How long to wait after a miss?

S

sosignal32

New member
Some of you may have read my post, "Called in a double, missed them both." I was wondering how long y'all would wait to try calling on/in the same area after you've shot and missed? In my limited experience it seems the ones who got shot at make flyers warning the others. And the flyer reads: "Ok, do not go to the sound of the rabbit, or the mouse squeaks. And remember if it sounds to good to be true, it's to good to be true."
 
I wish there was a right answer for this. Let's see...how about 14 and a half days? LOL. Seriously though, people will suggest all kinds of time frames you must adhere to before trying that area again. Which is the correct one? Dunno. So many variables influence whether a coyote responds or not, it would be impossible to give a correct answer.

I believe that some coyotes that have had a brush with death may never respond to distress calls ever again. Others, it might just take a sound change and different stand location to make them let their guard down. If I really wanted to call that area, and I had limited places to call, I may show back up in a couple weeks and give it another go.

One way to get around that "flyer" that the previous survivors have circulated, is to wait till breeding starts and utilize howling. This is a whole different animal. Chances are, they will not associate this with anything negative. Plus that time of year they are aggressive and more likely to investigate the source of any howling.

If it was me, I would let it rest longer and call somewhere else for a little bit. I got enough places to call that I rarely call the same areas more than two or three times a year. Many only once.

That's just me though and I am in no way implying it is right.

Take care, Curt
 
Thanks for the information. Too many places to hunt is a problem I don't have. And when I am allowed on some land the farmers and ranchers want dead coyotes, not trained ones. That's part of what made the miss on the doubles so disappointing. I think I'll try again next month. Thanks, again, for the response. All information is appreciated.
 
Hey sosignal32!

Good question. I usually wait about a month before going back. When I do go back to that area I usually start with a different call than I used before.

TNT
 
They wont go "Vegan" cause someone shot at them once. Coyotes will still be territorial and curious and even hungry. Think about it.

We called the same pair in today that we called in last Saturday (and shot at and missed) and even at the same stand location with the same setup. (Missed again too.) These were large and distinct colored coyotes that were easily recognizable.

You definitly wont call them in if you dont even try.

I call the same 6-7 general locations ALL YEAR and even make the same stands and I miss ALOT of coyotes, yet they still come in quite nicely. I think you guys are giving coyotes WAYYYY too much credit.
 
Hmmm, I think it is rather optimistic to assume that there are as many or that all coyotes are as easy to call as AZ coyotes. Apples to oranges when comparing most states.

I fail to see how calling the same six stands in AZ somehow sets precedence for coyote intelligence across the country?

There is a reason you hear frequent stories of twenty coyotes being taken in a day from AZ. I'm certainly not questioning the skill of callers from those areas but I am also certainly not going to believe that they are any more skilled, or have any more "fortitude" than callers from out East who may be lucky to get a few coyotes a year.

I promise you won't get away with those calling tactics up here or out East. Around here a few good outings in one area and success will most likely taper off sharply till next season or at least for a few months. No going back 6 times and re-calling and re-shooting at the same coyotes. If I told that to people around here they would fall out of their chairs laughing. Rotating calling areas is mandatory here or you will be wasting your time and gas money eventually.

I invite any of the desert callers to come on up and show us how it's done though. Maybe I'm just a crappy caller. Free room and board while your here...if you can do what you do down there...up here.

An exception can be found to any "rule". One thing is certain though, if a caller keeps pounding the same spots over and over around this area, he will ruin the calling spots he has eventually.

I'm happy to admit though, I don't have much experience calling coyotes I've missed. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif
 
Curt you better be ready I like to eat!!! I have hunted in your area further north 15 years ago and did prity good. Never left 100 square miles. hunted 3 months never ran out of dogs.Down hear last summer I called in 2 dogs for a frend I killed one he missed. Second stand 1 more miss. The folowing weekend same 2 stands 2 dead dogs one had a 22 cal. hole in his ear. I usualy give the area at least 1 week rest depending how many people hit the area. Lots of peaple diffrent calls and aproch. God hunting Kevin
 
