History and Care of Call Ducks
Call Ducks are truly the cutest ducks and are perfect for a small backyard flock or homestead. They are bantam sized, weighing between 1 and 2 pounds and have a stout and rounded appearance, with short bills and big round cheeks that make them look like plush toy ducks. They are also friendly and animated and great with children.
Call Ducks were developed around the middle of the 19th century in Great Britain from Dutch lines of decoy ducks. They were bred to be small so they could lure larger wild ducks into funnel traps and then be able to fit through the trap exit hole and escape the trap, leaving the bigger ducks inside the trap. Call Ducks, as their name implies, were also specifically bred for their call, which is very high pitched and carries well over long distances in order to attract wild ducks to get within range of hunters’ guns. So, the original English Call Duck lines were made up of hard-working birds with strong working abilities, but in the 1900’s, hunting was losing popularity, and Call Ducks became quite rare.
Interest was revived around the middle of the 20th century and today they are one of the most popular breeds of duck for exhibition and show. All the gregariousness of the working duck is now contributing to great personalities as pets.
If you have been successful at caring for ducks before, you will have no problems with Call Ducks. However, there are a couple things to be aware of and adjust for when raising these tiny ducks.
Care of Call Ducklings
Call Ducklings are extremely tiny and must be well protected in a draft-free brooder. They are tough for their size, but the elements can have a quick effect on them. Be careful with waterers – make sure that the ducklings cannot get into the water and that they are on very absorbent bedding. Ducklings like water and can get tricky – purposely taking water out of the waterer and making their own puddle or mini pond. This is cute, but you end up with wet and cold ducklings very fast.
‘Ergonomically-Correct’ Call Duck Facilities!
Once grown, adult Call Ducks are perfectly hardy. However, you may have to make some barnyard adaptations to adjust for their size. For example, make sure swimming/bathing ponds and/or pools have low enough sides or ramps so the small Call Ducks can get out easily without straining and possibly hurt themselves.
Aerial covering might be something to consider with Call Ducks. Their small size makes them vulnerable to hawks and other flying predators. Also, unlike a lot of other domestic ducks, Call Ducks can fly, and will fly quite far if alarmed, scared, or panicked.
Feeding Call Ducklings
With ducks of this size, feeding is easier and less costly. Foraging even in a small area is more fruitful in the long run with smaller ducks.
I always remind duck owners to never feed ducks chicken feed that has any medication in it. Ducks have much more sensitive and delicate digestive systems that can be damaged by chicken medications. I feed my ducks certified organic chicken layer pellets, which are certified free of any chemicals, and which also have a nice mineral combination added.
Minerals such as calcium and grit are important, especially for ducks that are unable to free range. However, if you allow your ducks some free range foraging time, they are very able to make great supplement choices for themselves. Call Ducks are excellent and busy foragers and will gobble up slugs, worms, insects, and greens. They make great garden companions. It is very fun watching them in the yard and garden! Providing your Call Ducks with time to forage is extremely beneficial for their health and well being.
Noise
Lastly, be aware that these ducks are louder than most other ducks. They were bred for calling over long distances! Position their enclosures to minimize noise carrying to neighbors.
All in all, Call Ducks are very fun and fulfilling birds to raise. They are also very collectible – with so many unusual and wonderful color variations!
Hey Tony, we only know of one call duck breeder, and that’s US! Sorry! ~Shannon
Thanks for. The info shahhon. Where are you located? Have a website. Feel free to text me any info. 916-813-6563.
Very interesting and informative.
PurelyPoultry.com sells Call Ducklings from about February to about June each year!
Thanks so much, Lori! Thanks for reading!
Hi care they good flyers? Do people wing clip of overhead cages aren’t an option? Thank you
Hi there, Josh,
The call ducklings can fly. They will clear a 4 foot fence without much effort at all. You can clip one of their wings to keep them unbalanced and keep them from flying away, but a taller fence might do the trick. Remember that if you choose to clip their wings, it’s like human bangs as they will need to be clipped every few months. Happy Flocking!! Let us know if you have any questions along the way, we are always here and are happy to help. ~Shannon
Would they be good house pets like bloggers that post cute ducks online who have their ducks living alongside them?
Hi Helen,
Ducks can certainly make good pets and can be very sweet and affectionate to their owners when handraised; however, I do want to add that if you plan to keep them in the house you’ll want to invest in an indoor pen and likely some duck diapers for when they are out and about on your floors. They do defecate quite a lot and are excellent at making water-based messes. You can find sellers on Etsy and Amazon who make them as well as diy videos on Youtube to make your own if you are feeling creative.
Hi Shannon, Thanks for the useful information. we have a male and female call duck both about a year old now. They were kept in a pen when we first had them then gradually roaming more and more as they got older and at first they had a paddling pool to swim in. We live in an old water mill on a river so next they progressed to the mill leat and finally at the end of last year they discovered the river. They would go off to the river firstly walking and latterly flying and after a while have been seen quite a way along the river, they always come home at night and go into their safe sleeping area and we would always let them out in the morning to be free. Peach laid 13 eggs in March and hatched 10 on good Friday they are adorable and such fun to watch. We have made a run from the sleeping area with a roof because of buzzards and have not let Colin {the male} in although he spends all day patrolling the boundary and seeing off hens or humans that come too close, My question is that I would like eventually for them all to have the freedom that we gave Peach and Colin and hope that they will teach the young to come back at night, When do you think it might be safe to let them start exploring? Do you think Peach will teach them to come back at night like her and Colin do? When the ducklings are a bit more independent would it be safe to let Peach and Colin go on their own {Peach is desperate to get on the river again}? Many Thanks
Hi Linda,
I bet the whole batch of them all waddling along is adorable to see! Once your ducklings are feathered out a bit around 5-6 weeks and can fly a bit, they should be fine to go out with their mama and should return home with her at night. They will usually follow their mother’s lead until they are closer to 6-7 months of age. I do want to note that younger ducklings of any type are more at risk for attack by predators in the water and from the air as well, like the buzzards you mentioned. Also with call ducks as a breed being smaller, they are always going to be at a little higher risk of predation. So there is that calculated risk to consider too when letting them go on the open river for day time excursions.
Hi,
We have seven ducklings born from our two adult call ducks. We had to bring them inside because last year when we let Momma duck take care of her babies it went very poorly. We lost all six. It seemed like Momma was doing good day 1. But she ignored them on day 2 and they didn’t survive. We raced to get a heat lamp and supplies but we by the time we got back, it was too late. This time, we were prepared and they have survived week 1.
Any tips for us as we move forward? They are eating and drinking well. I have fashioned a watered that they can get their heads wet but not more. They are eating organic duck crumbles from TSC. We have heat lamp and are monitoring the temp regularly.
To help with the heat may I suggest a thermostat so U can sleep at night and not have to check the temp all the time
thank you for the article