# Mallard egg incubated by King pigeon pair



## Maclofts (Dec 14, 2014)

hi there guys, I just got a fertile Mallard duck egg from my neighbor who said this one female comes to lay on their lawn and then takes off… Needless to say the egg is abandoned and since I don't have an incubator, I stuck it under my king pigeon pair (who were sitting on fake eggs up to now)! My question is: is there anything else I can do and is there anyone out there who had experience like this previously? My king pigeons are happily fostering this one egg, my are pretty big... My mail is the size of a small sized chicken!  PS. I heard that it takes 28 days of incubation for this kind of duck ( and my head is sitting on it currently)


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## Jass SamOplay (May 29, 2012)

Know you're tryna' do a good deed but you'll have to keep a close watch as the king pair will tend to abandon the eggs after 18 days of incubation are over according to pigeon incubation behaviour. Hope until then your other pair and the mallard egg can be switched again. Or you could make a incubator
Do post the pic of little mallardy when he's born


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## Maclofts (Dec 14, 2014)

that's what I had in mind…  I have two other pairs that could sit on it but the problem is that all three of my pairs laid at the same time, so I'm trying to get one of the other pairs to start laying so I can eventually stick it under them !  and I will do! For what I know the egg is due on June 5th


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## Maclofts (Dec 14, 2014)

*Humidity*

Since it's raining today I hope that helps with the extrahumidity that water fowls need  I also let them out in the rain, they love it! They lay out on the ground and spread their wings...


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

What will you do when it hatches? You will have to take their baby from the parents.


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## Maclofts (Dec 14, 2014)

I will keep it for sure for 8 months until it can fly, and then we will see what happens next  since we have a lot of ducks in the neighborhood I wouldn't mind having it fly free but come by the house when it pleases.


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## Maclofts (Dec 14, 2014)

And to answer your question, I will take it from the Pigeons once it hatched


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## CBL (May 13, 2014)

Maclofts said:


> And to answer your question, I will take it from the Pigeons once it hatched


Heres whats gonna happen, if and when it hatches, it will imprint on the FIRST thing it sees, be it a pigeon, human or grasshopper, SO, you wont be able to let it fly free with any ducks unless it SEES a duck first to know it IS a duck. You may want to rethink or at the very least, sell it to someone as a pet who can keep it. My sister had a duck that came up to her, she even bought it another duckling for company but it didnt care, it only wants to be around people, luckily she found a sanctuary for it.

You will also have to go buy it duckling starter feed as they will drink and eat on their own right away. 

So you may end up with a duck that thinks its a pigeon and the parents may try to feed it and when it wont feed, they may reject or attack it. Will be interesting to find out what happens. Good luck.


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## Maclofts (Dec 14, 2014)

Thank you so much CBL for clarifying that! Then I will keep him. Also I will bring the egg inside on the day of hatching before he would see the pigeons... I'll be looking for signs of pipping around the 28th day


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## Jass SamOplay (May 29, 2012)

Its gon be interesting. The duckling will treat you as its momma. I had that happen with a lamb once when I was on a summer vacation. That lamb would follow me around everywhere and eat only from my hands. I loved her so much but unfortunately I had to leave her behind when the month old vacation was over.
Do share what happens next Mac


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

Messing with nature like that isn't the best thing to do with the duck. They make messy pets, and they have needs that you would have to provide for. Is that really what you want, or fair to the duck? I mean, what's the reasoning? Just to be able to say that you did it? Think it unfair to the poor thing having to live that way..............not even knowing it's a duck, or living with other ducks.


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## Jass SamOplay (May 29, 2012)

I know of a person whose handraised water fowl left with its kind when it grew up. After they grow up they make sounds in breeding season. Then when others of its kind make the same sound they follow them. Males live separate in groups from females except for breeding season and females want lonliness to raise young when they lay. So the duckling may leave you for good. But for that you'll have to take the bird to a sanctuary.
I know you're trying to save a life by doing your best. Good luck. 

PS: its wasn't the same spieces of water fowl.


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## re lee (Jan 4, 2003)

Pigeons have hatched chickens and such for many years. Not sure on ducks But chickens 21 days pigeons 17 days after second egg. The spread is there so that would be the main key. Now far as growing up. It should grow up to be a duck as it is a duck. It will be no different as to when people buy hatched ducks. They are ducks. Far as flying it will learn to fly. You would have to let it free range so it would learn to feed as the wild. Just remove it when it is born. Any way good luck and let us know if it hatches.


