farmerjan
Herd Master
- Joined
- Aug 16, 2016
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- Shenandoah Valley Virginia
@Latestarter; I don't think that a "lighted" area will prevent coyotes from "sneaking in". It might give the goats a little better visibility but it won't deter the coyotes. Because it is a constant, they will get totally used to it. Here in Va., in Highland county there were more sheep than people at one time. Land is very steep, it's in the mountains, and one of the reasons it was good for sheep raising because they are easier on the land than cattle and can utilize the mixed growth. The coyotes started to migrate to this area, and the farmers there used dogs, llamas, donkeys, then went to penning the sheep in the barnyards at night, used all night lighting, used radios, then started penning them in the barns. The coyotes would dig under or in some cases were going through the windows that were not reinforced by wire or bars.
I know one farmer that went from running over 200 ewes to out of the sheep business in about 10 years because they just got tired of dealing with the loss. They used to have close to a 200% lamb crop and got to where they were lucky to get 75 lambs to saleable size. These were coyotes, not wolves, but hunted in packs and they would kill some of the dogs and in one instance, ran 2 llamas to the point of exhaustion and they finally gave up. Several counties in Va offered bounties on coyotes but most have stopped because there are so many. Realize this is a very mountainous and secluded area.....with every kind of wildlife there. These are people who would have 10-20 coyote hides hanging on their fences as deterrents at any one time. Most have given up farming or switched to cattle and they still suffer some losses so cows are calved close to home in barns and are "babysat" when due.
And if it isn't the coyotes, then they have to deal with the f...ing eagles. YES THEY WILL KILL OR CARRY OFF NEWBORN LAMBS. They are referred as "white-headed vultures" and are pretty much universally hated. They will peck the eyes out of the lambs or actually fight off a ewe with a just born bloody afterbirth covered lamb. They also will go after cows during calving. Between them and the black mexican vultures, they are a real menace. The fish and game dept out there gave a seminar on the problem they are and the cost to farmers and the measures they take to try to keep them from getting too fixated on farm animals. Here, after about a week of leaving a light on outside around the chickens, you would see all sorts of animals, as they weren't afraid of the light because it was "normal" to them. I've had coyotes within 25 feet of the backdoor when they were trying to tear into the rabbit cage one time a few years ago, and my yelling only made them back off for about 15 feet. A few shots helped, but there were cows in the field in the dark behind that area and I couldn't just shoot willy-nilly.
You can't fence 25 and 50 acre pastures to be coyote proof, and if you can't let the lambs out to graze with the ewes until they are over 50 lbs then you can't make a living at it. Plain and simple.
I hope the lighting works for you.
I know one farmer that went from running over 200 ewes to out of the sheep business in about 10 years because they just got tired of dealing with the loss. They used to have close to a 200% lamb crop and got to where they were lucky to get 75 lambs to saleable size. These were coyotes, not wolves, but hunted in packs and they would kill some of the dogs and in one instance, ran 2 llamas to the point of exhaustion and they finally gave up. Several counties in Va offered bounties on coyotes but most have stopped because there are so many. Realize this is a very mountainous and secluded area.....with every kind of wildlife there. These are people who would have 10-20 coyote hides hanging on their fences as deterrents at any one time. Most have given up farming or switched to cattle and they still suffer some losses so cows are calved close to home in barns and are "babysat" when due.
And if it isn't the coyotes, then they have to deal with the f...ing eagles. YES THEY WILL KILL OR CARRY OFF NEWBORN LAMBS. They are referred as "white-headed vultures" and are pretty much universally hated. They will peck the eyes out of the lambs or actually fight off a ewe with a just born bloody afterbirth covered lamb. They also will go after cows during calving. Between them and the black mexican vultures, they are a real menace. The fish and game dept out there gave a seminar on the problem they are and the cost to farmers and the measures they take to try to keep them from getting too fixated on farm animals. Here, after about a week of leaving a light on outside around the chickens, you would see all sorts of animals, as they weren't afraid of the light because it was "normal" to them. I've had coyotes within 25 feet of the backdoor when they were trying to tear into the rabbit cage one time a few years ago, and my yelling only made them back off for about 15 feet. A few shots helped, but there were cows in the field in the dark behind that area and I couldn't just shoot willy-nilly.
You can't fence 25 and 50 acre pastures to be coyote proof, and if you can't let the lambs out to graze with the ewes until they are over 50 lbs then you can't make a living at it. Plain and simple.
I hope the lighting works for you.
Have had the compression bands on now for ~6 hours and the swelling has gone down some and standing/moving has improved by 50-75%. Not back to normal, but functional to do work. Really hoping that a couple of days will have the swelling gone. I have a LOT to do!
Will post pictures with progress as/when it happens.
