Finishing the ducklings house

With only days away before the big hatch (5 eggs ended up developing, not bad considering its winter) we began getting their living quarters ready.  I found a fantastic idea while roaming the internet for building plans:  We used our kids' wading pool, put a small layer of dirt in the bottom and put some burlap over top.  We have the old brooder that my grandfather actually used to keep them warm in.  Using an old egg carton for a feeder and a milk carton with a small hole for water, we've successfully built them a nice home without buying anything special! 

Day 5 Candling...what a difference a day makes!

Day Four Candling

Getting the eggs

After trying the few local farm supply stores around and having no luck I turned to the internet in search for my first batch of hatching eggs.  http://www.ebay.com/ was FULL of options from Pekins to muscovys, but I wanted a variety.  Some ducks for egg-laying, some for meat.  So I found a post from Oklahoma that offered 12+ eggs from free-roaming Welsh Harlequin, Pekin, Runners and some Black and Blue Swedish ducks.  The mystery makes it even more exciting!  Upon recieving the eggs I candled each one, looking for double yolks and signs of diseases.  Each were free and clear, although 4 of the eggs were blue..  growing up we had a small duck farm and had never come across blue eggs before!  So after a little research and actually contacting the seller, I think that they are runner eggs..but I guess we'll find out in 28 days! So I put them in the incubator, set at 99.5 degrees with a wet sponge for humidity.