I don't know much about it i am a new chicken owner. but I read that the yolk and shell forms in a chickens body not that they already have them in there.

But I will tell you something I do know, that a women is born with all the eggs she will ever have already in her. maybe thats what your neighbor is thinking about. LOL

CI

I have never heard of this. However I have had some chickens just get old and stop laying eggs. I don't know exactly why this is. As for the ducks, my rouens laid eggs every single day for three years. but my cuyuga (sp?) only laid like 30 eggs all last year. and only during june and july, every other day. so there is always a mistery about animals. I don't know it all that is for sure

My Moscovie ducks lay consistantly, and some of them are 5 years old. 25 to 30 eggs a batch, three batches a year. They hatch about 75% if their eggs.

My chickens are still laying. I'm not sure why they didn't take time off to molt and so forth.

So "running out of eggs" doesn't seem to be an issue. It may be all in the feeding. All mine are free range, getting scratch grain and some oyster shell. They look pretty healthy to me.

Thank you,
My ducks are free range and supplemented with organic feed. They are laying about an egg a piece per day. The eggs are part of a CSA. I'm trying to figure out when to start a new flock to keep the production going.

Eric

To get the most capacity from them they need to be managed for that reason, just like chickens. The Campbells and herlequins are the best eggers with maybe some Runners doing a good job. The 1st year will be the best, as with chickens, the 2nd year there will be fewer eggs but the weight will be up. I would imagine that ducks, as chickens , should be replace every 2 years for a profit related enterprise. We had a woman from great britain who manage several hundreds of cambells for egg production and as I recall she re-ducked each year. She use Cambells of course.

According to the Penn State 4-H site, a hen is born with approximately 4000 ova.

Here is a link that might be useful: Penn State

fancifowl--robin__maine,

Thank you for the input. I'm thinking I will start my new flock when the current flock is year and half. Takes Campbells 17 to 21 weeks to start laying.

Eggs ready for B & B.
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Eric

Eric, it's interesting that you have developed a market for duck eggs. Seems that's a spotty enterprise; I have had some interest in that myself but never really persued it, yet. What do the duck eggs end up being used for, mostly, baking?? There are some areas where balut has a market, iusually near oriental ehnic populations.
I had guessed that 42 per doz. would be a minimum sell price and its hard to get $1 a doz. for large-jumbo chicken eggs in this neck of the woods.

fancifowl,
Balut and 1000 year old egg, would make me hurl. My oldest brother is married to a Philipino. She wouldn't eat that either. She never lived in the philippines. Born in Hawaii, moved to Washington at the age of eight.

We sell our eggs at $4.00 a dozen. Have seen them on the internet as high as $49.00 a dozen. We are competing with chicken eggs at $3.00 dozen free range. Then there is the store at $1.25 dozen and less. Then there is the mind set. Duck eggs, I'm not eating a duck egg. Anyway we sell mostly to one B & B. She uses 30 to 50 dozen eggs a week. Right now we supply only 5 dozen a week. She uses the eggs for special dishes. Chicken eggs for baking and every day use.

Eric