slow or stop laying come fall and winter.

Stress affects how a duck lays. If a duck is stressed, it will not lay as well. Stress can come from anything such as predators, loud noises, or a change in their environment such as a new feed, animal or person.

Day length is a major factor in how a duck lays as the days start to get shorter in the fall. The longer the day, the longer ducks will lay while shorter days can stop them from laying. This affect is most obviously seen in Northern states that have a drastic difference between their longest and shortest day. In Southern states, however, this change is not as obvious as the time gap between their longest and shortest day is minimal. For example, a duck could lay longer in Florida than the same duck would lay in Alaska.

Bottom line is to not panic when your ducks stop or slow down in laying eggs. Ducks naturally decline in laying as the days get shorter. How much and for how long depends on the breed and their environment. Stress can cause issues with laying and day length affects how long the duck lays.

If you would like to see what kind of duck would be best for egg laying for your needs, we encourage you to visit our website and look at our Duck Breed Comparison chart.

9 comments:

  1. thanks for sharing this info ...

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  2. Ah, so. That explains it. South Carolina, chickens and ducks slowed or stopped laying. One chicken egg a day, no more duck eggs. All are only 3 to 4 years old.
    5 hens and a rooster, 7 ducks and 3 drakes of various breeds. 2 Indian runner ducks, 2 Swedish ducks, 1 Rouen duck and 1 Rouen drake, other 2 drakes I don't know what they are, and another duck I don't what it is.

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  3. I have 4 white pakin ducks. 2 of them are suffering from shell-less eggs. I had them to a vet who said there is a problem with their shell gland. He said the blood count looked fairly normal, their calcium levels where both good. But he said the condition is due to the birds overlaying. He doubted they would ever return to normal egg laying. I had them hormone implanted, but thats an expensive exercise every 6 months.
    Do you know how i could either stop these girls laying all together or get them back to healthy egg laying as they are in pain pushing these soft eggs out.
    Regards
    Daniel

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    1. When mine first started laying they were big double yoaks then for a good mo or longer they were shell less I bought some liquid calcium from runnings it is 2.5 ml per gal An did it every couple of days an no more Shellless eggs

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  4. Will oyster shell do the same as liquid calcium?

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    Replies
    1. In terms of oyster shell being a good replacement for liquid calcium, yes, and we suggest leaving the shell to the side for the ducks to eat as they like. Typically it does help for shell-less eggs.

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  5. I have two pekin dicks and one is laying but the other one isnt, but it is the summer not winter. All of my birds lay through the winter

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  6. Hi! I have a white crested pekin that I got from y'all about 3-4 years ago. She's always been a good layer, but she quit laying about a week ago. I'm in SE Texas (north east of Houston), and granted the days have been super hot lately (over 100 at times). But certainly, with the summer solstice coming up, the days are getting really long, so I'm kinda concerned that she quit laying. Any idea what's up? I've never known her to stop laying before at least the end of July before, and only when she was super stressed that time.

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  7. As birds age, they lay fewer eggs. So maybe this year she is stopping lay in June instead of July. Excessive heat can be a real stress for waterfowl - that is what may have pushed her over the edge.

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