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## Maclofts (Dec 14, 2014)

Okay I will definitely let you guys know for starters if it is containing any embryo... By the way there is a lake right across our street so I will be taking him there a lot to let him become sociable and therefore he will free range every day! I also plan for him to have free will. By the way there is a lake right across our street so I will be taking him there a lot to let him become sociable and therefore he will free range every day! I also plan for him to have free will whether he wants to stick around our house or by the lake with other ducks! His parents do come quite often in our pool so I bet he'll hang around quite often as well


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## kiddy (Feb 5, 2015)

Interesting story , just read it today and first thing striked my mind is Ice Age 3.lol
Sid, the sloth find dinasour's eggs somewhere and after 1 day when they hatch , they exactly do what sid does and call him "Mamma" lol.


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## Maclofts (Dec 14, 2014)

Haha I love that movie!!! And great comparison


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## kiddy (Feb 5, 2015)

Maclofts said:


> Haha I love that movie!!! And great comparison


Lol.would love to know what he calls you


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## Maclofts (Dec 14, 2014)

Quack?! Lol I can't wait... I really hope the egg is fertile and I'll find out soon


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## kiddy (Feb 5, 2015)

kiddy said:


> Lol.would love to know what he calls you





Maclofts said:


> Quack?! Lol I can't wait... I really hope the egg is fertile and I'll find out soon


Yes, hopefully. All the best


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## Maclofts (Dec 14, 2014)

Great news! The egg is fertilized and the embryo is moving quite a bit  all my pairs were on fake eggs so now I took them all… Hopefully they'll all start laying so when it's time to put the Mallard egg under another pair they'll be ready to sit on it!


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## Ross P (Jan 10, 2015)

Are you aware it in against Federal law to keep mallards with out a permit?


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## Maclofts (Dec 14, 2014)

Yes Ross and thank you for pointing that out!


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## kiddy (Feb 5, 2015)

Maclofts said:


> Great news! The egg is fertilized and the embryo is moving quite a bit  all my pairs were on fake eggs so now I took them all… Hopefully they'll all start laying so when it's time to put the Mallard egg under another pair they'll be ready to sit on it!


 Great. Do update us with a pic the moment it hatches and of course the meantime updates too  keep us posting...all the best...


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## Jass SamOplay (May 29, 2012)

Thanks for posting,Mac. Its exciting.
You aren't keeping the mallard by choice, you're trying to help an innocent creature survive. Will this work as an excuse if any official asks you about it?


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## Maclofts (Dec 14, 2014)

I hope so lol  but if it turns out to be a mail then it's instincts to have a mate will kick in soon or later... I'll be taking him to the lake real often


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## spirit wings (Mar 29, 2008)

Maclofts said:


> hi there guys, I just got a fertile Mallard duck egg from my neighbor who said this one female comes to lay on their lawn and then takes off… Needless to say the egg is abandoned and since I don't have an incubator, I stuck it under my king pigeon pair (who were sitting on fake eggs up to now)! My question is: is there anything else I can do and is there anyone out there who had experience like this previously? My king pigeons are happily fostering this one egg, my are pretty big... My mail is the size of a small sized chicken!  PS. I heard that it takes 28 days of incubation for this kind of duck ( and my head is sitting on it currently)


The mallard does not lay all her eggs at one time,she will leave the eggs until she is done and they can lay many eggs. So if this one hatches it will be sad it won't have its mom and siblings to follow and learn the ways of their nature. They are able to eat not long after hatching but will need to be kept warm in a brooder like you would chickens. You will have to research and see how to release it when it is ready and learn how to find food,or call a rehabber that is trained In these things. My advice that is best to leave Mother Nature alone.


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## Maclofts (Dec 14, 2014)

Thanks spirit wings! this egg was laid in the middle of my neighbors front yard without any nest... She told me that the same thing happened last year: they just took off after laying an egg so the first time she didn't know what to do with the egg and she threw it out. This time I thought I would give it a chance


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

spirit wings said:


> The mallard does not lay all her eggs at one time,she will leave the eggs until she is done and they can lay many eggs. So if this one hatches it will be sad it won't have its mom and siblings to follow and learn the ways of their nature. They are able to eat not long after hatching but will need to be kept warm in a brooder like you would chickens. You will have to research and see how to release it when it is ready and learn how to find food,or call a rehabber that is trained In these things. My advice that is best to leave Mother Nature alone.



I agree with this^
You aren't giving it much of a chance by having it grow up without the benefit of a mother duck to learn from.


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## Maclofts (Dec 14, 2014)

But then again I was thinking of putting it in another Mallard nest if I found one… But that wouldn't work out because the egg would hatch later than the other eggs and would be left behind when all the other ones hatch (therefore it wouldn't hatch at all...). there's nothing more I could've done and I didn't want to leave this egg to die alone!


