Indian Runners not Laying

by Steve
(Melbourne)

I've just taken over my son's Indian Runner Ducks - two males, three females.

While they laid plenty of eggs at his house, they are yet to lay any at mine and I can't work out why.

Would transporting them have upset them to the extent that they haven't laid in four weeks? Are they less inclined to lay in summer?

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Any changes for poultry, including moving to a new home can make them stop laying. This is not only due to the change, and the transportation, but also could be that what you are feeding them is different too.

You mention the fact that it is summer now in Australia and when temperatures are very hot, again poultry will stop laying for a while. I am not sure what temperatures you are experiencing in Melbourne at the moment, but that could be an added factor.

I would say that the combination of the move, possible change in diet, and the heat have resulted in your new girls not laying. Indian runners are fairly nervous birds, and so this also adds to the mix as they are not as robust as other breeds when it comes to change.

In the northern hemisphere, runner ducks will lay as early as February to about August, which gives you some indication that they won't be laying all year round, and it is normal for a down period to happen for a few months.


Let them settle in, get used to their surroundings, and they will be laying again.