# Why do the ducks fly away when I start calling?



## weasle414 (Dec 31, 2006)

...do the ducks turn and fly away when I start calling? I've had little luck getting ducks to come towards my decoys when I start calling. I've called a couple mallards and a few teal in, but most ducks do a complete 180 when I start calling. I don't know what the deal is, but it's really starting to make me mad(sort of, more like discouraged). I had 3 teal come into my spread this morning without me even having to call, but when I see ducks and start quacking away on my Nag they just turn right around and go away. I know it's hard for someone to figure out what I'm doing wrong without being there or hearing my calling, but what could some of the problems be? I do feeding duck and hail calls for the most part if that helps at all.


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## sawed_off_stump89 (Oct 14, 2007)

i hail call very seldom...just some suttle quacks.... a little comback.....and feeder


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## h2ofwlr (Feb 6, 2004)

Hail calls are seldom used by meat hunters. Greeter and feeder is it.

They also could be call shy being likely they are local ducks that have been hammered for 2 weeks now. Think of it this way, every time a guy hollers out "come here" and you get shot at, what would you do the next time somebody says come here?


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## Hardsell (Jan 29, 2007)

It could be your calling.

Have you had anyone who's good listen too you? They could maybe tell you a thing or two you might want to improve that might help.


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## cmhlop72 (Feb 24, 2007)

dont call when theyre heading towards you and looking, if you call and it hooks them and they start coming towards you, just a few lone quacks while theyre coming in then chuckles and groups of quacks while they are circling away from you


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## weasle414 (Dec 31, 2006)

Everyone's got really valid points that I haven't thought of. I have yet to have anyone with any real duck hunting experience listen to me calling, so I think I should talk to some friends and see what they say about it. I was also under the impression that you should keep calling even when they're on their way in so that may be a big factor, too. I've also been hunting in the same place for about 5 days now so I think I should probably try to find a new spot, all the ducks that hang around that lake probably know my whole setup and whatnot.


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## rsetty (Dec 5, 2006)

Go to Cabela's, or Gander mtn. and buy a duck calling CD. They are always located by the calls. They will teach you how to make certain calls and also let you listen to how each call should sound. You can practice calling to a CD while driving to and from work, or wherever you're driving....that's how I learned.


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## weasle414 (Dec 31, 2006)

I've got a problem with the CD thing, though. I don't have a CD player in either of my vehicles. I've got the Mastering the Arts DVD, though. It seems to be pretty good but it's hard to watch for more than 10 minutes or so. Will Primos makes me feel like I'm getting dumber when I listen to him speak. He probably knows what he's talking about, but he's hard to follow, lol.


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## sawed_off_stump89 (Oct 14, 2007)

you can play the waterfowl cds in your dvd player..... that would help you a lot with calling.... it did me


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## dfisher (Oct 12, 2007)

_*When I was younger, I got a recorder and taped myself calling and then played it back and worked on trying to sound better. I think that helped a lot.

If you're on the money...and if they're looking for a place to land and rest, you can see mallards react to it as soon as they hear it. They stutter a bit, lock up and begin turning back to investigate. When they're like that, they can pass over and be heading away and a high ball will turn them on a dime.

Maybe you're ducks are going to feed and not really interested in dropping by for a visit.

Good luck and good hunting,
Dan* _


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## Bloodyblinddoors (Oct 25, 2006)

dfisher said:


> _*When I was younger, I got a recorder and taped myself calling and then played it back and worked on trying to sound better. I think that helped a lot.
> 
> If you're on the money...and if they're looking for a place to land and rest, you can see mallards react to it as soon as they hear it. They stutter a bit, lock up and begin turning back to investigate. When they're like that, they can pass over and be heading away and a high ball will turn them on a dime.
> 
> ...


VERONICA CORNINGSTONE AND I HAD SEX LAST NIGHT AND WE ARE IN LLLOOVE!!!!


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## takem1 (Feb 20, 2007)

If your not a good caller then you'd be better off leaving the calls at home.


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## T Shot (Oct 4, 2002)

Bloodyblinddoors said:


> VERONICA CORNINGSTONE AND I HAD SEX LAST NIGHT AND WE ARE IN LLLOOVE!!!!


 Good one 8)


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## goosegrinder (Mar 4, 2005)

If you have hunted the same place and have screamed at them in the same way each time, try not calling. Or,just a quack here and there. I've never heard a live bird on the water do a hail call continously to get flying birds down. :wink: Possibly your setup is completely wrong and maybe how well your'e hidden too.Lots of things to consider.

Alex


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## blhunter3 (May 5, 2007)

If the ducks are coming in without calling DONT CALL. only call when the ducks are far away and when they are turn away from you. dont blow hard, just make some quacks. just try blowing into your call, quit, quit, quit. thats all you will ever need


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## live slow die old (Sep 28, 2007)

I think the buck gardener cd helped me out alot.. that and blowing it 2 and from work every day


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## DUHunt (Oct 17, 2007)

Once they start coming toward you, only a few soft quacks and feeding calls. When they swing, give them a greeting call but only call on the corners. You really need to get someone close to home to help you with your calling, kind of like a mentor.


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## djleye (Nov 14, 2002)

They do that when Field Hunter stars calling too. :laugh:

Mr Fisher, Please get rid of the green caps!!!!! uke:


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## Field Hunter (Mar 4, 2002)

Or it could be the YELLOWWWWWWWWW!!!!!! Gander Mountain Cap that djleye wears in the blind!


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## 870 XPRS (Mar 12, 2003)

djleye said:


> Mr Fisher, Please get rid of the green caps!!!!! uke:


I'll second that motion.


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## Loos802 (Oct 8, 2007)

Are you playing the wind right? Ducks will land into the wind. Whats your spread like? Do they have a place to land? What "words" are you saying into your call, for quack I say wick quit voit or doit the hail call is tough because a wrong note can flair a duck,the hail call consits of 5 to 19 notes, I dont use it very often, I however use a sit down call which is a few fast notes wick wick wick tappering off loud to soft. I also use the feeder call or a close in call, you can use the words tickit or duga. Most importantly you do not blow into a call you grunt into it useing your diaphram. Its hard to explain how to use a duck without showing someone how to use a call, I have used many tapes and cds the two I like the best is mallard talk and the Buck Gardner cd experiment with many different calls untile you find one you like I use a marshland call but I dont recommend for a new caller its a hard blower, I also use the Buck Gardner dual tone call, and the big river they are not to expensive and they seem to work I would stay away from the lohman or the faulks calls. I hope this helps practice practice practice.


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## weasle414 (Dec 31, 2006)

I got it all figured out, the Primos Nag sucks, lol. I tuned my old Green Wing call to sound like a mallard and voila! I haven't had a problem getting them to respond. I think the problem is just that the Nag is such a popular call around here the ducks know the tone of it. I even called in a flock of teal and shot them up, and called them in again when they started flying away. I didn't have anymore shells in the gun the second time around, but that's alright, it was still friggin sweet!


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