Brand new to coyote hunting

S

SuzukiGS750EZ

New member
Hey guys. New to coyote hunting. I live in CT. Currently have an icotec outlaw+ and have tried reading a fair bit but still unsure. I have a blind along a main trail on the 86 acres of private land I hunt. I get multiple coyote on my cameras at different times of the day. They’ve all but eradicated the deer, turkey, rabbit and squirrel population there.
I’m planning on hunting them with a 12ga. However, I’m unsure of what calls to send out, for how long to play them or what to or not to during different times of the day. The rest of the hunt I can handle, lol.
 
First, since you are going to use a shotgun you need to check your state laws on what loads you can use this time of year. Example, here in SC after deer season we can not use buckshot and #4 buckshot is a popular coyote load.

As for calling... This time of year is pretty tough because they have puppies. If you have them on camera during the day time hours then you probably have a den or two near by. You can try prey calls, but vocals may serve you better. Just make sure you are hunting a good wind, tuck into some bushes to break up your outline, be still, and let the call rip.
 
Once you get past killing one or two calling, it will be very difficult to keep them coming on only 86 acres. I expect you would be far better off since you already have a blind which they are used to seeing usng bait to attract them. There is a lot of info on successful baiting in one of the subforums. It's not as glamourous as calling, but with small acreage, it can be more successful.
 
DoubleUp said:
Once you get past killing one or two calling, it will be very difficult to keep them coming on only 86 acres. I expect you would be far better off since you already have a blind which they are used to seeing usng bait to attract them. There is a lot of info on successful baiting in one of the subforums. It's not as glamourous as calling, but with small acreage, it can be more successful.
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I agree. I have a 90ac tract that I used to bait a lot. I need to get back to it. I enjoyed it.
 
SuzukiGS750EZ said:
How long do you call? Do you do a howl for 20 minutes or 3 or? How about distress prey calls? When do you make the decision to shut it off?
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You are going to get a lot of different replies on these questions. This is what I usually do.

I almost always start off with a prey call because I like to see what I may call in. May be a fox, coyote, bobcat, etc.
I will run a call such as "cagie cottontail" or something similar for about ten minutes. If nothing comes in I will go silent for a little while. Then switch to a woodpecker or this time of year, a fawn. I run them about five minutes. If nothing comes in I will go silent for a while.
I will then try a vocal. I like something like a nonaggressive howl or a light fight call like "girl fight".

If nothing shows after that I usually leave or try "den raid" as a last ditch effort.
 
This time of yr. I would start out with a low volume (2-3 on my/your Icotec) distress for 3-5 min. (mouse, rat, bird, baby rabbit, woodpecker, etc./silence for 2-3 min. then some distress with varying the volume between 2 & 6 (rabbit, jack rabbit, kitten, anything that you like the sound of) for another 5 min. 2-3 min. of silence then a couple of howls at volume 7-8 (Apollo, Bean howls, Po Boy, Lone pup), silence again. finish with a pup fight followed by a couple pup distress sounds for another 5 min minimum. With your Outlaw don't be averse to playing a pup fight and pup distress or 2 pup distresses at the same time. Volume on the p. fight and p. distress should not be past 5 and could be ramped up and down. In another 3-4 weeks you could add fawn to the distress sounds. This set should take 25-35 min. of play time, and I almost always sit in silence for 15min after and kill a lot in that 15 min.
As Double Up told you, you will educate them quickly with the call on 86 acres especially calling from the same location and if you use the same sounds.
Good Luck and welcome to PM
 
On your Outlaw find the Luna howls…should be about 3 in a row. Start out with lonely and let it play a couple of cycles. Wait a few minutes and go with the invite and let it play a couple of cycles and after another few minutes of silence go with Hot to Trot and let it play a couple of cycles. If they ain’t running in by then you could try some of the pups sounds and Cage Match to finish off.This is working right now at night, but you could try it during the day.

For my rabbit sound I really like Thumper.

At night I play all my vocals on 10, and start my prey on 6 and move up to max and I let it play continuously. I’ve had cats and coyotes literally stick their nose in the call while playing at max volume with both vocals and prey distress.
 
Spurchaser said:
On your Outlaw find the Luna howls…should be about 3 in a row. Start out with lonely and let it play a couple of cycles. Wait a few minutes and go with the invite and let it play a couple of cycles and after another few minutes of silence go with Hot to Trot and let it play a couple of cycles. If they ain’t running in by then you could try some of the pups sounds and Cage Match to finish off.This is working right now at night, but you could try it during the day.

For my rabbit sound I really like Thumper.

