Coyotes are out in mass tonight

[bonbean01]

LOL on the rake Pearce

The next grim Raker on here!

 

[Southern by choice]

Grim raker is taken... She could be the pearcer!

Pearce if you do start calling them in I'll be real worried about you!

 

[Pearce Pastures]

Yeah, I will not be trying to call them in but should more show up tonight, my rifle is my tool of choice for that job.

 

[Royd Wood]

Pack of 32 is HUGE! That sounds more like a stray dog pack to me. Those can get really big.

Stray dog pack I saw them with my own sober eyes - only seems to be big coy / wolf crosses around here Queen not seen a manged coyote for a couple of years now. Got rid of quite a few big guys 3 months ago after a lamb kill but as expected new ones moved in along with that darn fox (also Dead)

Big post Pearce but a good read - thanks

 

[Straw Hat Kikos]

I knew that the Grim Raker would make it's way into here. And I'm not talking about the Grim Raker but the mention of the Grim Raker.

 

[Bossroo]

In Cal., one of my neighbors has a 1,000 acre ranch ( rolling hills of the Sierra Nevada Mts.) and a herd of 50 beef cows... when he expects calves to be born, he brings them in to a small corral with a barn to calve and he and/ or his hired hand stay up all night armed with a rifle because when a cow is laying down in labor, and between the time the calf's nose and hooves are starting to emerge , coyotes will come in and start to eat the calf's nose, then as much as they can consume as the calf ( still alive) comes out and the cow stands up. Also, quite a few times the coyotes will also do great dammage to the cow's vulva and the cow will have to be culled. Another neighbor, about a mile away owns a 10,000 acre cattle ranch. He also brings in his cows to the corral and barn near his house and stands guard that are ready to calve. In one rock outcropping with a cave, he counted 75 +/ - coyotes 2 years ago. He and city friends ( me too) go coyote hunting on winter weekends using scopes on .222 , .270, .308s, shots are usually at over 100 yards. We bag over 50 coyotes every winter. None of us has seen a rabbit or deer here in 15 years. However ground squirrels ( pests) are all over the place.

 

[Alice Acres]

Our local coyote population seems to be pretty stable. No better, but no worse. :/

 

[Cricket]

We heard just one last night--I went and put my 6 month old calf in the barn. Our coyotes are large here and are known to take out dogs. 2 years ago, we were walking with the dogs in our woods. My Brittany had taken off for 10 minutes and came back with a coyote hot on her trail. It stopped when it saw us, but would not run off for a good 3 minutes, despite a whole lot of hollering. It was about 20 feet away. They killed one of our neighbors Labs while it was on his porch. I've wondered when I've read about people sending their dogs (non LGD) after coyotes, but maybe it depends on where you live?

Pearce, great article. Nat Geo has had a show on about a coyote attack on a person in New Brunswick(EDIT that to read Cape Breton)--they killed and started eating her as if she were any other prey species. They talked about the fact that these coyotes have wolf DNA.

There's also info about the fact that when you hunt them and take out the alphas, the other family members breed indiscriminately. So hunting can actually increase numbers in that area, which we've seen here in the past. However, I'd not refrain from shooting one myself given the chance!
They do sound SO cool--in the distance!

 

[pdpo222]

I live in Ohio. We were told the coyotes around here had no wolf blood in them. Well lo and behold they did more testing and found out they do have wolf blood in them. So they may hunt in packs like wolves do. There are coy dogs also. Any un spayed female will stand to be bred by a coyote. Which is sad when you think how many uncaring owners tie out intact female dogs all the time. We have had coyotes take down calves, but I don't have any bothering my place. My goats are locked in a barn, so I can sleep at night. lol We hear them far off every once in awhile, but I am sure they will move in the woods cause the males will need new territories and just keep moving our way. We can shoot coyotes anytime. We also have feral pigs, but that is in southern part of Ohio. I'm hoping the deer hunters that way will keep them in check so they don't come up here.

 

[CocoNUT]

Really good info Pearce - thanks for sharing. That's interesting how they've proven wolf DNA - explains why they're big around here! It also makes me think that "big" fox I saw a couple months ago might not have been a fox at all! It was MUCH larger than a fox...and fawn colored.

Brown Sheep - sorry...I was remembering LOOONG ago, out west on my Uncle's cattle ranch - the coyotes out there would hunt alone. You'd only ever hear one..or see one at a time. Then again...that was many years ago!

I've yet to 'hear' the coyotes out here. I know I didn't hear them when we were in the suburbs either...yet we KNOW the coyotes were around. There are all kinds of news stories of pets and young children being 'taken' from their yards by coyotes. Kinda reminds me of stories from parts of CA.

Southern, I hate to burst your bubble, but they have found evidence of cougars/mtn lions out east here! Further north...for now. I read something about some group tracking a mtn lion from out west...into Conneticut or somehwere near there. I know people around here will tell stories of mountain lions...and they do exist in Florida - so it is quite possible. But so far...I don't believe there has been any evidence of set populations...THANK HEAVEN!