derbyacresbob
Well-known member
Today my wife was having some ladies come over to our house for lunch so me and my coyote decoy dog went calling at about 10:00 am. We blanked on the first three stands. On the fourth stand we were in open country and parked the truck in a little valley and walked against the wind away from the truck about 500 yards. We walked over two little hills to where we could see for quite a ways just over the second hill top.
I set my Fury and a Mojo Critter decoy out in front of me about 40 yards away. I was laying prone with my Tikka T-3 223 and my decoy dog was laying next to me. I started the Fury on full volume playing Prairie Dog Distress. I was looking to the left of the caller because the little hill top was to the right of the caller and I knew nothing would come from that direction because that is where we just walked in from and my truck was parked over there.
The Fury had only been going maybe 30 seconds when my decoy dog jumps up and looks at the hill top to the right of the Fury. There is a coyote standing there 40 yards away looking right at my big black coyote dog. The coyote took of running over the hill with my dog chasing after him. I hit my number 1 preset which is "Coyote Pup Screams".
I am hoping my big black coyote decoy dog makes it back over the hill alive. With "Coyote Pup Screams" still going on full volume I look out where the coyote was supposed to come from and see another coyote heading up the hill about 200 yards away. I get my rifle on the coyote and it is not looking at my Fury and Mojo Critter it is looking up on the hill top to my right, that is where my dog just ran to. The coyote is coming at a steady pace up the hill. I am watching it through my scope and it is looking closer to my Fury and Critter and I figure out that my decoy dog is coming back over the hill to me.
The coyote is right in line with the Fury, Mojo Critter and my big black coyote dog and the dog is running in circles around me. Though my scope I can see the coyote is locked onto the decoy dog with his eyes and comes to a stop at about 80 yards away. I had the cross hairs on the coyote and waited for my dog to get behind me and then shot the female coyote with my Tikka 223.
I muted the call and as soon as I did I heard another coyote straight behind me. So I turned around on my belly and watched for the coyote that was challenge barking. Then I heard another coyote back the way I was originally facing, I think this coyote was the one my dog chased off. So I turned around again on my belly 180 degrees. This coyote was making a big loop and screaming it's head off. I put the "Male Coyote Challenge 4" on my Fury. Then the coyote sound started coming straight at me and it was getting closer. My dog is still doing laps around me decoying the coyote in.
When I finally spotted this coyote it was sitting down barking and looked pretty small. I zoomed in my scope going from 8 to 12 power. I held on the top of this coyotes back after it stood up and was standing broadside. I squeezed the trigger and shot about 1" over the coyotes back. This coyote got in a low spot and disappeared. When I stood up and looked back where the coyote was that I missed it looked to be about 175 yards away. When I shot at it laying down I though it was closer to 300 yards away. It was obvious that this coyote came back in to about 175 yards away because of the decoy dog, it was pretty cool.
In this picture you can see the dead coyote just over my big black coyote decoy dog. The dog smells the coyote but has not spotted it yet.
My coyote decoy dog is about to find the coyote. My coyote decoy dog may look like a big fat Black Lab to you guys but she is really a highly trained coyote decoy.
Here is my dog trying to figure out why this coyote is just laying there.
We made another four stands but didn't call or decoy anything else in. My dog doesn't pay much attention to most of the distress sounds but every time I switch to coyote pup distress sounds she perks right up.