dad said had seen and heard coyotes earlier that summer. I gave a couple long howls and waited for a response in the form of a distant howl back.
However, no sooner did I let the howler down to listen before my Dad pointed behind me and said, “coyote!” I stepped back as he raised his gun to make a quick shot on the old male that had shown up in less than two minutes. I have had many similar experiences since that day and learned a few lessons
that have helped increase my success. I used to think that the meaner and more intimidating I could sound the better. But now I believe that is a big mistake. When I was growing up and we traveled to our annual family reunion, I always looked forward to seeing my Grandpa. He was a sheep rancher for most of his life and was as tough as they come. He had a stern way about him and a tone in his voice that demanded respect. When he was around the grandkids were on their best behavior, and we all knew he was more than capable of administering discipline. We all loved him dearly but we all knew you just didn’t cross him.
My Cousin Joey, on the other hand, was a totally different story. He thought he was tough, mean, and could whip us all. In reality, all he did was annoy and aggravate everyone to the point we wanted to hold him down and beat knotts on his
head. His voice was enough to drive a sane person crazy.
He didn’t scare or intimidate anyone, he just made us all mad. I have thought about those reunions many times and realized if I want to trigger a response from a coyote it is better to be my cousin instead of my grandpa. In other words, don’t be the coyote no other coyote dares to mess with, be that annoying cousin everyone loves to beat up on. So, I now prefer to give howls that aggravate and make them feel like a teenage punk needs a beating. I prefer high-pitched howls and barks mixed with some whines. I have also had great success with Foxpro’s female submissive sound and their female challenge. I occasionally use a male challenge, but not very often during early season. One thing to remember while using vocals during early season is that many of the coyotes you are calling are this year’s pups and are only a few months old.
They are often very anxious to respond to a call, but can be
easily chased away by overbearing sounds and howls.
Another lesson I have learned about vocals during the early season is to never be surprised when a coyote comes in. Even when we are out locating with group howls, or yipping pair sounds, we have had coyotes come on the run. On a recent August hunt to southern Utah I stopped on a small knoll and put my foxpro on a stump. I played a couple of group howls hoping for a response so that I would know where to set up to get my decoy dogs some action. After a couple minutes of not hearing anything, I played ‘Cals Fed Siren’ for about 30 seconds. Almost immediately a coyote barked right below me in the draw. I looked and saw a big mature coyote coming on a run straight at me. This coyote had obviously been coming to the group howls and hadn’t made a sound until I played the siren. Before I could get my gun up the coyote saw me moving around and was gone as fast as he had come.
One more vocal sound that I use on every stand is ‘Pup Distress.’ While I know it’s not what some would think of when we talk vocals, it is without a doubt one of the most effective sounds I have ever used. Not just during early season but any time of the year. I would dare say that if you don’t play Pup Distress before you leave a stand, you are leaving coyotes you would have called in had you played it. My personal favorite is Pup Distress 3 from Foxpro. I have killed more coyotes with that sound than any other.
The kind of call I use is one of the most common questions I get. And the great thing about using vocals is you can use about any call you want. Foxpro has many great coyote vocals in their sound library if you prefer an electronic call. If you like hand calls, almost any open reed call can make good vocals with a little practice. Additionally, most call companies make calls specifically for howling and vocals. Pup distress sounds can also be made on most open reed howlers. My personal favorite is a simple diaphragm. I like a double or triple reed. With practice they make great howls, barks, and whines. The best part is they are hands free. You can have your rifle at the ready and bark or howl to stop a fleeing coyote. Don’t worry about sounding like the perfect coyote. Not every coyote sounds the same, and they don’t care if your voice cracks. My cousin Joey’s voice cracked and it just made it all the easier to smack him around.
What ever call you like, get out and try some vocals in the early season. You will have some crazy, aggressive responses, and learn more about coyote behavior than you could ever imagine.