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Is it my imagination or has coyote calling in Eastern Washington gotten harder? When I left Washington in 2002 for Alaska, it seemed I could plan on about a 40% response when calling coyotes. Doesn't mean they always came in for a shot but 4 out of 10 stands would elicit a response. I felt like I had a pretty good handle on calling coyotes back then. Now, not so much.

Last year, and now this year it seems like I'm doing good to get a response from 1 in 20 stands. Sign seems to indicate a decent population of coyotes and the rancher I hunt on reports seeing a lot of them. I'm not doing anything different than I used to 20 years ago. The coyotes that respond seem to all be tentative. Called just over 100 stands last year and had 6 coyotes come in. Four within gun range. And none of them came charging in. Every coyote seems to be in wait and see mode. Had one today. I was well concealed, wind in my favor. The coyote came in running from 1/2 mile out until he hit the 500 yard mark. Then it was a saunter down to 400 yards. Then started to cross slope and finally just turned and went back up over the ridge from whence he came.

Is it that they have all heard every call on the market? This ranch is one where I am the only one hunting coyotes, and it's huge. So I doubt if many of the coyotes are hearing a lot of calls. Or are there some other external stressors on these coyotes that wasn't there 20+ years ago?

I'm curious to know your opinions.

This is what happens when the masses have access to electronic calls, and the plethora is sounds that go with it. Most have no understanding of correct calling methods, or coyote behavior. As a result, these guys educate 10 coyote for every one they kill. This is happening nation wide. The same thing is beginning to happen with night hunting. Some genius sits in his truck and turns on the caller. He kills a coyote or two, and educate six more. A guy never gets them all but a large percentage of the guys calling today don't really have a clue.

No way this time of year to blame everyone and their electronic calls, the pups haven't heard it all yet.

If you've got a large ranch and no one else calls it, no way to blame electronic calls ruining the calling.

Something else is going on. I don't know how a guy could do 100 stands and only call 6. Heck, I'm pretty sure I could do better than that in a high pressure area as long as the coyotes are there in decent numbers.

Makes me think the numbers are down and/or if you're only using prey distress, maybe the food available to the coyotes is way up

So far this winter, for me anyways, prey distress is under performing compared to pup distress and vocals.

Your whole post makes me question the coyote numbers. The old adage that you can't call what isn't there comes to mind.

Its been tougher up in my area but we have been in a severe drought for several years and the small game is scarce. I think the numbers are down here for sure. I was in Eastern WA this summer and they were extremely dry there too.

I trapped and called that same ranch for 15 years before we moved to Alaska, taking 35-50 dogs a year. I have a pretty good idea what kind of numbers to expect based on the sign I see. The 100 stands last year were scattered over a large area in multiple counties. Not just that ranch. Mostly prey species calling with some howling and pup yips to change up.

A friend and fellow caller who’s been in the area the whole 20 years we were gone theorizes part of the caution the coyotes are exhibiting is due to conflict with increasing numbers of wolves.

Dang, are there that many wolves in the area?

Maybe time to target a wolf instead of lowly little coyote

Howl at them and be prepared to wait at least 45 minutes to an hour at each stand.

I honestly don’t know how many wolves are in the area but my friend is retired Fish and Game and claims there are more wolves moving around Eastern Washington than any of the biologists want to admit.

I would believe that. I see fox tracks frequently when hunting coyotes on the Colorado Eastern Plains, and, in 30+ years, I have called in exactly 1 (one) fox, a Gray. I'll see Red's sunning themselves near ranch houses, tracks out in the 'back 40', but won't call one in.

I imagine coyotes would be a bit more cautious when wolves are around.

TRnCO, from your pictures, we are hunting similar areas on the EP. Have you had success calling fox out there?

I've called very few fox, but I also don't target fox.

Double tap

More likely a prairie Swift......

My coyote calling grounds in Idaho has become significantly harder to be successful too. I know the popularity of the sport has grown so I am sure that is at least partly why I haven't been as successful as I was in years past. Wolves are moving in down there too so I wouldn't discount that possibility.

