Over Run with Coyotes

[cazisme]

With the ban on trapping of coyotes here in California there sure are a lot of very aggressive coyotes around. On the bad side the pheasant population seems to be devastated. Were I used to see flocks of thousands of pheasants in and near rice fields there are now a few pheasants that roost in trees and not much else. When out hunting pheasant dogs will point more coyotes than pheasants. I also heard at UC Davis experimental farm in yuba county they did research on sheep and deer predated by coyotes. Found most of the year coyotes ate lambs and sheep but during fawning season they exclusivley ate fawns and left the sheep alone for 2 or 3 months. No wonder the deer population is so low. I think us hunters should put a bounty of $20 per head on coyotes. On the other hand they eat the hell outa domestic and feral cats.

This is from a UC study on coyotes:

Within urban and suburban areas in California, however, some coyotes have adapted to residential neighborhoods, parks, and open spaces, and seemingly have lost their fear of humans. This may be a result of behavioral changes that have occurred over several generations of coyotes, in localities where predator control is no longer practiced. Coyotes thrive in such areas because food, water, and shelter are abundant, and coyotes living in these environments may come to associate humans with food and protection. Once attracted to suburban areas, they prey on the abundant rodents, rabbits, birds, house cats, and small dogs that live in residential habitats. They also will feed on household garbage, pet food, and seeds and fruits of many garden and landscape plants. In some localities, this has resulted in the development of local coyote populations that seemingly ignore people, while a few coyotes have become increasingly aggressive toward humans. They will stalk and even attack children or adults, or attack pets being walked on a leash by their owners. More than 160 such attacks have occurred in California since the 1970s, and they are becoming more frequent, particularly in suburban areas of Southern California. While only one attack has been fatal (to a 3-year-old girl, attacked in her front yard in 1981), a number of attacks have resulted in serious injuries.

OOOH MY GOD 160 COYOTE ATTACKS !!!!

 

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[Backbacon]

Well... that's what happens when the human population encroaches on the native wildlife's habitat and chooses to introduce foreign species to a respected ecosystem. 160 combined attacks on humans and their pets by Coyotes in the last 30 to 40 years doesn't seem to warrant such a self proposed bounty by local hunters. Who is one to propose a bounty on something that was here before them?

 

[bartholomewroberts]

Backbacon: What an incredibly foolish statement.... You show me a 66 year old coyote and maybe you MIGHT have a point.... Oh .. were you talking about a species? Well by your definition, you are guilty of a similar situation.. How many bacteria, worms, etc were killed to make way for your home or apartment building? People keep saying 'they were here first" I do not think so... I guess, by your standards, Italy should be given back to the Etruscans.. The Black sea area to the Scythians... etc, etc. I can tell you... where I live out here in B.C....... any coyote comes on my farm... he is down. I have not found one yet that can out run a 25:06

 

[Holly_squirrel]

Well... that's what happens when the human population encroaches on the native wildlife's habitat and chooses to introduce foreign species to a respected ecosystem. 160 combined attacks on humans and their pets by Coyotes in the last 30 to 40 years doesn't seem to warrant such a self proposed bounty by local hunters. Who is one to propose a bounty on something that was here before them?

I'm in agreement with you. WE are the ones overpopulating the Earth. WE are the ones destroying this Earth. We are the reason for an imbalance in the system. We are the problem. Now what to do about it? I have no clue. But don't blame tbe animals for the mess people have created.

 

[dieselram94]

Where I live there are gravel pits all around. At night it is fairly common to hear them screaming especially after they attack and kill another animal. Terrible sound...
A few years ago I had a pack of them run in front of me on the highway when we still had our Durango. I hit the leader of the pack and he somehow spun around and caved in the lower part of the passenger door as well as bent the factory running boards I absolutely hate those animals. Nasty cruel predator. They are incredibly dangerous to domestic animals as well.

 

[bartholomewroberts]

I'm in agreement with you. WE are the ones overpopulating the Earth. WE are the ones destroying this Earth. We are the reason for an imbalance in the system. We are the problem. Now what to do about it? I have no clue. But don't blame tbe animals for the mess people have created.