This is what happend to me this fall from a singal stand.I hit it the first week of oct. and called a dog in right before dark and got him.Went back 4 days later, another kill.I went 5 times in a row over 2 1/2 week period and killed every time. I kept telling myself I would keep going until nothing showed up.The 6th stand produced a double coming in to a hart decoy which I screwed up and got nothing.[Just when I think I'm getting good;how humbeling]Went a few days later and nothing showed. So I figured I better lay off a wnile.I found alot of new areas to hunt so it was 3 weeks before I went back. Last Sat. I called another in from the same stand.Thats 6 this year from the same tree.I must admit there is a high population in this area and I'm the only one calling there.I want to wait til mating season until I start howling, I think thats going to produce too.You can do as you as you see fit but I thought this might give you something to think about, it did me.By the way, I used the same call every time,crit'r call.Good luck.
 
Curt,

As I said, this is not a one time event.

Please add to the mix that Im not the only caller calling these places either. We have 3 BIG clubs in town alone and this is the 6th largest Metro in the Country. Areas Im in are All public land. We only get new coyotes once a year. If all these coyote were only going to hear a distress call once and NEVER come back in, we shouldnt see anything but "volunteers" after October. Were talking about ROOT behavior of fear and avoidance here, not learning to rub against a handicap button to open gates. East West North South, Longitude and Latitude shouldnt matter.

While AZ does have a good number of coyotes, more importantly we have a lot of PUBLIC LAND to access freely that offers a lot of calling opportunity, however not all the ground is "prime", believe me... All the Public Land is what makes Arizona a wonderful calling state

Which therefore only leads to everlasting debate topic, which is smarter, "Eastern Coyotes or Western Coyotes ?" (I dont think its the coyotes /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif )
 
My expirience with missing is rather vast!! I still have called in coyotes the next weekend at the same stand. On the other hand, some stands after a miss, didnt produce. I think that here in IA, the coyotes travel so dang much, that you wouldnt probably get the smae one(s) to respond in a weeks time frame. I would just use your gut feeling and go from there. You will never no if they respond or not if you dont try. Like was said before, you might try a different call.
 
As I said, "An exception can be found to any "rule".".

Guys that's great. I have no doubts that it can be done. I've done it many times. I've called back coyotes I've missed at the same stand. No biggie. We all have areas we can go to over and over and produce.

But, if you want your calling to stay productive, you should rotate your calling areas. If you have a dense pocket of coyotes, yes you can get away with more frequent calling in one spot. Day in and day out though, most places I call it's better to let your areas rest at least a little and not pound them. I have no desire to keep going back to the same area over and over till I wiped them out. I want enough coyotes left so it will be good calling the next year.

Believe me, I have tried the "hammer them till nothing shows" technique. It does work for awhile but normally bites you in the butt latter. The big question is do you want these area to remain productive?

Barry, chances are you will keep getting coyotes a couple more times. But when you are done, you will regret it. There will be a time when they quit coming and you will be in for a nice dry spell.

We have a fella around here that got into calling a few years back. By coincidence he called a lot of the same areas I call. The guy would make the same route every week, sometimes two days in a row. He got a few coyotes at the beginning. Soon nothing showed up any more to his stands (or mine) but he would see truckloads of coyotes in the field. Kinda like you guys, he just couldn't figure it out. One mis-informed person turned a great calling area in to a non-productive hole that nobody could call, by just calling too much.

Needless to say, he had the area so fouled with his bad calling practices that I was forced to find fresh areas. Frustrating knowing coyotes are there but they won't respond because somebody didn't have the foresight to do the right thing. He pretty much gave up last season out of frustration. Already seeing the positive effects of him not over calling this season.

I would rather call an area too little than too often. If farming non-productive holes is your goal then call the same spot every week. I wish people were as easy to educate as coyotes. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif

Later, Curt
 
after 3 years youd think "my" spots would be unproductive by now... hmmmm. and I dont even go to church, so cant be god's blessings.

Obviously there's limits in anything.. otherwise I would only have 1 calling location and not 6 or seven. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif

Recommending only Calling a spot once or twice a year only is OVERKILL... thats the same load that I was told by "experts" when I got started and is disservicing information. Course then maybe maybe people tell folks that on purpose. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif

What phase is the moon in anyway ?
 
