How many , How often?

wv_yoter · August 16, 2007, 10:29:08 PM

I'm just curios how many stand's do you line out each year, and how often do you call them. I'm just asking because my partner and I are new and we have found about eight place's so far but we don't plan to hunt them until late September.We are confident in are area's but it's so thick that we are just not confident til the leaves fall because of the visibility in the wood's.

keekee · August 17, 2007, 12:13:19 AM

As many as you can find!

I work all summer and fall every year finding areas to hunt, new spots, checking out old areas. I try not to call my spots more than a couple times a season. Unless I haft to to keep the farmer happy, and I have a couple of these places that I hunt. I will hunt areas around there farm as well, to spread things out some. We make ALLOT of stands every year, but between me and JD we get allot of land to hunt. I am fortunate to have allot of government land here close as well, and I am just 15 min from KY. So I can hunt both states as well.

The more land and spots you get the better off you will be.

Brent

centerfire_223 · August 17, 2007, 05:54:18 AM

I am just the opposite of Keekee, I have plenty of land to hunt but I also have my favorite spots that always seem to produce. Those spots get called several times a year and I always seem to call in coyotes throughout the year, at those spots.

I've always looked at it this way, If I call a stand and don't get a response. Then one of 3 things has happened; 1. either they weren't home and couldn't hear the call, 2. They were home and just wasn't interested in making the trek over to see what was going on, or 3. They came in and I either killed it or never seen it. Which could be the case at times. I can't remember very many times that I've had coyotes slip in on me, that I didn't hear coming first. There have been a couple but not many.

I think we give coyotes a little bit to much credit sometimes, from watching myself try to train my dog, it takes him several times of doing something to semi get the hang of it. I am sure some dogs grasp things faster than others, but I don't think its a one shot deal. So those coyotes that hear a sound and don't come right then but decide to come later, these coyotes smell where we have been. I don't think they add it all up and figure out what the plan was.

Here is another thing I have thought about, most of the places I hunt has a lot of people traffic. By that I mean farmers in their pastures on a regular basis or hunter being in the woods all the time. These coyotes are use to the smell of humans, and if those farmers aren't shooting at them every time they see them I don't think they associate that with dire danger.

That is just some of my thoughts, and I could be way off base but that is what I have noticed.

KySongDog · August 17, 2007, 06:00:04 AM

Ronnie
Off base?? Ya seem to have those LBL yotes figured out so I don't think so.

CCP · August 17, 2007, 08:42:16 PM

With only 3 responses to this thread I already find it very informative.

1st off I basically have the same response as Kee and find and agree with him from what I have found in my area. This shows just how much difference and at the same time be similar. (does that make sense)

I think density of coyotes and pressure may be the difference. I also try not to call my spots more than a couple of times a year.

QuoteI can't remember very many times that I've had coyotes slip in on me, that I didn't hear coming first.

This may be the difference. Most of the coyotes we call here sneak in and don't come running they almost always fight to get to the down wind side here.. Don't get me wrong we do have 10 to 20% that do come blindly bolting in. Of course this works well for us because we get more satisfaction from fooling the sneakers than a blindly bolting coyote.

Now one of the things to take into account is I scout everywhere I hunt extremely well and many many times before I hunt. We have a pretty good idea that the coyotes are in the area before we go call it. So if we make a stand in an area and get no response we think three things 1. we were wrong and the coyote was not there or 2. The coyotes were there but were call shy or 3. The coyotes were there and we were busted without knowing it. We tend to usually go with 2 or 3 and lay back awhile before returning.

QuoteI think we give coyotes a little bit to much credit sometimes, from watching myself try to train my dog, it takes him several times of doing something to semi get the hang of it. I am sure some dogs grasp things faster than others, but I don't think its a one shot deal.

Ronnie the only thing I see wrong here is we can eradicate the dog population in a short time and there is no way to eradicate the coyote population so they are on a totally different level.

I think Ronnie has taught me something on the LBL coyotes. In the past 5 years I have only called in 12 coyotes and 5 bobcats there. All the coyotes ran in except two one Lighterknot could not get a shot at and the other my son could not get a shot at. The others were bolting in real fast and I was a single shot pistol shooter then. My son did get to bust off a few rounds and I lost one.

The run and gun tactics there calling the fast runners absolutely works. The past two years at LBL have been a bust for me and Aaron I think because of the areas we hunted (trapping zones) and because we were setting up for the sneakers.

So to try and answer the original question I would have to say. If you are hunting a good population with no pressure then hunt those as often as the coyotes let you successfully hunt them. As the success rate changes then change your tactics accordingly.

QuoteThe more land and spots you get the better off you will be.

This is one of the truest statements there is. The more land you have the more success you will have Barr none.

wv_yoter · August 17, 2007, 09:15:59 PM

Thanks for the advice guy's I appreciate it.

keekee · August 18, 2007, 07:23:03 AM

QuoteSo to try and answer the original question I would have to say. If you are hunting a good population with no pressure then hunt those as often as the coyotes let you successfully hunt them. As the success rate changes then change your tactics accordingly.

I will try and give you some idea of how I judge this, on a spot per spot basis.

If I have a area or a farm that the coyotes are giving the farmer trouble, I haft to hunt this spot. This would be one of the spots were I would call multiple times a year. How I would judge the coyotes as to how often I would call this spot is tough. One I go off gut feeling. I take the size of the farm or farms around it and see how many stands I can make in the area and not call the exact same spot over and over. I look at the way the coyotes respond in this area to. If they come charging in, sneak in or whatever. Also, If I call a coyote in and kill it, then I am good to go, I may not give the spot as much time off. If I call one in and don't get a shot but I wasn't busted I will just change calling set up and sounds on the next trip. If I call one in and miss or get busted, I give them some time off. These are spots were I would have a WAY down wind shooter as well. To make sure I cover all my bases, I'm not looking for film here just dead coyotes.

Brent

Bopeye · August 19, 2007, 08:50:38 AM

I think this is one of the toughest parts for most of us when it comes to coyote hunting.

How often to call an area is sometimes merely just a roll of the dice. Rich, Ronnie and Kee all bring up some very valid points.

Chet and I have one farm we hunt that is loaded with coyotes, but to successfully hunt it, the wind must be absolutely right that day. I've only seen it that way maybe twice. The terrain gives far too much advantage to the coyote in any other kind of wind.
We have several spots that have coyotes that are more or less a hit or miss proposition. I believe them to be a transistional zone for the coyotes and not their core areas, but areas they occasionally hunt. Sometimes they are home and sometimes not.

We have one very large farm that we see coyotes almost everytime we go, but get's almost too much human activity. Almost everytime we go, someone shows up on a four wheeler, tractor or something, which can and will put the coyotes on a more heightened state of alert. Just plain out makes it harder to hunt.

Then we have a lot of places to hunt that we just don't have much confidence in and might just hunt them once or twice a year. The sign is there, but not enough to convince us they are there very much.

Last year at the LBL was by far the most coyotes in the fewest amount of sets I have ever seen. We made something like six sets the whole time we were there and called in seven coyotes. I wish I lived a tad bit closer to the LBL, I'd hunt it all the time. Easiest and most productive time I have had as far as calling them since I began coyote hunting.