This is topic Anybody do any calling this weekend? in forum Member forum at The New Huntmastersbbs!.
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Posted by Lone Howl (Member # 29) on August 30, 2015, 04:08 PM:
I went out this morning and had a bunch of howlers but no takers. Full moon killed me for reals.
[ September 06, 2015, 09:06 PM: Message edited by: Lone Howl ]
Posted by DAA (Member # 11) on August 30, 2015, 05:08 PM:
I killed a few for gas money Friday morning.
- DAA
Posted by Kokopelli (Member # 633) on September 01, 2015, 08:40 AM:
Too early.
Too hot.
Too many bugs.
And the fur's not prime.
Did some cold calling for bear last week up on the Rim but no luck.
Posted by jimanaz (Member # 3689) on September 06, 2015, 08:59 PM:
I went last weekend too. Called a few. Most didn't get shot at, missed one, killed one. New pup's first trip, and it was interesting. Oh yeah, Bella finally found something she could outrun. Too bad it was a badger.
Posted by DAA (Member # 11) on September 07, 2015, 05:40 AM:
Maybe the badger didn't know it was a race ![[Big Grin]](biggrin.gif)
.
I kid, of course. But every time I see one of those short legged buggers trying to run, I'm amazed just how fast they can actually cover ground.
- DAA
Posted by Leonard (Member # 2) on September 07, 2015, 07:02 AM:
Yeah, like my girlfriend's Duxhund...shit, can't spell it- miniature "weiner dog". No legs, just paws attached to the lower body. But that little female can scoot!
I have seen a badger catch a higher gear once or twice, but most often, they sort of "amble"?
So, what happened? Did Bella learn a little respect, or no? I'm thinking; Mexican standoff?
Good hunting. El Bee
Posted by Cdog911 (Member # 7) on September 07, 2015, 09:07 AM:
Made one stand last weekend on a complaint (two calves killed). Tried a variety a distress sounds and, after 20 minutes, decided to just throw out a group yip howl from the new Lucky Duck Legend series, not yet released, and a big male stepped out of the tallgrass and sat down and just looked at me. He was about 200 yards out and literally had his ass against the fence bordering the south side of I-70. I think he knew I wouldn't shoot with all those cars going past behind him, and he was right. Ever seen a coyote flip you off? LOL
I have Dave Kaprocki coming through here from PA on his way to MT to hunt next weekend. Gonna stop by so we can take him and his buddy out and show him some of our coyote technique here. Made a runabout this morning to see how much, if any, of the standing crops were getting cut to give us a place or five to call. Found quite a few places either cut, baled, or ready to hunt. Rolled in on a "cow farm" we hit hard at the end of last season (killed 12 of our last fifteen there) and spotted a coyote on yonder ridgeline. I only shoot the mangy ones this time of the year, and there are plenty of those, of which he was one. Hundred yards. Smoked him and got out to look him over and damned if he wasn't a very small pup. Way smaller than he should be by now. Maybe 8 pounds. Sickly looking and mangy; glad I got him. Talked to the "cow farmer" on the way out and he said it first showed up about two weeks ago, wandering about all alone. No adults with it ever. Never had a gun when he saw it and thanked me for putting it out of its misery. Guessing he might have been abandoned as sickly and somehow made a go of it alone. Even when they're just little guys, they're tougher than boot leather. Aim small, shoot small, kill small I guess. Did see one more adult at about 600 yards leaving "the Morgue". I got his number. And got permission on a section and a half of incredible creek bottom/ meadow ground that hasn't been hunted for at least twenty years. I deliver the owner's mail, befriended him on the route and snuck in an "ask" one day. He told me to "kill 'em all."
[ September 07, 2015, 09:09 AM: Message edited by: Cdog911 ]
Posted by Leonard (Member # 2) on September 07, 2015, 10:17 AM:
Lance, how are you verifying a complaint of coyote depredation? Did you investigate? Or, do you have a whatever attitude, could be feral dogs or, who cares, doesn't really matter? Know what I mean?
Good hunting. El Bee
Posted by Cdog911 (Member # 7) on September 07, 2015, 04:10 PM:
Farmer called me. Have hunted his ground for years. Third generation cattle producers, have seen a lot of coyote kills and taken all the classes to tell a kill from a stillborn that had been scavenged. The calves were both two days old. Had been tagged and treated, were doing fine. Both healthy. Day three, doing calf check at first light, spotted two coyotes over carcasses, checked them and they both had been taken down and partially fed upon. Blood everywhere around the kill site indicating the calves were very much alive when they were attacked. Mama cows were there and they were pissed, entire herd had been run during the night. On a calf that hadn't been checked over, tagged, etc., during a calf check, I (and they) would check the nose for chapping indicating nursing, hooves for scouring indicting that they'd been up and about, and general condition of the calf. These were both healthy, active calves. They told me that the two coyotes were one bigger one and another that was small enough to be a pup by their best guess. I haven't seen the pup, but a neighbor told me it had been in her yard several times and they're less than a quarter-mile from this site. These guys are right there alongside the pasture, doing calf checks every two hours and they know there are no dogs running loose in the area that they've seen. My best guess is that its an adult teaching a pup how to hunt. He's right on an area we hammer pretty hard and acting like he has played the game before. We took seven off the pasture directly north across the interstate highway from here last year, and two more to the south where these coyotes come up from the Smoky Hill River. I tried traps with flat sets and by the time I got them set and to the next place to set, I had forty cows sniffing around and stomping my traps. Never seen a more curious bunch of cattle in my life. Us messing around there seems to have pushed them away for the time being. My regular setups in that area are presently covered with standing milo that's chest high, prairie hay that's over the hood of my truck and cane feed which is about 7 feet tall. Once those fields are cut in the next few weeks, I'll have a better vantage point to call in a southerly wind. Hoping they behave until I can get them for fur. He was a nice looking coyote, even for a summer coat.
