Wildlife Callers

Since a peak in the mid 1980′s, the number of hunting licenses sold in the United States has been on a decline.  Source: ESPN Outdoors.  Anti-hunting groups are relentless in their legislative attempts to take away our legal & ethical American pastime.  Our best defense is to make sure our voter ranks are filled up with new/ethical hunters every year.  Take a kid or neighbor predator calling and get them addicted too!

I’ve always had the hunting bug, but my father was not a hunter – not even a little bit.  He used to take me deer hunting and tell me to “go look for some over there” pointing to a mountain.  He’d nap in the truck and I’d wander around aimlessly.  Then, a local teacher and predator caller, Ken Brink, took me hunting in 1986.  Bang!!  Three coyotes on the first stand and I was forever hooked.  After a good day calling, there was never a string of bad days that could deter me from going again – I always knew my next good day was eventually coming. 

Here are a few predator callers who are passing the fun and addiction to people who can spread the word and keep the fire burnin’.

Ned and Liz Burris spent a cold November Sunday calling together, and Liz called in her first bobcat.  Liz could have been discouraged after 5 gray & rainy stands without seeing anything (she didn’t even see the coyote Ned shotgunned on the first stand until it was dead & down), but Ned kept her spirits up and it paid off.  What an outstanding day calling!

Liz Burris and Her First Arizona Bobcat - Nov 2009

Ned Burris and a Shotgunned Arizona Coyote - Nov 2009

Ned Burris, if you will recall, is an excellent bobcat caller with both hand calls and electronic calls.  You can see his previous posts about calling bobcats by clicking HERE and HERE .  Ned & Liz, thank you for the great story and photos. 

Mike Healy from Kuna, Idaho submitted this story video of he and his son calling coyotes near McCall Idaho.

Mike writes:

On a recent Idaho calling trip near McCall, we started our day off just as the sun was coming up, my son Carl is just starting to appreciate predator calling and how much fun it can be.  I let out a female coyote howl with my Wildlife Technologies KAS-2030-MM electronic caller and the response was stunning.  Nearby coyotes produced a rally howl that was so loud it made us both a bit nervous.  A coyote came in within a few minutes and I shot it at close range with my .243 Savage rifle. 

I enjoy every minute of predator calling, but Carl sometimes gets bored when we have a series of stands that don’t produce anything.  When we have a stand that produces a coyote or two, it has a way of making up for all the times we got skunked.  Keep those kids out there with you – the memories last a lifetime. 

Finally, here’s a few shots from the last two novice groups I took with me on some morning gray fox stands near Globe, Arizona. 

Marc Reindell and Harrison 'Bedhead' Healy with an Early Season Gray Fox

Justin & Tyler Gross and Alex Tackett Sporting "Civilian Camo"

Tyler Gross and his .410 Shotgun – Ready to “Tip ‘Em Over”

Yeah, sometimes it’s not easy taking the kids, but it’s worth it.  We all know how addictive this sport is – this is one addiction that’s worth passing on!!  Even if the kids don’t want to shoot, get them to spend some time outdoors and let them see some wildlife that you call in, up close, and look for the smiles, they’ll be there!

Good calling to everyone and thank you for your comments!

Mark Healy

mark@widlifecallers.com