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## Jass SamOplay (May 29, 2012)

You're just following the will of the almighty. That was the best thing to do,you can't kill the embryo now. Take that as a new lesson and be ready for what's coming next. WT.....
Live it and enjoy it.


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## Jass SamOplay (May 29, 2012)

From Wikipedia


> Mallards usually form pairs (in October and November in the Northern hemisphere) only until the female lays eggs at the start of nesting season which is around the beginning of spring, at which time she is left by the male who joins up with other males to await the moulting period which begins in June (in the Northern hemisphere). During the brief time before this, however, the males are still sexually potent and some of them either remain on standby to sire replacement clutches (for female Mallards that have lost or abandoned their previous clutch) or forcibly mate with females that appear to be isolated or unattached regardless of their species and whether or not they have a brood of ducklings.
> 
> The nesting period can be very stressful for the female since she lays more than half her body weight in eggs. She requires a lot of rest and a feeding/loafing area that is safe from predators. When seeking out a suitable nesting site, the female's preferences are areas that are well concealed, inaccessible to ground predators, or have few predators nearby. This can include nesting sites in urban areas such as roof gardens, enclosed courtyards, and flower boxes on window ledges and balconies more than one story up, which the ducklings cannot leave safely without human intervention.


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## Maclofts (Dec 14, 2014)

Thanks Jass!!


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## Crazybird (Jul 13, 2013)

It is legal to own a captive bred mallard duck as long as it is legally purchased from someone who has a permit to sell them. You can buy them at hatcheries across the US. That being said in your situation where you have saved this duck from certain death its your decision how to care for it. Is there anyway to find out if the mother was someones pet duck. Mallards can be very affectionate and playful as pets. I have owned a few throughout the years. As others have said they are very messy and cleaning after them is daily chore and a small pond or pool is a must (this is where the cleaning can get exhausting). They can get loud also so consider your neighbors when deciding. Good luck with your decision and thanks for caring enough to at least save its life.


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## Maclofts (Dec 14, 2014)

Thanks crazybird for that! it's parents were definitely wild, I saw them hanging out around the neighborhood lately and the neighbor just across us has a pool which he won't clean and let's nature take it's course ( of course the ducks come by too) it's been one week of intubation and so for the embryo is growing, very excited! I'm prepared for cleaning, and I might consider keeping it in the garage at night time because of the loudness... our neighbor behind us does not tolerate noise and in fact since we live right beside a train she's signing a petition in the neighborhood for the city to build up a sound wall LOL good luck for her


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## kiddy (Feb 5, 2015)

Maclofts said:


> Thanks crazybird for that! it's parents were definitely wild, I saw them hanging out around the neighborhood lately and the neighbor just across us has a pool which he won't clean and let's nature take it's course ( of course the ducks come by too) it's been one week of intubation and so for the embryo is growing, very excited! I'm prepared for cleaning, and I might consider keeping it in the garage at night time because of the loudness... our neighbor behind us does not tolerate noise and in fact since we live right beside a train she's signing a petition in the neighborhood for the city to build up a sound wall LOL good luck for her



I am worried about the neighbourhood issues but on the other hand happy about the little life who could never have seen the light of the day without this help. The duck will learn to swim , it is nature who makes them learn.we buy parakete few days old kids here and keep them and raise them and when they are adult they fly like a normal wild parakete adult tho nobody of us can make them learn so I believe he will learn everything for sure and he is lucky one to be saved this time when last time one was already abandoned and thrown out.
So all the best , you aren't doing anything wrong.


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## Maclofts (Dec 14, 2014)

Thanks kiddy I sue hope so!


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## Ross P (Jan 10, 2015)

Crazybird said:


> It is legal to own a captive bred mallard duck as long as it is legally purchased from someone who has a permit to sell them. You can buy them at hatcheries across the US. That being said in your situation where you have saved this duck from certain death its your decision how to care for it. Is there anyway to find out if the mother was someones pet duck. Mallards can be very affectionate and playful as pets. I have owned a few throughout the years. As others have said they are very messy and cleaning after them is daily chore and a small pond or pool is a must (this is where the cleaning can get exhausting). They can get loud also so consider your neighbors when deciding. Good luck with your decision and thanks for caring enough to at least save its life.


Sorry, even IF you purchase from a licensed Hatchery, you still MUST buy a permit for yourself, Period I know because last year my wife rescued a just hatched Mallard that had been hit by a car. We were severely warned by the local DNR when after raising it we brought it tho a rehab facility, since the injuries were to severe for release.


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## Maclofts (Dec 14, 2014)

I'm sorry to hear that happened to the duck... Hope all is well!