People, I can see I aked a question there are many different opinions on. All of it has been informative. Thank you all. Keep them coming. I'll try that ranch again towards the middle or end of December. There are some other callers around but I have faith in my variations and techniques.

And on another note. My family owns about 500 acres near Covington Texas. Farmland and pastures, mostly flat stuff, in this particular area. No scrub and too few trees on our place. I went tried one stand using a gravelly jackrabbit. I then moved about 1/4 mile south, and did somthing I hardly ever do this time of year: two rather high pitched lone howls. Then I waited about 3 minutes and hit the jackrabbit again. A streak came running through the dead johnson grass and I had to bark to stop him before he got behind me. 22-250 put him down at about 30 yards to my left. Very nice about 2 year old, large, male, 'yote. (He'd been into a skunk, wheeew!) Point is I hard not thought much about using howls with my distress cries this time of year. But, I had read of some folks doing it on this forum and decided to give it a try. In my opinion, and I'll never know for sure, the howls got his attention. So, when we share toughts and ideas, we can all benefit. Thanks again.
 
How often to call the same spot probably depends more on the available food source, than on how stupid the coyotes are.There have been X that I called in a yote,they appear in my face so fast that my reaction was to swat at there face,get up to take a shot and they'd be gone. I Sit back down call some more. get up thinking I had blown the stand, and find the same coyote standing behind the sage I called from. All I can say is that they were stupid or very very hungry.( I think starving )
 
Who suggested calling a spot once or twice a year?

I said that is what "I" prefer to do because I have enough places to call I don't have to wear my welcome out at any one spot. And because we don't have 1000s of hard up coyotes competing for food, that respond to a squeaky door hinge like you do.

Heck call the same spot every day for all I care if it's working. If you can get away with what you are doing, go for it Robb. I really wish it worked like that in the real world. Apples to oranges.

I'm just saying the tactics you speak of will not work for me here. No way no how. I've tried it and it doesn't work.

Have I once said my advice was the right answer. No. Here is a recap...

"I wish there was a right answer for this. Let's see...how about 14 and a half days? LOL. Seriously though, people will suggest all kinds of time frames you must adhere to before trying that area again. Which is the correct one? Dunno. So many variables influence whether a coyote responds or not, it would be impossible to give a correct answer."

No right answer.
 
Oh yeah, sosignal32, way to go on that coyote! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif

Hard to say what enticed it more. The howling or distress or both. Nice job though.

Later, Curt
 
Originally posted by White Hunter:
[qb]Don't know about you boys but I try not to call the same dog twice in same season. Except (as you say) mating season with a howler.[/qb]
Click to expand...
Curt: see above

As far as AZ coyotes being "beyond plentiful" and "easy-takings", please review the PM Hunt success results over the last 2 years as an indicator where not all calling was restrained to the Reservation. Your bubble of AZ being a drastically overwhelming "Coyote Paradise" will most likely burst. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif LOL (in a good way)
 
Every state has non-productive areas. I'm basing my opinion of coyote population on what I have been told by callers that live elsewhere and have called in AZ. They report how easy it is to call coyotes down there vs. most other places they've called.

Personally, I think the main advantage is the large amount of public land like you said and a larger coyote population and prey base in some areas. I don't think the coyotes are any dumber or smarter. Probably just more of them competing for food.

Heck, if you based coyote population on what was taken during a contest, people would think there are no coyotes in the NW. Every time we have a calling get together here, very few coyotes are taken. I think someone spikes the food with coyote repellent or something.

I'm going to change my response to this thread to "just call when you can and do your best".

Good luck
 
I tried experimenting with this scenario of hunting the same area. I nailed a coyote the first time I hunted it and one escaped before I could reload. I tried calling in the same place the next day--nothing. I tried calling in the same place two days later--nothing. I tried calling the next day--nothing. The wind was out of the same direction every day.

There are a lot of coyotes in this area I hunt and I thought maybe a new one would move in, but so far I haven't seen any new responders. Lots of variables to consider. Coyotes may have a howl or a bark that tells others of trouble in a particular area. These animals are very intelligent and probably remember "conversations" as well as close encounters with us for a long time.
 


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