Secrets for Calling Foxes

EDITOR'S NOTE: My longtime friend, Tad Brown, the product-development manager for M.A.D. Calls in Columbia, Missouri, a subsidiary of Outland Sports in Neosho, Missouri, enjoys hunting all types of game, particularly varmints. Brown trapped to earn part of his living at one time.

Question: Tell me your secrets for calling foxes.
Answer: I start out calling quick and short to gray foxes. A gray will respond very quickly if he's in the area, and he can run right up your pant leg. So you'll want to call short and sweet and have your gun ready the first time. A red fox moves a lot more slowly. I've never seen a red fox charge in. They give you time to react.

Question: How long do you call gray foxes?
Answer: I'd probably call grays 10 minutes. Sometimes, it takes longer to call one in, but 75 to 80 percent of the time, a gray will come within the first two calls.

Question: What kind of decoy do you use?
Answer: For grays, I use the Feather Flex Rabbit, a predator rabbit. In the past, I've hung a turkey wing feather from a tree or somewhere, to give the fox something to zone in on when he responds.

Question: How far away from your decoy do you set up? Answer: About 20 yards.

Question: Do you use shotguns or rifles on grays?
Answer: I use a shotgun 95 percent of the time.

Question: What size shells do you like?
Answer: I like No. 4 buckshot or BBs.

Question: High brass or low brass?
Answer: Usually high brass. I typically shoot a 3-inch Magnum. I use a No. 4 turkey load much of the time. Since a gray has fragile skin, I never shoot one with a rifle unless I have to.

To receive a copy of "10 Free Tips for Calling Foxes," write Tad Brown, % Outland Sports, 4500 Donovan Drive, Neosho, MO 64850, ATTN: Kim Thurman.

Tomorrow: The Differences Between Calling Grey Foxes and Red Foxes