Can you please tell me how WE are destroying the earth..?? And how WE are the reason for an imbalance in the system? And the best of all... how can you rationalize the statement "Don't blame the animals for the mess people have created". Seems awfully naive' to me. As regard to the animals and their blamelessness..... How then could you solve this dilemma? Not live?? Move out of a city onto a country environment? Not eat? How about not wear clothes and/or not drive a car? Everything that we as a race do will have some impact... to a greater or lesser degree.... but yes.. some impact... By the same token, an animals action also have an impact.... either on us, or on their habitat or , in the case of 'yotes, ther prey. Each creature, be it human or 'yote, has an effect... and that is just a statement of fact.. But we are not the sole decider of what happens to the environment, the 'yotes or any other creature... Try looking at the volcano in Iceland a couple of years back... it spewed out, in its' brief foray into erupting, more carbon dioxide than man has ever done. and as to 'yotes.. here is an article on the most successful North American predator Coyote - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[austin]

There are a couple of bumper stickers onine that deal with wolves in Canada. They can address the coyote problem too. They say some thing like: (Picture of animal)-Smoke a pack a day...

 

[dieselram94]

LOL!!!

 

[bartholomewroberts]

There are a couple of bumper stickers onine that deal with wolves in Canada. They can address the coyote problem too. They say some thing like: (Picture of animal)-Smoke a pack a day...

Bahahahaha>> I want one!!!!

 

[Holly_squirrel]

Can you please tell me how WE are destroying the earth..?? And how WE are the reason for an imbalance in the system? And the best of all... how can you rationalize the statement "Don't blame the animals for the mess people have created". Seems awfully naive' to me. As regard to the animals and their blamelessness..... How then could you solve this dilemma? Not live?? Move out of a city onto a country environment? Not eat? How about not wear clothes and/or not drive a car? Everything that we as a race do will have some impact... to a greater or lesser degree.... but yes.. some impact... By the same token, an animals action also have an impact.... either on us, or on their habitat or , in the case of 'yotes, ther prey. Each creature, be it human or 'yote, has an effect... and that is just a statement of fact.. But we are not the sole decider of what happens to the environment, the 'yotes or any other creature... Try looking at the volcano in Iceland a couple of years back... it spewed out, in its' brief foray into erupting, more carbon dioxide than man has ever done. and as to 'yotes.. here is an article on the most successful North American predator Coyote - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Do I really have to explain how we are destroying the Earth? Talk about naive. Did I say I had a solution... No , I did not. There is not one... Short of an epidemic . Which no one wants.

 

[arnofarrell]

I am suprised more people have not commented yet.

 

[arnofarrell]

Alright this may be long so bear with me. I am a hunter plus an animal lover. I hunt and trap every year. Coyotes are survivers and are all through out the USA and Canada now since people have killed off all the bigger predators like wolves mountain lions and bears. The coyote was only found in the western states until we killed off all the big preds. With out the big predators they filled the niche and now they are in all the lower fourty eight states.

We as the human race have "conquored" nature and since we have done that we are now the stewards of wildlife. We have to keep things balanced or else we risk loosing species from disease, predation or over hunting. If we were to let nature take its course like some want then we could loose snow geese, elk, deer, pheasants, quail and all kinds of other animals hunters love to hunt and people love to see. In my state we have reintroduced river otters and turkeys and helped countless other animals spread back naturally like whitetail deer, bobcats and swans.

Coyotes have devistated small game populations here in Iowa, coupled with a drought that brought alot of animals together to watering holes which spreads disease our deer, jack rabbit and pheasant population have tumbled and this may cause damage that can not be repaired for decades.

We have cause alot of problems for wildlife and yes we have moved into there places but we can live together. I have a farm and I raise fowl like chickens, ducks and geese. Every night I go outside for a cigerettee and I hear coyotes in the fields all around me. They have come through my place and killed most of my birds. And what they didn't kill the foxes did. Now I have 4 dogs that seem to keep them at bay in fact they love chasing them and so far has killed a fox and chased a coyote that was watching my wife about 20 feet from our house while she was gardening. I am not saying coyotes are evil like some do but they are a new plague for wildlife that never had to deal with them before.