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## Crazybird (Jul 13, 2013)

From fish and wildlife


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## CBL (May 13, 2014)

Maclofts said:


> Thank you so much CBL for clarifying that! Then I will keep him. Also I will bring the egg inside on the day of hatching before he would see the pigeons... I'll be looking for signs of pipping around the 28th day



Lol ur welcome, now let me go catch up on the rest of the posts, interested to hear how it turned out, hoping for a happy ending


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## CBL (May 13, 2014)

Maclofts said:


> I hope so lol  but if it turns out to be a mail then it's instincts to have a mate will kick in soon or later... I'll be taking him to the lake real often


Admin NOTHING, if anyone asks, its a wild duck that hangs around your property, you dont OWN it nor feed it, it just visits and may be looking for a nesting site, and keep any ownership of it on the down low. TONS of people are in violation of TONS of stuff, so who cares if its against the law, a life is a life and if you want it and take care of it AND it decides to mate with another duck then so be it. You COULD also show it to ducks and it can secondarily imprint on them and hang with them from day one and may be releasable one day if IT so chooses. So dont worry too much about that, go read the book father goose or watch the movie. He raised them, he migrated them they breed and came back so.....Don let anyone scare you. Heck IM in violation and in negotiation with the town, should I kill or get rid of my birds, NOPE, not gonna happen


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## Maclofts (Dec 14, 2014)

Haha thanks! It turns out you do not need any permit to own captive bred mallards… You just have to show that in case inspection came, that it is marked by one of the following (tattoo in webbed foot, seamless band, cutting off one of the back toes, etc...) I will probably band it. All I have to show the inspection is the source of where my captive Mallard was bred to make sure that they have a license to sell mallards...


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## spirit wings (Mar 29, 2008)

I have a mallard story, my husband was on a job sight where a mallard had a nest and it was getting ready to be destroyed. He took the eggs and put them in his empty cooler and brought them home to put under a broody chicken hen we had, they hatched 6 days later. She kept them warm and they followed her around and she was so protective of her babies. She did wonder though why they got in the water we set out for them. They grew and matured and would not leave the area of the chicken coop because their mom was in there, so we took them down the road to the resivour we live near and released them. They flew back!.. Lol, so we ended up releasing them in a park in town where they are protected and fed too, they may of stayed or miragrated we do not know but it was a nice experience.


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## Maclofts (Dec 14, 2014)

That sound nice  I wonder if they ever fly by your place every now and then... That would be cool if migrating for them would be flying to your house


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## mikis343 (Nov 26, 2013)

What ever happened to this egg? Did it hatch?


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## christispigeons (May 28, 2015)

I would love to know too!


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## TomNY (Nov 3, 2013)

Maclofts said:


> Great news! The egg is fertilized and the embryo is moving quite a bit  all my pairs were on fake eggs so now I took them all… Hopefully they'll all start laying so when it's time to put the Mallard egg under another pair they'll be ready to sit on it!


Six pigeon eggs were "killed" in an effort to "save" an abandoned duck egg because every egg deserves a chance to live? I miss the logic here. Tom


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

TomNY said:


> Six pigeon eggs were "killed" in an effort to "save" an abandoned duck egg because every egg deserves a chance to live? I miss the logic here. Tom


I hear ya Tom.


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## Maclofts (Dec 14, 2014)

Yeah I felt bad about it too so I only left it under one pair but of course they wouldn't sit on it for 28 days so it didn't survive  I'll use an incubator next time... But at the time I didn't have one!


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## kiddy (Feb 5, 2015)

So a baby inside died of 18 days because you didn't give it to another pair?you said you had 3 pairs on fake eggs to shift the egg under them when one pair abandon? 
We know we do replace the pigeon eggs with fake ones to avoid over population in loft.


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## Maclofts (Dec 14, 2014)

They were all on eggs but unfortunately they all started incubation at the same time, there fore they all ended at the same time


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## Maclofts (Dec 14, 2014)

I was gonna call my friend to take it in an incubator but he couldn't in time... But I'm glad I learned from this and I had a feeling I wouldn't have been able to take care of this duckling...


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## Jass SamOplay (May 29, 2012)

I was eagerly waiting to hear about what happened to the egg. Sorry, but now that I know it feels bad that a life that wasn't meant to be started was started and was then ended. You should have arranged the apparatus in time as you knew 18 days are about to over and pigeons will leave the egg. Your intentions were good though but .... Okay
whatever's done is done.
I like it, you learnt the lesson for future


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

Maclofts said:


> I was gonna call my friend to take it in an incubator but he couldn't in time... *But I'm glad I learned from this and I had a feeling I wouldn't have been able to take care of this duckling...*


*
*
Then probably should have just left it alone. It would have been better off.


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## Maclofts (Dec 14, 2014)

Agreed!


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## kiddy (Feb 5, 2015)

That's a sad end. Poor baby.


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