[mentalmilly]

Can anyone tell me what age ducks start to lay?  Found an egg in the hut this morning but the oldest duck is 12 weeks.  Seems a bit young to start laying but we cant work out where else the egg could have come from.

[HesterF]

Very unlikely, I'd say. What type of duck are they? Mine have all stopped for the season now and won't start again until after Christmas. So the ones that hatched this year (12 weeks as well) will kick in then as well. But some of the better layers are a bit less seasonal. I've seen stuff that says ducks come into lay at 20 weeks or whatever but I don't really get that based on my own - they just come into lay early spring after they hatched, however old they are.

Have you got any chickens around that might have popped in yesterday and left an egg while you weren't looking? How big is it? What colour?

H

[taz08]

duck eggs are waxy to the touch too
mu muscovey has started laying again afet having chicks ,, didnt expect it till spring

[Clansman]

If its not a chicken or something else you have running around I'd be looking round for a joker! 

[mentalmilly]

I am sure its a duck egg, looks like a muscovy and she might have got in there.  She started laying 3 weeks after her last chick hatched, layed 5 eggs and we have not seen any since.  The others are appleyard, aylesbury and muscovy.  Eldest 14 weeks old so they wont lay until spring then?  Shame, we like ducks eggs.

[Beeducked]

I have had ducks hatched early in the spring start laying in September and if they do they seem to lay through the winter which is great. The youngest I have had a duck start laying is a little over 17 weeks and that is very young to start.

[F.CUTHBERT]

Our ducks that hatched in April are just starting to lay now. We have been getting the odd egg for a week or two now but they are often just half the normal duck egg size.
I am sure I read somewhere that it is better if they don't start laying to early as it reduces the amount of eggs you get over there life time.

[Beeducked]

It also puts them at greater risk of things like prolapse as they are not as well developed. Hard to stop them though if that's what they decide to do!

[HesterF]

I take it all back! I had a duck egg out of the blue today! No idea who laid it though so am guessing it was one of the three older ducks rather than this years hatch although I have noticed some of this year's girls getting mighty flirty with the bemused young drakes (and one has even enticed the gander into action  ).

H