22magnum

[coyotehunter]

was wanting to try coyotes with my 22mag. im very good with it at long range, well at the target range anyway. Is this enough gun?

[farmer]

A 22 mag will work just fine. You write like you have some practice shooting it so just restrict your shots to head shots or if you aim for the chest wait until he is facing or broadside. Also restrict your shots to ranges at which you can guarantee an accurate hit. Frangible bullets like V-max are available and if they shoot accurate from your rifle will put down a coyote quickly especially at close ranges (less than 150 yards). If you wish to shoot further go with a premium hunting hollowpoint, they will penetrate better at extended ranges.

[tmrschessie]

I use the 22 mag for coyote but only at ranges of 50 yards or less. Head shots are the best if you can shot well under pressure. Lung shots may let the coyote run quite a ways before dying. They coyote is a tough little critter, do not under estimate their tenacity. I have on shot one coyote at about 100 yards, broad side, it took more than one shot to anchor the critter. Stay at 50 or less and you will be happy with the results. Best of Luck. Tom

[Mark]

Very respectfully, I'm going to disagree with a .22 Magnum rimfire being enough gun for coyotes.

Maybe it's just where I hunt, but coyotes always seem to be moving. Getting one to stand still for the 2 or 3 seconds it's going to take to get a head shot, just doesn't seem possible. When I look at a coyotes head, there seems to be a lot of parts that just don't matter if you hit or not. Putting a rimfire bullet through the ears, or into the snout just isn't going to stop a coyote. You would have to place the shot into the brain or spinal column. That's a really small area to hit on a critter that doesn't like to stand still.

If you just want to hurt them, so they run away wounded, and die a slow death, a .22 Mag. or .17 rimfire will do what you have in mind. If you want to humanely kill them, your going to need a .22 centerfire in most cases. Chessie is right, they are a very tough critter.
Mark

[tmrschessie]

Mark appreciate your views, I have taken dozens of coyote from Arizona to Nebraska with the 22 Mag. No run offs...Shot one thru the lungs once with a 270 that I never did find. Coyotes sometimes do not stop when coming into the call, at close range that is the time to pick up the 12 gauge. But I will have to disagree that they don't stand still long enough. Put to many on stretchers to buy that one. Center of the skull from about any angle will anchor the coyote. If it does not stop and you did not take the shotgun along, let it go. No one will go hungry if that coyote is not harvested. Enjoy the thrill of the hunt.
Just my 2 cents worth. Tom

[citori]

I use a .22 mag some for coyotes and mainly shoot them through the heart/lungs with 40 gr Remington soft points. Out to 100 yards the round works very well and I have not lost a coyote yet. I shoot them all year long as my part time job is as a wild animal control officer so really can't pass on too many shots as I am paid by the dog and repeated trips eat into the slim profit margin. The 22 mag is now a favorite as it performs as well as the 9mm carbine I used to use with a lot less noise. This is good in built up areas where traps are difficult to use due to domestic animals and the use of shotguns and higher powered rifles bring complaints from other residents. I have begun using the 50 gr Federal hollow point and have been fairly impressed with the results. It seems to be more effective as the 40 gr on the several coyotes I've taken with it so far and I expect it to work better on the thicker coated ones this winter. I much prefer a .223 or larger gun but that is not always possible. In those cases a .22 mag works fine if shots are kept under 100 yards. If your coyotes run smaller than oft seen 40+ pounders seen up here then you may be able to stretch the range out a little.