BTW, I always check to ensure that I'm dealing with an actual problem coyote. Too many irons in the fire right now to be chasing coyotes in general. I actually dread the thought of the phone ringing. Make no efforts to find coyotes to kill. Too damned hot. Too damned muggy (104 here yesterday, storms today) and skeeters, ticks, and gnats everywhere and poison ivy a foot deep everywhere. I went out there thinking, "Please, let this be stillborns." No such luck.
Trying to get all the summer stuff done before fur season, like build a skinning machine for my pickup, some cage traps, etc.. Our coyotes are supposed to be worth something again this year.
Also, all I need is a preponderance of evidence - 51% gut feeling. No due process in coyote killing. LOL
[ September 07, 2015, 06:54 PM: Message edited by: Cdog911 ]
Posted by jimanaz (Member # 3689) on September 07, 2015, 06:09 PM:
quote:
So, what happened? Did Bella learn a little respect, or no?
No, I don't think so. I was messing with a couple of coyotes and the badger came from a different direction. Wasn't able to identify it before it got behind a juniper from me and she was already on her way out. Had a battery issue with one of my collars, so I was running 2 transmitters. Didn't expect to need Bella's much, so I had it clipped to my pants under my ghille. Couldn't dig it out fast enough and she made contact right at the edge of the badger's hole. They went at it for what seemed like a couple of minutes. Both were giving as much as they were getting. She kept the badger pinned even after he latched on. Finally was able to call her off far and long enough to end it. That badger wasn't in the mood to retreat even by then. He was within one jump of his hole and just stood there looking at her until I shot him.
Here's why I don't think she learned anything. I knocked him back into the hole, she drug him back out.
Took her to the vet the next day, mostly to get preemptive antibiotics to fend off any infection. They flushed out the deeper wounds and she seems to be fine. I'll do my best to see that never happens again. She leaked for a good 3 or 4 hours.
Posted by knockemdown (Member # 3588) on September 08, 2015, 03:56 AM:
Jimzy, was glad to know Bella is OK! Bulldogs kinda gravitate to sorta stuff, I wouldn't bet a nickle on her giving the next badger a free pass...
I only ever seen one badger as it marched along the edge of a p-dog town in Wyo. That sucker looked like it could move at a pretty good clip when it wanted to!
Posted by Kokopelli (Member # 633) on September 08, 2015, 04:53 AM:
Maybe better get Bella one of those spiked collars if she's gonna hang with the rough crowd.
Glad she's ok. Badgers are tough sum-bitches.
Posted by 3 Toes (Member # 1327) on September 08, 2015, 06:40 AM:
I'm old and slow and I can still run down a badger. They just aren't very fast. I have messed with hundreds over the years and still have fun with the unknowing and chasing badgers. You get someone who knows nothing about badgers (like a out of state antelope hunter or a kid) and when you see a badger you entice them to go chase it with you. When you run up on a badger they will 99% of the time turn and attack. I just step over them or out of the way and let them have at the other guy. I have seen guys damn near shit themselves and fall down trying to get away! In reality they are pretty damn harmless and no way can catch you. They are hard on dogs because due to their height the typically bite a dog on the leg and can bone bruise one. I have had some dogs lame for a long time due to it. Also because of the way they are built they are practically impossible for a dog to kill. I did have one dog that figured out to get them by the back of the neck and he could really wool one over with out getting bit himself. He still couldn't get a grown one killed but he could shake them hard enough that all they wanted was to stagger away.
Posted by DAA (Member # 11) on September 08, 2015, 07:05 AM:
You're faster than me! Unfortunately, that ain't saying much...
- DAA
Posted by Leonard (Member # 2) on September 08, 2015, 07:42 AM:
Yup, but as far as I am concerned, badgers are pretty tough hombres. I'm not real sure, but I "think" I have never seen a bullet pass through a badger, you know, hit squarely, somewhere? And, skinning a badger is a friggin' chore, for sure! Seems like the hide doesn't want to separate, you can't really "peel" a badger like a cat. Or, if you can, please show me how?
That one Bella argued with looks to be (oh?) maybe 15 pounds? Now, a 25 pound badger is a little more of a problem. That's a big one, where I frequent, but I have heard of them pushing more like 40 pounds up in Idaho.
Tell you one thing, a badger can really screw with ya at night, if he's in a hole and just pops up every now and then, prairie dog style. You can't see anything but eyes. You can't light them up when they are in a hole, but you can tell it's a predator of some sort. But, you also can't see that he's in a hole. If you could, that would make it a lot easier! Anyway, you will spend more time than usual trying to identify what the hell the critter is. Trust me, it's not as easy as you might think, and I won't shoot anything that I can't identify, first.
Good hunting. El Bee
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