Our ducks are still laying... what's going on here?

One of our Khaki Campbell laying ducks

Okay, so it's now December 15, and we are still collecting between 6 and 10 eggs per day from our laying ducks. What's the big deal about that, you ask? Well, normally at this time of year we expect anywhere from very few to zero eggs.

Laying hens and ducks do, in fact, have an off-season; typically by mid-November, our duck egg production has slowed way down or even stopped, and starts up again round about mid-January. Why the drop in production? Well, hens and ducks go through their annual moult in the fall, and this is always accompanied by a drop in egg production. I suspect it is related to nutrition; the birds' feathers are approximately 85% protein, and they need a boost in their protein intake when they are growing new feathers during the moult. Egg production also requires adequate protein, so it's not surprising that egg-laying is affected.

Also, we're fast approaching the shortest day of the year. Egg production at our farm is highest in the spring, when days are getting longer heading into May and June. Again, nutrition is a factor; in the spring the pasture is growing fast, and the birds are naturally out on the pasture for more hours every day than they are at this time of year. Spring is when mating happens, too, so it works out well that the egg production is so strong. We don't see much mating action this time of year, so it seems to me to be a natural time for the hens and ducks to have a break from laying eggs.

A lot has been said and written about prolonging the laying season for chickens by putting artificial lighting in their coops. The theory is that somehow the birds are tricked into thinking the days are longer than they actually are, so they will keep laying. In this country we're so used to being able to buy eggs year-round that people most often don't get it when I tell them that eggs are a seasonal product. (Granted, the season lasts for 9 or 10 months, but still.) I think the birds not only deserve this annual break, I also believe that it's better for them in the long run to allow this natural rhythm to play out.

So... what's the explanation for the continued egg production this late in the year? I don't think it's the weather; we've already had more days down in the teens than we had last winter. None of our laying birds are in their first year (they don't moult their first year) so I assume they've all been moulting as usual. Since the pasture growth slows down in cold weather, and the birds aren't out there for all that long each day, I can only guess that a higher percentage of their nutrition is coming from the organic grain mash we feed every day, so possibly their protein intake is actually a bit higher than usual, which might account for the eggs.

If it sounds like I'm obsessing on minor details, I promise I'm not actually staying up nights wondering about it. It's just one of many interesting things that occur when you have animals, and I'm the kind of person who likes to understand why and how things happen.

If you have laying ducks, are you still getting eggs? I'd like to hear about your experiences, and if you have any ideas about why the egg "season" has been expended this year, please share them.

Canyon Creek Farms: we're certifiable

 3-week-old Khaki Campbell ducklings

You've suspected that all along, haven't you? Now we can confirm the truth: Canyon Creek Farms is on the verge of being certified organic.

After wading through the paperwork and waiting for the results of our application review, we are now awaiting the final inspection. There is a huge lot of record-keeping that is required, so I have been working hard on a database system to handle that part of the certification process. We will be inspected at least once per year, and we must be able to show records of basically every single thing that we did or bought or used during the year. Feed purchases. Every application of fertilizer or compost. If we vaccinate or otherwise give medical treatment to an animal, it must be documented. When we buy seeds or plants they have to be certified organic.

Sounds like a lot of work, right? So why are we doing it? Well, partly it's a matter of pride: We have been working hard on our farm for six years now, and we're producing top-quality chicken and duck eggs, as well as Tamworth pork. We have been managing all our animals and crops organically from the start, so we figured that the next logical step would be certification.

 Tamworth piglets

If you've bought our duck eggs recently at Sunny Farms or Nash's Farm Store, you probably noticed that they are labeled "organic." How can we call them organic when we aren't yet certified? The National Organic Program (NOP) rules state that if a farm sells less than $5,000 per year in organic product sales, it can label its products organic. However, we can't use the USDA Organic logo, and we are subject to inspection to ensure we are complying with the organic standards.

Now that more of our eggs are being sold at local retail stores, we anticipate that our farm product sales will soon top $5,000 per year, which would make us ineligible for this exception.

New Hampshire pullets

Up to now, we've thought of our little farm business as more of a hobby, but it's time to step it up a notch and take ourselves more seriously. We've worked hard to provide wonderful eggs and pork for the local community. It's time we honor the loyalty of our customers as well.

Tamworth pigs are growing fast

The three Tamworth pigs we brought home about a month ago are doing great and seem to be growing almost before our eyes. David insists that when he feeds them late in the day, they look bigger than they did in the morning. Not to sound like a sentimental parent or anything, but is there anything more adorable than baby pigs? OK, maybe baby ducks...

As usual with Tamworths, they are plowing up their current paddock quite happily and efficiently, so we will be moving them to an adjacent paddock in the next couple of days. We've finally started to get some summer weather (80s for daytime high predicted all week), so we're going to keep re-seeding the pastures until the first fall frosts discourage such behavior.

Our average first frost is around mid-October, although we were surprised one year by a night in the 20s in September. Everyone says we're in for a hard winter, and I hear rumors of another La Nina season. Now that it's been over five years since we moved to the farm, maybe I should start learning something about the weather! I guess I assumed that El Nino and La Nina more or less alternated, but if predictions pan out, this would be two La Nina winters back to back.

What are you doing to prepare for winter? I've had a lot of questions lately about heating and/or insulating chicken coops. Do you do either of these before the cold weather sets in? I'd love to hear your comments and ideas.