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I've been asked to write an article on my methods of selection & breeding of Call ducks. There have
been some extensive discussions on some of the forums lately on the importance of bloodlines and
I'd like to address that first. In The Call Duck Breed Book, by C. Darrel Sheraw, there is a history of
Calls in this country. The White Call, which has been my primary interest, seems to stem from one or
two breeders in the early part of the 1900s. Due to the expense & difficulty of importation, it is doubtful
that there are more than a few different bloodlines in the country today. Therefore, I'm more concerned
with type than I am with pedigree.

My first White Call was a drake bred by D. Clausing, FL., purchased from Wm. Ryan in 1989 by myself
as a rank amateur, who didn't know enough to know the bird was much too large to be competitive. I
did, however, realize that he was beautifully proportioned and a healthy, vigorous breeder. I still have
him . A couple years later, Art Lundgren generously sold me a small duck & helped me understand
what I needed to look for in my breeding program. I've followed his advice since that time, have line
bred exclusively from that original pair, only once purchasing new birds from the original Clausing
line and, now and then, obtaining a bird from someone I'd sold breeders to.

I select my pairs with an eye to what each can contribute to compliment what the other may lack. A
duck with a great body but lacking head type, for instance, may be paired with a drake that has what
she lacks. Calls are difficult at best and the breeder should be aware that "show quality" birds are
often not your best choice for breeding. The very type that places well in the showroom may produce
few, if any, offspring & they may be greatly inferior to the parent birds. I've been very lucky to have
produced many winners and credit that to the fact that I breed what I show. My birds tend to be a bit
larger than some judges think is desirable but I've accumulated 70 ABA starred wins in the past 9
years, including the ABA Nat'l. Champion Bantam in 1997. Many of the knowledgeable judges today
realize that if the trend to breed smaller and smaller Calls continues, we'll breed them out of
existence.

My breeding set-ups are simple. I generally use pair mating , sometimes switching one drake from
pen to pen if I'm using several ducks. Trio mating will work if a drake is aggressive enough but it's
easier to keep track of matings with a one on one system. Eggs are marked and ducklings are toe
punched according to matings. I have used "flock or pen" matings with sibling drakes with good
success. Competition seems to encourage aggressive mating. Since I don't have the luxury of
constantly running water, pans are changed daily, which stimulates breeding activity. I feed a year
round diet of an 18% waterfowl pellet, supplemented with small amounts of Red Cell in spring & lots
of greens. Ducklings are brooded in the house for a few days to assure health & that they're eating.
They are then placed outside in hutch type wet brooders. These have ceramic heat lamps in the
enclosed areas & floor level pans with hardware cloth ramps for free choice swimming. I feel they're
healthier and feather out faster than those brooded indoors for weeks. They're fed a 12% waterfowl
crumble, pond algae & chopped grass for 2-3 weeks, before being switched to a 14% pelleted feed.

The only advice I can give to newcomers to this breed is to not be easily discouraged. They're not an
easy project and good ones don't come regularly. However, there is a lot of satisfaction that comes
from knowing that you've produced something that places well in competition and have earned the
respect of your peers as a breeder. That's something that money can't buy!!