My Airedale's first coyote action

CatDog

CatDog

New member
My 7 month old Airedale, Luna and I went out today to call for a bobcat. Set up e-caller, and after about five minutes a coyote comes in, Both Luna and I spotted the coyote at the same time, her ears stood up and she got excited. I lip squeaked the coyote to about 65 yards from us, I wanted it in closer because I was using my 12 gauge, but the yote saw me and luna and acted like he might want to head out so I let him have some #4 buckshot.

The buckshot didnt take him down at that yardage but put enough hurt in him that his backside was dragging on the ground when he headed out. Luna and I got up to look for the coyote, which Luna found hiding under a cedar tree. Put another round of buckshot in him to kill him. She is going to make a good hunting partner!

f9e1108a.jpg
 
Catdog,

Good job bud,give lil' luna a pat on the head for me.
Did luna get on the coyote or is she to young and still in training?
I plan on getting a calling dog someday,i think it will add alot of fun to calling.ME
 
Got a question. Did you give Luna any special training to keep her from being gunshy? My airdale male heads for a hole whenever I step out the door with anything that even looks like a gun. Don't know why cuz he's never been shot at that I know of. Any ideas on how to get him over it? I think he likes to hunt because he killed every cat that I had on the place.
 
although my dog isnt an airdale (spelling?) i figured id post.

i have a 1 yr old lab-x female that goes hunting for everything....rabbits, squirrel, waterfowl, grouse, and coyotes (lets me know wen one is around cuz her hair stands up and she stares in the direction in which she smells or hears it)

shes so energetic and a great flusher but yet wen u sit and call for anything she calms right down and just sits beside ya....she hasnt had any training.

anyways, if she even sees one article of clothing thats camo she gets really excitied....but wen we get the guns out.....man oh man....she literally jumps completly off the ground on too us knocking us over occasionally....and wen we raise our guns to shoot she looks at the end of the barrel to see which way its pointing and then looks that way to spot the game and right after we shoot she goes and gets it.

she is a great dog for not being trained one bit besides sit, stay, etc. i just think its kinda cool that we got a great hunting dog and we didnt even have to train her.

just figurin id give ya'll sumthin to read.

ch312
 
Congrats! My airedale got to listen and see a coyote yesterday, he has seen a few snared coyotes and several foxes, but not many coyotes that were called in. Too bad I missesd the coyote.

My dale will sit at the stand with me now (didn't always) and will wait until I shoot, and head full speed to see what I shot. Not real effective for helping bring coyotes in, but real nice for finding them. Also kind of a pain if you trying to plink, you have to tie him up or he will be checking out the target after every shot, LOL
 
Catdog , I used an airedale for years , never lost a wounded coyote or bobcat .The trouble I had was making him stay untill I could shoot .He wanted to attack before the shot ! One thing , I would remove the coller while hunting , in close combat , the coyote will either go for the throat or the guts .The coller will provide a handle to grab .Those dogs will hunt anything that moves .It's up to you to decide what .If you let him run rabbit or deer or anything that you don't want , it will very difficult to stop .They won't quit a track , can't even call them off .Also you probably already know , They have great personality and are damn loyal . Anyway , great pup , good luck------Tom
 
Mike Eversol Luna did not get the coyote, I was happy to have her with me and call in something that she actually saw and was excited about getting after. With enough exposure to calling, she will get the hang of what I expect her to do, which for coyotes for now is decoy dog and helping me detect the presence of cats when I cant see them. I would like her to bring in the coyotes to me but that will be sometime down the road and maybe a radio collar at that point. She is still pretty hard to control at times during a stand, to hyper of a pup yet! Yes! Get you a dog for calling, they are sure fun.
VRMTHNT Thanks!
Kenlguy Negative on the special training. Just started shooting guns around her since she was four months old and it never bothered her. I have no ideas at this time as to how to get her over the fear of guns. If I learn of anything I will let you know. Just keep taking her out with you and maybe she will come around with time.
BobMc Thanks! I have been having a blast with Luna. Alot of stands that dont produce anything but she is getting the hang of what we are doing. It was nice seeing her reaction when the coyote came in. I would have had a difficult time finding the wounded coyote, but Luna took me right to her. Later!
canadian hunterThat's pretty neat, you must spend alot of time with your dog on hunts for her to learn those things so quick. Thanks for the post!
Shane Watson Thanks! How old is your Airedale? I still have problems keeping Luna still during a stand, but I believe as she gets older she will learn to stay still. Did you train your dog to keep still on a stand or did it come natural? Luna knows the sit command but I have a hard time enforcing it during a stand.
 
Kenlguy,

I am no dog trainer by any stretch of the imagination! But, I have raised my share of Cattle dogs and I shoot A LOT!

I think that a good many dogs are ruined for gun fire quite by accident. The sudden and loud muzzle blast is just too much for an inexperienced pup.

I think that for all practicallity, once a dog is quite soured on gun fire, you are wasting your time. BUT, if you catch the gun shyness early, you stand a good chance reversing it!

Enough BS. All that I do is to work one on one very patiently with a pup that's having trouble. Start with an empty gun. Love the dog, then work the gun a little, you know, cycle it, rattle it around (very little). Love the dog lots. Back and forth. A little metallic noise and more love and encouragement. No shooting for quite a while. Read your dog!!! Only dish out what he/she can tollerate. Don't make it too long of a session. Short and sweet! Always very positive, never scold, always praise!!

Now, when you feel that it is time to sling some lead, if possible, start w/ a BB or Pellet gun. If not, then get some .22 shorts. Very little shooting, lots of love, lots of encouragement. And at that, more gun rattle and shooting.

