I depressed the send button on the FOXPRO Firestorm remote, and the Lightning Jack caged within the unit awoke and began to scream. Realistic haunting cries sent shivers along the apex of my spine as I almost felt bad for the poor critter. I scanned the yellow grass along the edge of the sage brush choked sand hills and tried to hide my tall frame. Seven minutes into the sequence, my eyes were directed to a flash of fur streaking towards the Jack Attack decoy flopping above the winter wheat just spitting distance from my toes. I focused on one coyote, then two, no three coyotes! They closed the distance within seconds, locked on the decoy and lowered their heads as they began the charge, fanning out at the last second to ambush the decoy. Fire flashed from the choke tube of my Benelli twice and I thought to myself, two out of three ain’t bad.

Admittedly, I don’t use a decoy on every single stand. Certain types of terrain and differing situations just aren’t conducive to decoys all the time. For example, if you have to completely expose yourself and announce your presence to your quarry just to place the decoy, that’s poor woodmanship. However, if you can sneak out and place your decoy undetected, the eyes of a predator are much easier to defeat than his nose. Often times if his eyes and ears like what they see and hear, he’ll forget all about putting the wind in his favor. A well-designed, well-placed decoy can give callers an added advantage on stand, drawing your targeted species nearer and keeping them there longer, unaware of your presence.

FOXPRO, also adds decoys to their list of accolades and ingenuity. I’m willing to bet the tried and true “Jack in the Box” decoy has been responsible for the demise of thousands of predators in the past decade. Albeit, you won’t catch the guys at FOXPRO resting on their haunches. Their newest offerings include “The Black Jack, Slick Jack, Cadi Jack,” and my personal favorite, “Jack Attack.” I love this decoy for several reasons. It comes standard with a remote control and two toppers, (a bird topper which resembles a woodpecker, and a jack topper which imitates a rabbit or rodent). The Jack Attack simulates two distressed animals to entice those weary predators in close enough for you to deliver a lethal dose of medicine in the form of a polymer-tipped lead pill. The remote control operation allows on/off, variable speed control and LED on/off for night time use (decoy can also be operated manually). The JACK ATTACK also has a jack for use with your FOXPRO remote caller. Break down the “Jack Attack” by removing the stake and toppers for maximum portability. It’s the perfect decoy in my opinion. I also like to use it in conjunction with other decoys to add more realism to my predator stands.

The “Yote’ Decoy” by EDGE is a life-sized, lightweight coyote decoy. Responding coyotes may sometimes feel more at ease when seeing another coyote. It may also spark a territorial instinct and cause called coyotes to come in ready to fight. Add motion to the Yote’ Decoy simply by placing the Jack Attack in its mouth. This combination is as realistic as it gets.

Check out: FOXPRO High Performance Game Calls and EDGE by Expedite Decoys

About the Author

Tom Austin is a professional predator hunting guide, published outdoor author, and wildlife videographer and photographer. He believes there’s no greater thrill than successfully hunting and harvesting the predator species which reside at the top of the food chain. For the past 26 years, Tom’s passion has been calling predators and because of that passion, Predator Strikeforce was born. As owner and operator of Predator Strikeforce, Tom has daily opportunities to hone his skills “hunting the hunter”. Predator Strikeforce allows individuals of all ages, both male and female, the opportunity to get up close and personal with the hunters of the animal kingdom. Individuals who embark on a predator hunting adventure with Predator Strikeforce have an opportunity to “get their 15 minutes of fame” through the film.

Tom writes editorials for AR Guns & Hunting and authors a monthly column for Predator Xtreme magazine titled “Caller for Hire.” He literally hunts predators from Canada to Mexico and every hilltop and valley floor in between. For Tom, predator hunting isn’t just an obsession, it’s a way of life.