At night I play all my vocals on 10, and start my prey on 6 and move up to max and I let it play continuously. I’ve had cats and coyotes literally stick their nose in the call while playing at max volume with both vocals and prey distress.
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I've had deer do the same.
 
I will say this, be careful with fawn distress sounds!! Have that call out there a ways because down here does will come in looking for blood and you don’t want to be mistaken for the cause of that distressed fawn sound!!
 
We have bobcat on the property too. I saw coyote pups on my cameras a year or two ago but I moved my cameras so they may not be going the same path I have them on now. But I get at least one coyote daily on camera
 
So what I was doing was running coyote yips and fawn/rabbit in distress. But only 3-5 calls and quiet. So I should run them for 5-10 minutes a piece?
 
I run a prey distress continuously for 8-10 minutes.

Vocals such as lone howls I let the call sequence play then pause. I do the same with fights.
 
Suzuki, those of us answering you are mainly night hunters. Here in SW PA vocals are pretty much worthless during the da except for the crack of dawn and the last hour of daylight. This time of year coyotes for whatever reason don't howl much at all here.
And as Spur said, l forgot the Luna and Hot to trot—very productive howls
 
It's not just whether or not you kill one or two and educate the remainder. Just calling on 86 acres is going educate every coyote on that property within two times calling. They will become progressively harder to call until they finally run the other way. You seem to be insistent on trying your calling ideas, but if your want to be successful as a coyote caller it is going to take a lot more land than 86 acres. It just isn't big enough to call more than perhaps 3 or 4 times a year IMHO. Good luck with your endeavor in any event.
 
After checking CT's coyote hunting regulations, it's illegal to hunt them during the open spring Turkey season, which starts on Wednesday the 7th.
Hunting from a tree stand would be better for scent control and spotting them as the foliage gets thicker.
Being it's fawn season, I would use fawn or lamb distress calls sparingly and be ready for action.
Good luck.
SJC
 
DoubleUp said:
It's not just whether or not you kill one or two and educate the remainder. Just calling on 86 acres is going educate every coyote on that property within two times calling. They will become progressively harder to call until they finally run the other way. You seem to be insistent on trying your calling ideas, but if your want to be successful as a coyote caller it is going to take a lot more land than 86 acres. It just isn't big enough to call more than perhaps 3 or 4 times a year IMHO. Good luck with your endeavor in any event.
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Yeah, I was mainly looking to hunt on that property to either deter or at least put a small dent in them. I was unaware they were that smart! I guess I’ll give it a shot in a month and see what happens. Would
Baiting be a bit more productive than just calling? We aren’t allowed to hunt them during dark hours.
 
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shoots100 said:
After checking CT's coyote hunting regulations, it's illegal to hunt them during the open spring Turkey season, which starts on Wednesday the 7th.
Hunting from a tree stand would be better for scent control and spotting them as the foliage gets thicker.
Being it's fawn season, I would use fawn or lamb distress calls sparingly and be ready for action.
Good luck.
SJC
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This is out of the 2025 hunting guide. I was unaware of the turkey season exclusion.
IMG_4830.jpeg
 
Suzuki, first off, welcome to Predator Masters. I can’t disagree with anything that has been mentioned by other members above. You have taken on a very challenging task in attempting to call daytime coyotes into shotgun range, during the day in the northeast. On a small property. I hope it works out for you, but iff you have already attempted it, you may have educated them to your presence which really diminishes your chances going forward.

You mentioned that you get trailcam pics. How often, and at what time of day? You mentioned that food sources have been depleted (eradicated) so I’m wondering if they’re resident coyotes or transients just passing through. Without knowing more aboutnyour property, it’s hard to know if your blind is setup with wind direction in mind of where the coyotes may come from? Do you have a good view of the downwind? Are you hunting woods or more open terrain? Where is your caller placed in relation to your shooting position? If you stick with this long enough, you’ll realize that setup is key to killing these jokers! Apps like OnX Hunt or even Google Earth are worth their weight in gold for seeing terrain features. If they can get downwind of your stand before you can get a visual of them, you’re screwed.

I’m in NY and can’t call this time of year, but I have a pretty good understanding of coyote behaviors at different times of the year. You’re dealing with denning, pup rearing coyotes right now for the most part. That’s not to say they’re all denning, just the breeding pairs. They don’t stand for other coyotes in their area so coyote vocals can absolutely work if you are in tight to them. They always have to eat, so prey distress is always on the table. These guys above gave you great information, so I’m not going to go into detail on what to play, or how long to play it. Just remember that what didn’t work today can work tomorrow. Nothing is 100%, ever. The best advice I can give you… Knock on doors and gain access to more spots to hunt. Don’t over hunt the spots you do have. Play the wind.

Good luck buddy!
 
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