Now, if you have an older dog that is fine with shooting and the pup and the old salt get along OK, by all means, include the old dog. Love him too so the pup thinks that shooting is a "pack thing". Shooting equals happiness and fun!

Don't get in to too big a rush. It only takes moments to ruin a good dog. If you are patient, you will have the rest of the dog's life to be thankful that you took your time. Read the dog, act accordingly.

Both of my current dogs, father and son team, sleep through big shooting sessions now and both when they were pups were literally crapping in their drawers at the sight of a gun when they were puppies!!

Now, if I had the secret on getting them to wait until I shot and 'ote, I would have a pair of hunting/cattle dogs!

Mark
 
MHerke,

Your advice was good. I want to take this gunshy issue one step further.

I was a professional gundog trainer for about ten years. Gunshyness was one issue I dealt with A LOT!

First off, it's ideal to get a pup when they are about 7 weeks old. At that point, the pup should be exposed to a lot of gunshots in a controlled setting. Pups that age are not naturally afraid of much of anything. If started young enough, chances of being gunshy are almost zero. When I have a litter of pups out here, I start shooting around them when they still have their eyes closed. I've never had a gunshy dog.

But, that's not the case here. The good news is that gunshyness can be cured in a high number of cases. There's a Music CD out now that plays music with some gunshots mixed in. It's a progressive thing with eventually more and more gunshots that get louder and louder and less and less music. It sounds crazy but it works. If someone were going to try this, they'd have to follow the directions religiously!

I don't have the name of that CD but if you do an internet search for "Gun Shyness" I'm sure you can find it. Otherwise, go to a bird dog board and ask about it. Someone will be able to guide you to the right place.

Good luck with that dog!

Randy
 
I had a neighbor that had a german shorthaired pointer. I was a wonderful pheasant dog, except it was gun shy. He took it to the trap range all summer, did no good. He finally found a lp gas boomer. They used to use them to scare off black birds in the sunflower fields. He hooked up a 80 lb cylinder and started it up to boom every 2 minutes. It worked, but I also think it affected the dogs hearing. He had it to close.
 
Cat Dog-

My dog is now 2yrs old. Whe I first started, he wouldn't sit still for a second, especially when there are things he can find for himself to hunt. Now he will still wander some, but he usually stays close and checks in frequently. I he doesn't check in, I just leave him and let him catch up, which he hates, so he stays closer, LOL.

I didn't really train him to do do anything, I just let him go with me pretty much everywhere I go and he gets the hang of it. He kind of does things his own way, and when he gets more experience he should continue to get better.

I would rather have a dog learn it for himself than have a robot anyway. Obedience commands have to reinforced with a Tritronics hearing aid, LOL Works great, and after a few weeks you don't need it any more, if you do it right.
 
I'm totally new to the idea of having a dog with you on a coyote hunt. How important is it, if at all, to keep the coyote from seeing the dog. I've had my dog with me on rabbit hunts and antelope hunts and coyotes, when they see the dog, almost run right up to us. So I assume it's not a big deal if they see the dog?
 
Negissimo, if you are training a tolling dog the whole idea is for the coyote to see the dog. A good dog will bring the coyote right back to you!
 
Thanks for the info Shane! Im sure my dog will settle down with time. I took her out for one stand today and I was impressed with how she now picks up any movement in a heartbeat and she always has her nose up in the air. Nice to have an extra set of eyes and a good nose to help me check things out. We called in a hawk and a bunch of smaller birds but no predators.

Negissimo I dont have to much experience with dogs on coyote hunts yet, as this is the first season with my pup. Bob Mc and others on this board will sure steer you in the right direction when dealing with coyote/cat hunting dogs.
 
My older dog is an Australian Shepard/Border Collie cross (mostly Aussie). He is a tough old buzzard on the exterior, but inside he's mix. His name is Jack.

After I got him over his puppy-hood gunshyness, he really got into busting whatever I was gunning for.

Once, as I was just getting him to mind me and not run 'otes off before I could shoot, I wounded a coyote at about 100 yds. The 'ote took off w/ about 50% power. Jack gave chase. He caught him in short order and circled the coyote at such great speed and agility that the he could only stand and try to keep Jack from getting a hold of him.

I took the opportunity to close the distance to about 20 yds. I sat down and got the 'ote in my cross hairs. The only problem is that Jack had positioned himself directly on the far side of the coyote, thus putting himself at great risk of catching a bullet as it exited the coyote.

I solved the dilema by ordering Jack to "get back" (it's one that he is familar w/ his cattle work). Looking into the scope, no Jack! He had jumped to a position about 15 feet to one side of the 'ote at a right angle for me and gave me a clean field of fire. The coyote held his ground long enough for my .22-250 to deliver the business.

Jack has had the "big head" about running after coyotes before I can shoot, eversince this wounded coyote incident. If I really have a "handle" on him, he stays w/ me. Lose the handle for even a second, if he senses it and he is looooong gooone!!!!!!!!

Jack was about 2 or 3 years old then. He's eleven now and he does not run them as much as he did when he was a "kid". His son who is much higher percentage Border Collie, does the running now. He is a little hard head in his own right. Smaller framed than Jack, Duke is not the fighter that his dad is and I really worry about him. I don't want to over discipline him and break his spirit or worse turn him timid and afraid to work at his day job (cattle), BUT I sure don't want him to become some coyote packs chew toy or their breakfast.

It's always something!

Mark
 


Write your reply...
Back
Top