Coyote decoy dogs

[hunter49]

  Has anyone here ever hunted yotes with decoy dogs?  The hunter calls & when the yotes show up the dogs run out/around & they & the yotes chase each other .  I never knew this was done. There are some cool videos about it on U tube, check it out.

[rachunter]

i saw an episode of foxpro furtakers that did the samething.I just don't understand the logic behind it if the yotes are coming to the call why send out your dogs? it looked a little dangerous for the dogs.but to each his own. 

[TreeGuy]

i saw an episode of foxpro furtakers that did the samething.I just don't understand the logic behind it if the yotes are coming to the call why send out your dogs? it looked a little dangerous for the dogs.but to each his own. 

Yotes come to the calls but can quickly get skiddish. having dogs gives them something they are curious about. They don't feel threatened physically and I think it's a territorial / curiosity thing. They tend to stick around and come in close for a much easier shot. I'd love to try it first hand but I do only speak from only seeing it done a bunch.

[airedale]

Decoying with dogs is based on Coyotes being territorial and during denning when they have their cubs being very protective. They will try and drive any canines domestic or wild from their home range.

Because of that behavior a decoy dog can be used to lure a Coyote to shooting range and keep the Coyote's attention on the dog allowing the handler more freedom for movement without being busted for an easier shot. 

The dogs are trained to the tone sound of an electronic training collar. The tone is used to recall the dog after it goes out and basically challenges the Coyotes. The hardest part is training the dog not to to chase the Coyote. Once they make contact they are to walk back toward the hunter hopefully with the Coyote in pursuit. When the tone button is pushed they return. It takes time to get this procedure down pat depending on the dog and that is where electric stimulus comes into play. All decoy dogs hate Coyotes and they want to pursue and fight, once they learn that they can not do this because they will get a zap they eventually figure out the game that is being played and will be satisfied with their pent up drive to fight after the kill is made.

This type of hunting is done mostly out in the western states in open country but can be used here in NY in the right situations. I have a dog with me most times when I do any calling but I make my dog stay with me. MY hunting is done mostly in woods where ranges are short, because of their keen senses the dog knows way before me when something is coming in to the call and I am prepared ready to go with little movement.

Below are a few pictures from the Airedale board of members that do decoying with their Airedales.

Al

 

Jack's  Cur "Pearl" and Airedale "Ellie'

Mike's "ReRun" standing his ground with two aggressive Coyotes

Devon and his Airedale "Otis" , Devon is an animal control guy in Colorado

Edited January 21, 2017 by airedale

[rachunter]

23 hours ago, airedale said:

 

 I have a dog with me most times when I do any calling but I make my dog stay with me. MY hunting is done mostly in woods where ranges are short, because of their keen senses the dog knows way before me when something is coming in to the call and I am prepared ready to go with little movement.

i've read about this a few times, it's something i'd give a try.

[Padre86]

On 1/19/2017 at 9:00 PM, rachunter said:

i saw an episode of foxpro furtakers that did the samething.I just don't understand the logic behind it if the yotes are coming to the call why send out your dogs? it looked a little dangerous for the dogs.but to each his own. 

It's actually a method that seems to have a lot of traction, especially out west in the more open terrain.  Coyotes, like wolves, have an inclination to investigate and challenge other canines in their territory.  A solo or pair of medium-sized decoy dogs seems to be an effective way to lure them in.

 

Does anyone in upstate NY use this method?  

[Doewhacker]

I have never heard or seen anyone do it in my part of the state, the terrain is not suited for it. You need to be able to see what is going on and that aint happening around me in many spots. I do think my dogs are to sharp on fur to be decoy's.

I have always been curious to see what would happen if I ran into one with my dogs. I am pretty sure if I yell fetch the yote is in trouble if it gets caught.

[turkeyfeathers]

Not to side track but how  do guys typically hunt coyotes with dogs. Pretty sure they have radio collars . Do they have dogs run coyotes, guys hone in on transmitters, intercept the path and shoot why the dogs run them by?

[Doewhacker]

12 minutes ago, turkeyfeathers said:

Not to side track but how  do guys typically hunt coyotes with dogs. Pretty sure they have radio collars . Do they have dogs run coyotes, guys hone in on transmitters, intercept the path and shoot why the dogs run them by?

I don't run with hounds but....basically yes. GPS collars, and intercept the hound. Some dogs will run the yote down on scent and dispatch it.

[Padre86]

24 minutes ago, Doewhacker said:

I don't run with hounds but....basically yes. GPS collars, and intercept the hound. Some dogs will run the yote down on scent and dispatch it.

There seems to be a dedicated bunch of houndsmen who hunt coyotes in various parts of NY.  There is a website: http://www.kcshounds.com/ where a lot of them gather and talk if anyone is interested in that type of hunting.

[airedale]

10 minutes ago, Doewhacker said:

I do think my dogs are to sharp on fur to be decoy's.

There are very few hunting dog breeds with the grit and toughness on any rough game than an Airedale Terrier, that grit and fight in their makeup makes them especially hard to train as a decoy dog but it can be done as shown above. You need a dog with some grit and gameness to withstand the harassment they can be subjected to at times to be a good decoy dog as the pictures of ReRun show. He has one Coyote down while the companion tries to drive him off. To be a good decoy dog they must stand their ground and play the decoying game by not chasing the Coyote out of the country, when the tone button is pushed for recall they must return toward the handler with the Coyote in tow. That is where the hardest part of the training comes in, the dog must not be so aggressive during decoy mode that they drive the Coyote off and out of gun range. Once the trigger is pulled that is when the dog will release from the decoy mode and go into full attack mode.

