mikegranger
Active member
Those of you who have been reading my stories know about Bubba and Dash. Bubba has been my go to dog for the eight previous coyote seasons but knowing a good thing never lasts, I purchased Dash 4 years ago. I don’t keep yearly records, but I estimate Bubba has been on somewhere between 300-400 coyote kills. He is an exceptional dog. Dash has always been the dog I left behind, either at the house or the box in the truck. I usually don’t hunt both dogs at the same time, as they can be rather intimidating to a single coyote. Both dogs have very different hunting styles. Bubba will constantly toll out in front of the stand, only stopping to take a momentary look, then back to tolling. Dash will sit somewhere close and watch for coyotes like a hawk, and can see them considerably better than Bubba.
Since Bubba is getting old, I was bound and determined to use Dash more this year and that I have.
I flew back from Oklahoma after spending Christmas with the parents, kids and grandkids. We were there for several days and I was visited out. Although I never tire of Olivia sitting in grandpa’s lap flipping the pages while I read her a book.
My lovely wife stayed for an extra two weeks as she teaches nursing and the new semester wouldn’t begin until mid-January.
I’m a loner at heart and badly needed some peace and serenity of the remote vastness of the Big Sky Country. Upon returning I spent a day getting ready for another extended hunt. Early the following morning the dogs and trailer get loaded and we’re off to the happy hunting grounds. On our way to “the spot” I stop at the local grocery store to buy a few supplies and see a fellow firefighter who I know is also a dyed in the wool coyote hunter. He sees me too and we both came to the same conclusion. The conversation went like this: Hey Mike, how are you doing? Fine Chris, what are you up to? I’m going coyote hunting. Oh yeah, where are you headed? Did you say …………. Ah, Chris, I was just headed there myself. How about we get the maps out and agree to go in opposite directions.” While we were looking at the maps Chris tells me he and his wife have been hunting for the past week in the ………. area, and have been slaying them! What, crap, I was going there in a few days myself. Double Crap!
Needless to say I was glad Chris and his wife were having good success but now my plans were all shot to heck. I went in our agreed upon direction and the first call was near a ranch house that I’d had luck at before. I knew for a fact the rancher had a “bone pile” of dead livestock but did not know if anything had been taken there recently. Bubba stayed in the box and Dash was more than happy to come out and play. He tends to roam further out when Bubba isn’t on the stand thus I had to call him back a couple of times. I was just about to give up when a very dark coyote appears 200 yards away. Dark coyotes always mean mange in this part of the world. Dash locked onto him and ran out 50 yards or so to meet the visitor. The coyote came another 100 yards and once he stopped for a better look at Dash, my first mangy coyote of the year was dead.
As you can see, the coyote is very mangy and would not have lasted much longer. When this bad, they tend to curl up in a haystack and die before winter is over. I don’t mind killing the mangy coyotes just to get them out of the population.
We hunted hard for the rest of the afternoon and only saw this. Pretty good indicator the coyote has been wised up.
By mid-day I was feeling sorry for Bubba and had let him out of the box. We weren’t seeing any coyotes but he sure enjoyed running around. We did have one raise its head up out of the brush at 400 yds to look at the dogs when I blew the howler. It watched them for a while and when I blew the rabbit call took off in the opposite direction and never stopped to look back. Hmm, reckon it’s been called to before?
Dash has never been good about being in the box by himself and bawls like there is no tomorrow. I figured to give it another try on the last stand and only took Bubba. Sure enough, Dash, true to form, bawls like he’s being beat! We walk a ways from the truck and begin the calling sequence. It’s getting late, the light is fading and visibility isn’t so good. I barely make out a coyote coming in from our left with the binoculars and am ready for her when she stops to check out Bubba. The shot was 220 yards and at the report she takes off but piles up 75 yards later. By now you would have sworn someone was beating Dash within an inch of his life! I walked back to the truck and let him have some of the spoils. They were both chewing on the coyote by the time I took this picture. Can you see how happy they both are?
That was it for day one. Saw 5 coyotes and managed to get two of them.
Since Bubba is getting old, I was bound and determined to use Dash more this year and that I have.
I flew back from Oklahoma after spending Christmas with the parents, kids and grandkids. We were there for several days and I was visited out. Although I never tire of Olivia sitting in grandpa’s lap flipping the pages while I read her a book.
My lovely wife stayed for an extra two weeks as she teaches nursing and the new semester wouldn’t begin until mid-January.
I’m a loner at heart and badly needed some peace and serenity of the remote vastness of the Big Sky Country. Upon returning I spent a day getting ready for another extended hunt. Early the following morning the dogs and trailer get loaded and we’re off to the happy hunting grounds. On our way to “the spot” I stop at the local grocery store to buy a few supplies and see a fellow firefighter who I know is also a dyed in the wool coyote hunter. He sees me too and we both came to the same conclusion. The conversation went like this: Hey Mike, how are you doing? Fine Chris, what are you up to? I’m going coyote hunting. Oh yeah, where are you headed? Did you say …………. Ah, Chris, I was just headed there myself. How about we get the maps out and agree to go in opposite directions.” While we were looking at the maps Chris tells me he and his wife have been hunting for the past week in the ………. area, and have been slaying them! What, crap, I was going there in a few days myself. Double Crap!
Needless to say I was glad Chris and his wife were having good success but now my plans were all shot to heck. I went in our agreed upon direction and the first call was near a ranch house that I’d had luck at before. I knew for a fact the rancher had a “bone pile” of dead livestock but did not know if anything had been taken there recently. Bubba stayed in the box and Dash was more than happy to come out and play. He tends to roam further out when Bubba isn’t on the stand thus I had to call him back a couple of times. I was just about to give up when a very dark coyote appears 200 yards away. Dark coyotes always mean mange in this part of the world. Dash locked onto him and ran out 50 yards or so to meet the visitor. The coyote came another 100 yards and once he stopped for a better look at Dash, my first mangy coyote of the year was dead.
As you can see, the coyote is very mangy and would not have lasted much longer. When this bad, they tend to curl up in a haystack and die before winter is over. I don’t mind killing the mangy coyotes just to get them out of the population.
We hunted hard for the rest of the afternoon and only saw this. Pretty good indicator the coyote has been wised up.
By mid-day I was feeling sorry for Bubba and had let him out of the box. We weren’t seeing any coyotes but he sure enjoyed running around. We did have one raise its head up out of the brush at 400 yds to look at the dogs when I blew the howler. It watched them for a while and when I blew the rabbit call took off in the opposite direction and never stopped to look back. Hmm, reckon it’s been called to before?
Dash has never been good about being in the box by himself and bawls like there is no tomorrow. I figured to give it another try on the last stand and only took Bubba. Sure enough, Dash, true to form, bawls like he’s being beat! We walk a ways from the truck and begin the calling sequence. It’s getting late, the light is fading and visibility isn’t so good. I barely make out a coyote coming in from our left with the binoculars and am ready for her when she stops to check out Bubba. The shot was 220 yards and at the report she takes off but piles up 75 yards later. By now you would have sworn someone was beating Dash within an inch of his life! I walked back to the truck and let him have some of the spoils. They were both chewing on the coyote by the time I took this picture. Can you see how happy they both are?
That was it for day one. Saw 5 coyotes and managed to get two of them.
