if not too late... don't have to separate if you have a large enough pen drake shouldn't attack them, but be on guard for possibility our experience is those eggs hatch on the morning of the 28th day of incubating mother duck hen is efficient and will stay on the nest with the ducklings until the last one is hatched or if separated by more than 24 hours will take off the ducklings and leave any eggs on the nest. Make sure if ducklings have access to water they also have a ramp so they can climb out. The adult ducks won't help them and their shorter legs don't either. It is easier for them to enter than get out. Improvise with what you have making sure that it's not a slick surface. Blocks of wood screwed or nailed together on either side of the pool like a step up & over & down work as does wire covered wood ramps. Wet wood is slick for them and slimes up quickly in a duck environment. Watch out for sharp wire edges that could injure them. Fluffy down isn't as efficient as preened adult feathers, so they will get wet and need to dry off.

It is a very common problem. Are they penned at nights? If so, make sure not to release them until at least two hours after daybreak, by which time the duck will almost certainly have laid - probably in a corner of the shed. If they are not shedded and they spend the night on the pond, then it sems she is just laying where she is rather than leave her companions. You probably need to pen them to get any eggs. Despite many years' exerience and a few hundred ducks, I have never had any success in getting ducks to lay in a box. Tens of thousands of hens yes, but ducks, no. It is likely to be the Rouen, because a pure mallard would not normally be laying eggs at this time of year. Old McDonald.

Dumor makes an egg laying mixture, get that and you won't have the problem anymore. I had the two elements separated at first, and the tiny little shell fragments by themselves aside from the food is not going to make them want to eat it. My ducks didn't even bother trying to eat the shell pieces. They would eat the food around the shell mix and leave it alone. Dumor takes the shells and turns it into a powder so it blends in with the food and they eat it regardless. And they love it, youll see a big change in their interest to eat. The shells in the food that the specific manufacturer produces were so tough i had to pry them open after the whole egg was cracked all over. The membrane on the inside of the egg had to be torn through it was so well made. Theres not much else to say other than to use that feed. All ducks were laying eggs of that quality. They also need tons of water to produce them but it sounds like you have that covered. The food is formulated specifically for Ducks and Chickens. Other Full flock feeds contain a broad range of grains that Ducks sometimes don't need as its not what they eat naturally, but its food nevertheless and its in front of them so they eat it. Or parts of it. You also have to give them worms every now and then which contain protein. They go absolutely crazy over them. But youll have super healthy Ducks with this feed. Good luck with it/them...

Hi, I am sure there are others with far more experience than me, but I do have both chickens and ducks and have had them for a couple of years. As far as ease of raising, I can not say that there is an extreme difference.....both have their pluses and minuses.... I have Khaki Campbells and they are the more aggressive of my ducks... but not so much so that I would cease to have them. My chickens free range in an acre pasture so they are not hard either... they have an enclosed coop where they are locked up at night with feed and water...nesting boxes and a roost. The ducks have the same routine except they are cooped in free standing houses in a separated pasture area. We dug a pond and lined it for them but with just a few, a kiddy pool is acceptable..they are messy and the water needs changing often... a good quality feed is needed for either... as are vaccinations etc if you choose to do so... as for the eggs... there is not a noticeable difference in the taste of the eggs... a duck egg is larger of course and , at least to me, they seem to be richer in baking etc... my ducks seem to lay an egg about every other day while my chickens often lay daily... I can not suggest one over the other because I love them both.,... their antics, their personalities.... both are delightful...good luck to you with whichever you choose.