Getting coyotes to commit

[waspocrew]

Many a coyote have died to pound town

Definitely! Great sound to use.

 

[Coyote Commander]

Many a coyote have died to pound town

And many more educated! lol

 

[omicron1792]

And many more educated! lol

I’m plus/minus on the educated coyote. I think it happens a lot less than people think. They just use as an excuse when they strike out.

 

[bcv]

My batting average sucks so bad I don't have them around anymore... so I got that going for me

 

[Coyote Commander]

This guys probably heard old “pound town” a time or ten.

Been working on some bad sheep killers for a bit.

Watched a pair drop into this draw three mornings ago glassing. I made a move on them than, never got a response. Par for the course these days.

Decided I’d just come back and set some traps on them the next day and get them gone. Didn’t think I was dealing with my killers as it’s 5.5 miles away. Possible, but not as likely.

Next day was in the area to set some traps and low and behold found a den.

New game plan.

Snuck in this morning in the dark, had the wind, the sun, the topography. Should have been a slam dunk.

As soon as I did some puppy squeals I caught this guy zipping over a hill 450 yards to the east. Last I saw before he got defilade in the bottom he was coming right at the sound. Well, he took a left turn down there instead and went for our wind.

He started threat howling immediately down wind of my position about 700 yards.

Again, par for the course these days.

I sprinted a few hundred yards to the next hill, it had a pretty good military crest so after what felt like a miles worth of low crawling I was able to just see his top line. 360 yards ended his shenanigans.

Thing is, I don’t think he smelled me. He went right for the wind, and with the SW wind this morning he SHOULD have smelled me where he died, but the thermals 1/2 way down that draw were going upstream almost straight south. He got down there expecting to smell no doubt a human, and when he couldn’t his next course of action was to immediately just threat bark the female out of the area.

Ten, certainly 15 years ago I’d have NEVER shot this male in this situation. I’d have backed out, gave them a day or two, and come in again, closer to the den, a different angle, later in the day. But you used to be able to work these situations repeatedly until you had the female. Of course, pre thermal era a guy could go into this type of situation and had both adults in his lap in about 15 seconds and probably shotgun both of them.

Not anymore.

Anyway, pups are taken care of. He’s gone. Females still at large. If she doesn’t pop smoke and head out we’ll pick her up in a trap soon enough.