6 Hunters Share Their Tips For Coyote Hunting And Hog Hunting

Coyote hunting is exciting for any hunter, but it's not easy. A hunter needs good skills, proper gear, and passion. For beginners, coyote hunting or hog hunting it can be more challenging than hunting deers or other animals. But that makes it even more thrilling. 

We want to help our readers learn more about how to haunt the right way so we reached out to 6 hunters and asked them the following questions:

What are your best tips for coyote hunting?

What are your best tips for hog hunting?

Keep reading to see what they had to say.

Clay Belding - The Fowl Life

When setting up on a coyote stand, always put your e-caller upwind from where you are sitting and always leave your downwind side open.

Coyotes tend to work downwind from the sound so if you have the e-caller even or downwind from you, you will get busted from the coyote more often than not.

So, with the e-caller upwind from you, they will come downwind to the sound and straight into you.

Now, if they go even further downwind from you, and they bust you, by leaving your downwind side open, you will at least have a shot in the open area. If you have a very thick area on your downwind side, you would never see them, let alone get a shot off.

Kevin Paulson - Hunting Life

Hunting predators like coyotes are essential to the balance of your herd whether you are focused on whitetail deer, mule deer, turkeys or pheasants. Taking just one coyote off the land you hunt can make a dramatic difference in your success in future years.

Coyotes are focused on 3 basic things in life, food, sleep, and sex. I primarily like to hunt coyotes after the season has ended for deer and pheasant.

That usually means January and so I focus about 80% of my calling on mimicking other coyotes like pups and females.

I find this works more often then I focus on rabbit distress calls as the last resort. Electronic calls like those from FoxPro work best for big country like we hunt because they have the ability to punch through really big winds and travel long distances

When I am approaching coyote sets, I always focus on wind and height. I want to put myself and my team in a position where we can see as many coyotes coming from as far a distance as possible. That gives us plenty of time to get set up for a shot.

I always pay attention to where I believe the coyotes are going to come from and the prevailing winds. There are times when I am absolutely wrong and the coyotes quickly wind me but I get a little better each season.

You cannot kill coyotes from the comfort of your couch so the best way to have success in the field is to get out in the field as often as possible.

Dawn Freeland - Women Hunt Too

Whether it is a handheld call, a mouth call or an electronic call, invest in a good one and learn how to use it before you go out hunting.

Also, invest in a good decoy. The most popular are the electronic rabbit decoys. They work well on coyotes.

Some hunters use bait to entice a coyote or two to come closer.

Make sure you wear camouflage head to toe. Check to make sure your gun or other shiny items are well covered as well.

(Please be sure to check with your state on the rules and regulations regarding these and other requirements.)

Do your homework ahead of time:
-Scouting out the different areas and looking for signs of coyotes.
-Watch lots of videos and learn what to expect when you are out in the field.
-Practice setting up your decoys and figuring out how to use them ahead of time.

Relax and have a good time. When you hear those coyotes answer you back the first time, it will send shivers up your spine, not to mention the added bonus of goosebumps.

Remember coyotes can decimate the local deer herd in no time. We need to manage them as much as possible. After all what animal hunts and kills coyotes? Not many.

The most common predators that eat coyotes include bears, cougars, wolves, mountain lions, and on rare occasions, other coyotes.

That is why it is important to hunt and keep their numbers down.

"Anytime I am deer hunting and I see a coyote, it now becomes coyote hunting instead"

What are your best tips for hog hunting?

John McAdams - The Big Game Hunting Blog

Feral hogs can have gigantic home ranges and it’s not unusual for them to travel long distances in a short period of time. There might literally be dozens of them in a small area one day, but then they could be miles away the next day.

For that reason, it’s important to focus your hunting efforts in areas where the hogs are likely to be right now and not where they were last week.

Feral hogs are particularly dependent on water, so search in low lying areas like creek bottoms where you’re likely to find a reliable source of water along with plenty of covers.

Keep the wind in your face and slowly, quietly, and carefully walk through the area. Carry firearm or a bow with you when you do that because you might just discover some hogs while you’re scouting!

Look for fresh hog sign like tracks, droppings, and recently used wallows. If you don’t find a fresh sign, then don’t waste any more time in that area, move onto a new place, and repeat the process until you find recent signs of hog activity. If you do find a fresh sign, then you’ve found an ideal spot to hunt.

Jerry Slade - Michigan Whitetail Properties

1. Know-How to Track a Hog

You have to look for the proper prints, but not get them confused with deer prints. Hog prints have a similar structure to a deer hoof, but hog prints tend to be more rounded.

Oftentimes near hog prints, you will also find uprooted soil as hogs like to dig in the fresh soil with their snouts for food. If you see a print similar to a hog near uprooted soil than it is most likely from a hog.

2. Don't Scare Them!

- Hogs have a good sense of hearing and smell. Just as it is important for any game you are hunting, you have to keep the proper distance so you don't spook them. Wear proper camouflage and stay low.

While they don't have great eyesight, if you don't say low, you are making yourself more vulnerable to be seen by a hog.

3. Consider Hunting at Night

Many hogs have become nocturnal due to being hunted and spooked during the daytime which means many have become accustomed to coming out at night. If you want a good shot at bagging a hog, you should consider hunting at night.

4. Aim for the Heart, Lungs, or Head

Hogs have some thick skin. It's important that you aim for a part of the body that can give you a direct kill. If you aim above the elbow, you will have a direct hit of the heart and lungs area.

If you aim behind the ear, you will have a direct hit of the brain. If you don't aim for one of these areas, you may just injure the hog without killing it.

5. Use Ammo that can Penetrate

For the same reason that you want to aim for a specific kill zone, you want to have the proper ammo that can penetrate a hog's thick skin.

6. Use Calls or Scents

You should find yourself a good female hog call that will attract large males to your hunting area. I have seen great success with that. Also, hogs like the smell of berries and molasses. Go get yourself a good scent spray that you can use. The combination of the call and scent can be a game-changer for you.

Jerry Eulitt - Ike's Outdoors

We like to bow hunt for hogs. When we set up our bows for hogs we like to go with as heavy a draw weight as we can comfortably handle and hold.

We also beef up our arrow weight. We like to stay above 450 grains to get the maximum momentum out of the arrow. Fixed blade heads also provide a bit of extra penetration and durability if a heavy bone is contacted.

Thank you so much to all the hunters that shared with us their experience! If you enjoyed reading this post, please share it with your friends and followers on social media.