Tips for hunting and calling the gray fox

Unlike the typical red fox, the gray fox prefers to live in the thicker areas made up of forests and thick undergrowth.

With hooked claws, a gray fox has the ability to climb trees and will often forage for food and shelter in a tree. They will also climb a tree to escape danger. They make their dens in rock crevices, caves, trees, hollow logs, and brush piles. A gray will often enlarge a smaller animal’s burrow and use it to raise its young. Burrows are only used during mating season and when rearing pups.

They also have a reputation for aggressively responding to a distress call. Without much sign of fear or caution, a gray fox will often pounce within the first few minutes of calling. Popular distress calls include cottontail rabbit distress sounds, mouse and vole chirps, and gray fox pups distress.

Small grassy fields surrounded by forests are some of the best places to hunt. You will want to sit 30 to 40 yards from the tree line. Like all predators that hunt and call, it will want to blend in with its surroundings by sitting against a tree, hillside, or hidden in tall brush. Although movement is usually what a fox will detect first, it’s a good idea to use head-to-toe camouflage paying more attention to the head and hands.

The gray fox has a very capable sense of smell and will turn and dart at the slightest hint of human scent. Like hunting all predators, you’ll need to consider wind direction in your setup.

Producing a distress call at a high volume often results in a quick response from the fox. It doesn’t seem to matter if it sounds the distress call in a sequence or continuously. Both techniques seem to work on a gray fox. If nothing responds in the first 10 minutes, it usually means there’s no gray hair and it’s time to move to a new location.

Gray foxes are not large animals and smaller bore guns starting with a .22 or 12 gauge shotgun with #4 cartridges are popular choices. A load of turkey with shot #4 will work. A 22 mag is a good choice for about 100 yards. A shotgun is a very good option at about 30 yards.

Just like hunting coyotes, bobcats and all other predators, gray fox hunting will test your hunting and calling skills while providing fast paced adrenaline filled predator calling action.