Monthly Archives: October 2013

After my Incubator was stable and ready to go, I ordered eggs. I got a variety pack with 4 types. The Khaki Campbell Duck, a extremely efficient egg laying breed, with as many as 320 eggs a year, the Indian Runner Duck, a very unusual duck that can not fly but runs or walks (hence the name), the Peking Duck, which has been bred in China for centuries specifically to eat, and is the main component in a National Dish of China, and the Rouen Duck, a very large duck that originated in France.

The order said it would send eighteen eggs plus what else they could send. This, apparently, is the way they usually place orders. They send a given number, but because eggs are very perishable, any unsold eggs have to be sent somewhere, so they just send them to people who have placed other orders. I had wondered how they would ship eggs. The company they came from was in Florida, so would they make it all the way? The box they came in was heavily lined in foam, bubble wrap, and packaging

As the fall and winter months begin to set in most people notice that their chickens don’t produce as many eggs as they do in the summer months. While there are many different possible causes, we will focus on only a couple important factors that have a large impact on egg production.

The first major factor that causes a reduction in egg production is the amount of light chickens are exposed to in a day. On average chickens require approximately 14 hours of light a day to constantly produce eggs. As fall sets in the amount of sunlight decreases every day which in turn decreases egg production. To help provide more light it is as simple as adding a light bulb to your coop. To save on energy costs we recommend using a timer to turn the light on and off in the morning and evening.  The IncubatorWarehouse.com’s

As I waited for the Incubator to arrive, another question dawned on me. ‘How long do I need to keep them in the brooder after they hatch?’ The answer is not a matter of overall time, but temperature. You start with the temerature near the temperature of the incubator (99.5 Degrees) and decrease it by 5-10 degrees each week. If, during the process, the ducklings huddle under the lamp, make it warmer. If they are staying away from the lamp and pant, the heat is too high. A table found at http://www.duckhealth.com/housmngt.html shows optimum temperatures at specific times.

After finding the answer to my question about brooding, I waited for the incubater and brooder to arrive. The shipment came in a large box. I opened it and had several questions as I went through the supplies. The first thing that stood out to me was a large red trough with twenty-eight holes in its lid. Each ho

Today I first began my research on egg incubation. I decided to start with ducks. Two questions immediately came to mind, and this is where I started. The questions were: “What do I need to do?” and “What do I need to buy?”

I started with the first question, ‘what to do’. I found some answers at https://www.wikihow.com/Hatch-a-Mallard-Duck-Egg. You basically Put them in a 98 to 99.9 degree (F) incubator at 50 to 55 percent humidity, and turn them three times a day (or more, but always an odd number of times). You do this for 24 days. On day 25, however, you decrease the temperature to 97-98 degrees (F) and increase the humidity to 70 percent. On day 28 they should hatch, and what you do next is crucial to their survival. Let them dry of most of the way, then move them to a ‘brooder’. This ‘brooder’ must be at least 6 sq. in per duckling, have hay, water, food, and