If you're training a decoy dog...

Catdawg

New member
If you're training a decoy dog, and you have a started dog(s), don't shoot coyotes the dogs haven't seen, let alone engaged and worked a bit. No matter what the result of your dog seeing a coyote... If you are training a decoy dog, it does them NO good for you to call in a coyote and shoot it, while the dog is smelling cow pies or sheep [beeep]. Let a few go until your dogs get in that perfect position. I only ever shot a coyote, to reward the dogs. I watched a few nice one's walk away, cause the dogs never seen them.

If you were training a coonhound and you were walking down the lane. You shine a coon up in a tree ahead of you and the dog has NO idea there is a coon anywhere around, are you going to shoot that coon out and expect to make a tree dog?

Don't be afraid to let your dogs fail. It happens. Just give them all the chances you can to succeed and if they are the right kind, they'll make dogs.

I keep dogs to catch game, you shouldn't have to catch it for them.

Take care.
 
We got to the point with the Griffons that we wouldn't shoot unless we got the point, hold, flush just right. Made for better dogs as that shot was their reward.

The birds didn't always cooperate, but the pickier we got it seemed the easier it was to fill out.

But, don't know if it works that way with Coyotes. (-:
 
The only problen I have with that is You have to start somewhere,when you make your living hunting coyotes,you can't let them just walkaway,I start with mine on the trap line,they have to know what a coyote is first,some time coyote's that arn't protecting pups will just run from a dog.or take them out of the country.Then too I've young dog's go to the first coyote they hear howl.
 
Right now, I am getting about 50/50 on called coyotes that will work the dog. The ones that work the dog are shot.
I don't hunt for a living, but it goes aginst every fiber to let a called coyote walk.
Most don't.

Stay after them
Kelly
 
I know when I was in so. Az. where there were a ton of coyotes,I had good decoy dogs,I didn't have as aggressive of coyotes as in northern ca.There if you had a dog around a den or pups camped out you had better have the shotgun ready.I would never try to call coyotes with a bow and arrow!0r pistol.I don't want them to be feeding pups lamb;calf or deer fawns.
 
My theory is,with young dogs or older dogs, I prefer that the dogs work the yotes, but silent yotes, or wrong wind, or the dogs are after one, and a second comes in, yotes get shot, the dogs can work the next one.I will not let a yote walk, just because the dogs didn't get to work it.The dogs are out over 100 days a year,the few that get shot that they don't see, don 't hurt the "program", and dead yotes are not educated.
Just the way I do it.
 
after reading this post I didn't want to shoot a coyote unless Tug saw it first. But after that coyote was ducking in and out of the trees I figured I better at least get him something to chew on, just so he could try and put 2 and 2 together. After I shot, and he smelled the coyote, he went right to it.
 
I have a friend who grew up over in Cody. He shared with me that his father had told him that he would never kill a "Big Bull" because he kills an elk every year.
 
It sounds like some of you guys are just out to kill coyotes, and that's fine.

I was talking about training a decoy dog. If you are trying to train a decoy dog, and you are shooting coyotes the dogs never saw, then letting them rag them... That's hilarious!

How do you think this helps? I wasn't talking about 9 week old pups... LOL!

If you want to make the best dogs you can... Then MAKE them do it!

Thanks for the other side input, not my way, but I am an idiot. Dumb enough to keep a yard full of hounds.

Take care.
 
Catdawg,You make a a good point about letting the dogs "see/work" the yotes,my ? is how do the ranchers like it that you let yotes "run off"?
My point is that when dogs are hunted alot, there are times that a yote needs to be killed, and the dogs haven't seen it. Training can continue the next day.
Just depends or where a guy is hunting, and for what reason.
 
The dog has to be putting 2 and 2 together and you can only do that if they have coyotes around them.

Just like training a bird dog, you can't train your bird dog without birds. When the dog finds them they start to put it together and understand their rewards.

Much of the same goes for what I am trying to do with my pup. I want him to see the coyotes and react to them but I also want him to understand that there is something out there after the shot. But like Duanne says, how do you tell a rancher " I was training my dog and he didn't see the coyote, so I let them go", do that enough times and you are out of an area to hunt. And I understand what you are saying as well but as Duanne said there is always another day for training too. The dogs will put it together once they get enough coyotes under their belts, but you still have to start somewhere. I guess it is just harder to let them go when you are hunting on private land and there are cattle and other animals in there that the coyotes are feeding on.
 
I'm just saying i would like a dog to help me find a coyote that is crippled,that i've shot out of the pick-up.The dog can't didn't see him get hit, he needs to find him.I know that doesn't have any thing to do with decoy training,but it's training just the same.I've the dog's save me a lot of work and end a coyote's suffering when crippled under the airplane,by finding them for me.
 
I can't disagree with either take on this.

I do think that for me, Catdawg's advice is good. When I get ready to start hauling Tucker to stands I will try to do everything I can think of to get her to see and react to any coyotes that show up before I pull the trigger.

I think I can, I think I can, I think I can. (-:
 
I think the difference in opinion here boils down to our "jobs". If ya have one dog ,and hunt some public ground, you can let yotes walk, if your training.
If you are doing ADC work, whether for the Gov't, or private party, yotes need to be killed.
"I let x# of yotes walk cause I was training a dog", Ain't gonna fly with my boss, or the other ranchers I work for on the side.I also feel that a dogs days afield are relevant to the discussion. If a dog is out 20 days a year, you need to "let them work" every yote. When a dog or dogs are out 100+ days a year,and see a few hundred yotes,you can shoot the ones they don't see, it won't hurt a thing.
 
Duane,

You are the one that has missed the boat here pal, and I don't really care to let you know.

I know SEVERAL of the BEST Coyote decoy dogmen in this country and they will all agree with you(the job HAS TO BE DONE, and agree with me.

I have no $$$ to gain, I'm just a regular redneck that likes to chase game with dogs. I have done a bunch with curs, terriers and hounds. I like the hounds the best for what I do.

I bet my good hounds sit on the chain as good as anyone's... my pups really shine.


Duane- You should know better than this, if anyone, I mean you've been training decoy dogs AND selling them. If you are only getting them on the "one's seen" and not the one's worked... I sure hope you have been charging accordingly.
 
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