Confidence Decoys

Question:

I am in the process of building my decoy spread and would like to add some "confidence" decoys to it.  What are some of the best types of "confidence" decoys and what are some of the ways to incorporate them into my hunting rig?

-Mike Carter

Answer:

Mike,

Great question and I have always been a fan of seeding in some out of the norm decoys to make my spread look more lifelike. I remember when I was a kid my father special ordered 2 dozen Herter’s coot decoys which we used as confidence decoys, and while we were teased unmercilessly by our friends about having water chickens in our spread, they were very effective. If you have a large number of coots near your shooting area, I would consider adding a dozen. 

Another approach we had great success with was swan decoys. While swans were not legal game in Minnesota where I grew up, we would add 3-4 to our late season diver spread when the swans were coming through. You could see those decoys from long distances and they would help to attract the attention of passing flights of ‘bills and ringnecks.

I would also suggest adding sleeping decoys or duck butts in your puddle duck spread.

I hope this helps and great hunting!!!!

John Devney

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