There a fellow named Gary Strader who lived here in NY up to about 20 years ago was very successful Coyote hunter using decoy dogs killing many with that method so yes decoy dogs can be used in NY with good results. The biggest Coyote I have ever seen was a photo Gary showed me he took using the decoy method. Gary became so infatuated with hunting Coyotes that he moved out west and and took an animal control job. Gary uses an Airedale cross for his decoy dogs.

Al

[airedale]

A little article about decoy dogs from expert Gary Strader

 

Decoy Dogs Lure Coyotes To Hunters

 

Gary Strader says his coyote-hunting dog, Toby, had the right balance between aggressive and passive behavior, which made him the perfect coyote hunting decoy dog. 
  Toby, now deceased, was a Dorn, developed by Vern Dorn, from three breeds for specific traits: Australian Shepherd for intelligence and herding instinct, Plott hound for its good nose, and Airedale Terrier for stamina and grit.
  Strader, a lifelong hunter and trapper, first hunted with Dorn dogs with a friend in Montana and was impressed with the breed. After Vern Dorn died, Craig O’Gorman continued to breed Dorns, and Strader purchased Toby in 1998. They became best friends and hunted together for 11 years.
  The idea is for the dog to get close to the coyote, engage the coyote, then tuck his tail and lure the coyote to the hunter.
  “You don’t want a dog that is too aggressive or too docile,” Strader says, noting other breeds will work for coyote calling. “If a dog is smart enough, he will learn.”
  He suggests using dogs that aren’t too big, about 25 to 30 lbs, so they don’t intimidate coyotes. 
  “When picking a name for a dog, try to pick a name with a long vowel in it,” Strader says. “They can hear longer vowels at a greater distance.”
  Toby was the “friendliest dog in the world,” and a natural decoy dog. He rode in Strader’s pickup passenger seat and watched for coyotes. Strader learned to read Toby’s body language.
  Toby was good at reading the level of coyotes’ aggression and responding accordingly.
  “It’s in a dog’s DNA to chase, but we want a coyote calling dog to get coyotes to chase it, so this is total role reversal for the dog,” Strader says.
  Strader notes that a dog learns that through experience or from hunting with another dog. The dog’s intelligence and training determine if it’s a good coyote decoy. Good ones are rare.
  Strader starts training by letting the pup chew on coyote legs and hides as soon as it has teeth. As it grows older he lets it interact with a coyote in a trap. 
  Strader teaches the basics: sit, come, lie down and to watch and go where he points. When he sees a coyote, he growls so the dog learns there will be action, which always gets their attention. He trains the dog to go to a coyote howl by using a caller with a treat in front of the speaker.
  For more information about decoy dogs and coyote hunting and trapping, Strader has written a book, Master Wolfer, for $25.
  Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Gary Strader, BG Ranch, HC 32, Box 532, Quemado, New Mexico 87829 (ph 505 286-6472; [email protected]).

Link below has a few photos, the top photo with the red barn covered in hides was when Gary lived in NY. He was using an Airedale back then.

http://www.wildlifetech.com/pages/gary.htm
 

Edited January 23, 2017 by airedale

[turkeyfeathers]

Airedale,

Neat read . Thanks for posting

[Padre86]

On 1/23/2017 at 1:34 PM, turkeyfeathers said:

Not to side track but how  do guys typically hunt coyotes with dogs. Pretty sure they have radio collars . Do they have dogs run coyotes, guys hone in on transmitters, intercept the path and shoot why the dogs run them by?

There are groups of houndsmen throughout NY who hunt coyotes, and other game, with hounds.  The dogs usually have GPS collars on them (the GPS determines the dog's location which is then sent by radio to a hunter's handheld GPS unit).  I've only done a few hunts with dogs so far, but generally the way it works is the hunters will scan roads and trails for tracks.  When they find some that look fresh, they let a dog out to sniff it and if it indicates the track is good, a few more dogs are put out.  Generally-speaking, there will be hunters sitting or walking along trails that bound in the area where the dogs are hunting; the idea is if the coyote runs by while evading the hounds, the hunter will get a shot off to kill it (12 gauge buckshot seems to be the preferred method for a fast-moving coyote).  

I know how certain perceptions exist about such hunts being "easy," but the fact is these hunts require a lot of work and coordination.  You've got to have good knowledge of the terrain you're hunting.  You need to place hunters in the right spots to get good shots on the coyote.  You need to know which conditions are and aren't conducive to tracking.  You've got to know about how these dogs work and what they're indicating by their body language and howls.  There is a lot of movement by truck, but you're constantly hopping out and walking a lot to get to good positions or to retrieve hounds and you're frequently re-positioning yourself as the hunt progresses.  It's a surprisingly active form of hunting, and it can be very challenging if you don't have some more experienced houndsmen to learn from.  And the chase is hard from all perspectives; you can spend hours setting up and then supervising the hunt, only to find out that the coyote has long vacated the area you're hunting or that the hounds got confused by other tracks.   The chase can go on for many miles as the coyote has a lot of endurance and tries to circle back and goes into challenging terrain.  It's a real rush to hear those hounds as they bring the chase closer to your position, and it's awesome when everything comes together and you get a good shot on a coyote.  

This is quite different from how the decoy hunters work, but still it's fun in it's own right, and very addicting if you're into hunting with dogs.

Edited February 15, 2017 by Padre86
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