Incubating duck eggs is an exciting and somewhat different process than incubating chicken eggs. Duck eggs usually take longer to hatch, and require a bit of extra monitoring along the way.

Here we carefully monitor both temperature, humidity and egg turning to give the ducklings the best possible start.

For duck eggs in an incubator, the temperature should usually be around 37.5 °C. The most important thing is that the temperature remains stable throughout the entire incubation period.

Common duck eggs typically hatch after approximately 28 days. Muscovy ducks can take a bit longer, usually around 35 days.

Humidity should usually be around 50–55 % during the first part of incubation. The eggs should be turned several times daily until the final days before hatching.

Towards the end of the incubation period, you stop turning the eggs. Then increase the humidity to approximately 65–75 %, so the ducklings have better conditions when they need to peck their way out of the egg.

Many who incubate duck eggs also choose to air the eggs briefly daily from around day 7–10, and some lightly spray the eggs with lukewarm water. This can mimic what naturally happens when the duck leaves the nest and returns with a bit of moisture in her feathers.

When the ducklings begin to hatch, it's important to give them peace and plenty of time. Ducklings can take a long time from the first hole in the egg until they are completely out.

It's always a wonderful experience to follow the journey from egg to little duckling. Tiny peeping sounds, movements in the eggs and the first duckling peeking through make incubation truly special.

We look forward to following the little ducklings further here at Den Lille Hagen.