How To Call Coyotes

EDITOR'S NOTE: Hunting coyotes, the latest year-round sport for hunters, has enthusiasts all across the nation. Many states have no seasons or limits on taking coyotes. This week we'll learn information from one of my good friends and favorite hunting buddies in the outdoors, Tad Brown, the product-development manager for Outland Sports in Neosho, Missouri, the makers of M.A.D. and Lohman's calls.

QUESTION: Tad, what's the secret to calling coyotes? How do you call a coyote?

ANSWER: There's really no big secret to calling coyotes. It's just hard work. You have to go out there and get after them.

QUESTION: If I said, "Let's go call some coyotes," what would we do?

ANSWER: We'd go to an area that we knew had some coyotes, which would be the most important thing. You could determine where coyotes were by sign.

QUESTION: For what kind of sign are you looking?

ANSWER: Like deer and people, most coyotes and other predators travel the paths of least resistance such as farm trails and cow trails. You'll find their tracks, droppings or hair left behind when they go under fences. You want to concentrate on those regions, come in with the wind in your face and call in a place where you think they are, such as a draw or a thicket. They'll bed in those spots just like deer do.

QUESTION: At what time of day do you usually try to call coyotes?

ANSWER: First and last light are the most-productive times, but you can call them at all times of the day.

QUESTION: What kinds of calls do you use for coyotes?

ANSWER: Everything. I use hand-blown calls, open-reed and closed-reed calls, as well as electronic calls. They all work well.

QUESTION: What do you try to sound like?

ANSWER: I want to sound like any animal in distress. Most people attempt to sound exactly like a cottontail rabbit, a baby rabbit, birds or mice -- the key prey animals.

To receive a copy of Tad Brown's "10 Secrets to Taking More Coyotes," write Tad Brown, % Outland Sports, 4500 Doniphan Drive, Neosho, MO 64850; attention Kim Thurman.

TOMORROW: HOW TO MAKE A COYOTE SETUP

Check back each day this week for more about Hunting Coyotes, A Year-Round Sport...

Day 1 - How To Call Coyotes
Day 2 - How To Make A Coyote Setup
Day 3 - Timing And Changing Coyote Calls
Day 4 - Coyote-Hunting Equipment
Day 5 - Coyote Hunting Secrets

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