OP, have you checked for tracks (assuming there's snow) downwind after each setup? I firmly believe a guy only sees 1/4 of the dogs he actually calls in. Many, many times after an 'unsuccessful' stand, I walked 5-600 yards downwind, only to find smoking fresh tracks. They had circled me and caught my wind without me ever even knowing it. Quite often in areas so open and featureless that I figured there was no way any coyote could get within 1000 yards without me seeing it. They're masters at hiding in plain sight.

Called some excellent areas today. Had some howling back at us and we could see them just laying out in the sage but they didn't even want to get up. Has been in the 50s all week. I'm guessing they were full and hunting mostly at night? Wind was in our face or cross wind. I'm stumped that we couldn't even get a pup to come in. Private land back in away from roads. I'm sure it was the first calls they have heard this year. Any suggestions?

I call several times per year in western Ks and eastern Colorado. I have noticed a decline in calling success the past 20 or so years. In my opinion a lot of that decline is both the number of people that have e callers and that they are educating lots of coyotes with poor calling techniques.

Nailed it !!!

I also agree but on same note coyotes can still be called in if you where they are to start with and I don't care what brand of E-callers are being used, they can still be called into view at least. It takes more than just a few idiots pounding a area to turn coyotes off completely. Change location of stand for starters be non-aggressive as most new callers get too aggressive! coyotes get conditioned not educated big difference.

Try different calls than the normal rabbit distress and howl's everyone seems to over use.
I also break out the diaphragm and reed calls to mix it up a bit.
I mix up the call volume & direction and wait at least 5 minutes between each call.
I wait on stand a little longer these day's, as it seems that most hunters are too impatient and leave before the cautious dogs arrive.
If you see plenty of sign and aren't calling them in, you need to think out of the box and see what happens, or set up bait piles with trail cams.

SJC

Quote: If you see plenty of sign and aren't calling them in, you need to think out of the box and see what happens or set up bait piles with trail cams. ; Unquote Camera just tells you they were there at some point in time, that's not going to get one called in or killed. Pressured coyotes will move to the far back area of the terr. after they have fed. thus no response when you call where all the sign is. Know your coyotes and size of their terr. then you'll find them, locate howling helps with this. Locate when sun goes down, locate again around midnight and then locate before sun rises. Reason for 3 locate times, 1st. tells you where they bed down for the day and they on their way to go hunt for night. 2nd. locate tells you where they are hunting for the night. 3rd. locate tells you if they are going back to same bedding area or on the way there. By locating I just made your trail cam useless as it don't tell you the whole story. Can't learn [bleep] from coyotes by sitting at home.

I use handcalls 98% of the time, and hunt mainly public lands, which I know get hunted a fair amount.

I do pretty good with handcalls.

With handcalls, I can vary the tempo, cadence and volume, as I see fit. The sound difference between a wood barrel and plastic is noticeable, and one can outperform the other on any individual coyote.

Years ago, I was calling a large, sage filled flat, with me sitting on a high spot. I started with a Sceery Cottontail, and no success after about 12-15 minutes. I switched to an old Weems wood barrel Cottontail, and within the first few seconds, a coyote stands up in the sage about 300yds out and starts coming in.

I know that coyote heard me calling with the Sceery, but it took a different sound to get him going.

On many occasions, I have started a coyote coming in using a Jackrabbit, then switching to a Cottontail and even Fawn in Distress, and they continue to come. It seems like once they commit to coming in, switching prey sounds doesn't slow or stop them from coming.

Stay on stand a bit longer, say minimum 25 minutes, and glass the area before you start calling and before you stand up to go. If I think they have seen me setting up my stand, I won't start calling until several minutes after that coyote leaves.

Many times at the end of a stand, I'll spot a coyote wayyyy out yonder, either looking in my direction or on the way in. Then it's 'game on'.

I was calling for about 20 minutes, with nothing coming in. I was getting ready to get up and move, so I glassed the area and about 1/2 mile out, at the top of a hill, I see a coyote, standing and looking in my direction. To make a long story short, it took me another 25 minutes to call him into range.

Good luck, and let us know how it goes.