606 DOMESTIC ANIMALS, DAIRYING, ETC. 



the drake is spoken of as abominable ; his persecution of other poul- 

 try is never ceasing. The standard weight of the adult drake is 10 

 pounds; adult duck, 7 pounds; young drake, 8 pounds, and young 

 duck, 6 pounds. 



Indian Runner Ducks. These ducks came originally from In- 

 dia; hence the name Indian. The term Runner comes from the 

 fact that they literally run instead of waddling like most ducks. 



The Indian Runner is a breed of small, utility duck noted for 

 its egg production, and is often termed the Leghorn of the duck 

 family. These ducks have been credited with records of more than 

 200 eggs each in flocks of ten, and of 192 eggs each in flocks of one 

 hundred. The Runners are active in their habits, are good foragers, 

 and on an extensive run are able to find a large proportion of their 

 food. They are nonsitters, are hardy and easily reared, but do not 

 stand confinement well. Their flesh is of a deep yellow color and is 

 of fine quality, but their small size is rather against them for market 

 purposes, except for broilers. The standard weight of the drake is 

 4% pounds and of the duck 4 pounds. 



Gray and White Call Ducks. They are bred more for the fancy 

 than for the profit there is in them for market, and are bantams. 

 There are two kinds of Call ducks, the Gray Call and the White 

 Call, and it is only a choice of plumage as to which is the better of 

 the two. They are both of one character as to size, shape, and habits, 

 and differ only as regards color. The Gray Call is very similar in 

 color of plumage to the Rouen, and is indeed called by many the 

 Bantam Rouen, and the White is generally called the Bantam Pekin. 

 Their uses are only for the showroom, or as decoy ducks for wild- 

 duck shooting. For the latter purposes they are sometimes crossed 

 with the common "puddle duck" or with the wild Mallard. This 

 latter cross is considered excellent, the progeny being distinguished 

 for tameness and domesticity. 



Description. When breeding Call ducks, smallness of size is the 

 first consideration; the smaller they are bred the better. The arts 

 of skillful breeding for the showroom are being used in keeping down 

 the size. 



Management of Ducks. Duck raising has been developed within 

 the last thirty years into a flourishing industry. Prior to that time 

 the duck was not considered a profitable fowl to raise; its flesh was 

 never prized very highly by the masses. Ducks were raised without 

 constraint in waterways, feeding mostly on fish and water insects. 

 This food gave the flesh a strong fishy flavor; hence it was not par- 

 ticularly sought after, save by the few who were partial to that class 

 of diet. The duck centers of Long Island and New England were 

 then producing a limited number each season, and it was with diffi- 

 culty that these were sold with any profit. In fact, one of the most 

 prominent duck raisers may be quoted as saying that he was obliged 

 to visit the city markets personally and tease the dealers to purchase 

 his birds, in order to secure anything like satisfactory prices. 



Artificial incubation and brooding, combined with judicious 

 feeding, have been instrumental in the development of the industry. 



