Song Dog Savvy

"People need to challenge themselves. We've been filming coyotes for the past eighteen months, and it's the toughest thing we've ever done. But it's taught us to watch and learn. When does a dog stop coming to a call? Why does he stop? How does he use terrain to approach a call? Is his nose elevated, trying to catch our scent, or is it on the ground trying to cut our tracks?

"It's important," Belding continued, "to understand that coyote hunting is a cumulative education process. The more you watch, the more you'll learn. And the better able you'll be to adjust and adapt when that dog does this or that."

Open Or Closed Case

Choose A Call Based On Your Confidence Level.

Coyote-calling expert Chad Belding prefers an open-reed mouth call, claiming the design's versatility allows him to recreate every sound he could possibly need. However, open-reed calls are not quick and easy to master; like short-reed goose calls, they require time, commitment and dedication if you are to become proficient. Practice is essential. First, don't fight the call, and don't try to over-think the process. Open-reed calls have but one moving part, the reed.

However, the call's wide aural range comes from incorporating other elements such as air velocity, air volume, reed length (where you physically bite the reed), and hand position. Don't try to do everything at once. Instead, concentrate on one sound--a high-pitch cottontail squall, for instance. Work until you've achieved that sound, then practice until you're confident you can reproduce that sound every time you put the call to your lips. The first sound you make on-stand is the most important sound you'll make on that stand. I prefer closed-reed calls.

I hang three on my lanyard, each one a little bit different than the next. One is a high-pitch call for close-in/low-volume work. The next is tuned medium, for work from 100 to 200 yards. The third is a low-pitch gravelly call, which I can truly stand on in terms of volume. I'm confident with all three, and I have all the range I'll ever need. The disadvantages, though, are several. For the most part, I "speak" only rabbit, though with volume control I can pull off a quiet mouse. To change pitch or to switch from rabbit to mouse, I have to change calls, which requires movement. Coyotes are quick to spot movement. Howling is also very difficult on a closed-reed call. Still, it's all about confidence.