If we do nothing who knows what would happen.

 

[arnofarrell]

We are here to stay and we have to learn to live with these animals. Personally I like hearing them while I am out night fishing but I still carry my gun just in case. We hunt coyotes like crazy here but every year there just seems to be more and more. My friend who lives about 40 miles west of me goes hunting out in late summer and early fall and it isnt uncommon for him to come home with 20-30 coyotes.

 

[arnofarrell]

Speaking of coyotes I hear some now.

 

[bevo]

the only animal we tried to eradicate, and failed. Tough lil sonofas. Love the comment on volcanos, wont hear that on the evening news.hahahahhaahah!

 

[DizzyDigger]

From early Spring til' early Summer is the time of year when Coyote predation is at it's highest level, as
there are pups in the den, and they have to be fed. Typically it's the male that does the hunting, and
then he brings the kill to the female, who in turn takes it to the den and feeds the kids. The male doesn't
want to be around the pups, but it's his job to protect the area around the den, and to bring food to her
so she can care for the little ones.

As those pups grow older, they will begin to range further from the den, meaning that dog and female
will be patrolling and hunting in a larger area. Any other coyotes entering their turf are subject to
getting their arses kicked.

For most professionals with 20+ years experience, the female and pups are [generally] not too difficult
to hunt down and remove, but hunting a specific dog (alpha male) is another issue entirely. If he's
been "urbanized", it's even tougher.

This is the reality of predator populations gone rampant, and it also proves out what the
trappers and professionals have warned about for many, many years. (BTW: When I say
"trappers and professionals" I mean those that have learned from years of experience, and
not just quoting from some textbook they read in college).

Trapping and shooting coyotes in an urban environment is a recipe for disaster, IMO.
Snares and offset-jaw footholds (no harm to animal) are non-specific, and snares
are permanent, and placing these anywhere within a couple miles of a populated area
means a very real risk of catching somebodies kitty, or fido out running off-leash.

Hire someone who knows what they're doing to remove the local dens, but understand
that a year from now they'll be more coyote families being born right in the same dens.

You simply can not eradicate a predator whose population control is based on the
availability of food. Lots of food around...the litters are large, little food..small
litters or none at all.

I've trapped 'em, called them in and shot 'em, baited 'em in... and killed 'em in every
way you can think of. Well over a thousand coyotes have died by my hand.

When I trapped the very last one, I saw it was a beautiful little female, and
she clearly had some pups. This same coyote had been seen by #2; out in a
field that was about 50 yds. from a grassy area my 4 mo. daughter played on,
and #2 had given the order to terminate it (she was terrified of critters...lol).

I had this little gal back-footed in a strong, padded and offset jawed #2 coilspring, and
she was stretching out the chain and wire used to tie the trap off to a tree as
far as it would go.

Had my .22 Ruger out, and as I watched her for a few seconds I could tell I
was very conflicted about this, so I put the Ruger in the holster and sat down
on a log about 8' away from her. She turned around, laid down (like your
dog would) and just looked at me while I sat there.

If I killed her, those pups would starve or be eaten by another adult coyote in
short order, and I knew it.

As she was watching me and somewhat relaxed, I shared with her what was
on my mind. Told her I couldn't take the chance of her harming my baby, and
that it was really a tight spot we were in.

So, I used Plan B. Looked her right in the eyes, and told her if I EVER saw her
around here again I would shoot her on-sight, and I didn't care if she hunted
the field, but to stay the hell away from my daughter! (#2 was fair game though..lol)

Got her to stretch that wire out again and got a tree between us, and then just
reached down and squeezed the springs back...and she just walked off a few feet,
stopped, and then turned around ..as if to say "Thank You".

Couple seconds later she hit the after-burners, and was gone.

That was also a key moment in my life, as I felt inside as if a "lifetime limit" of some type
had been reached, and I knew, without question, that I no longer had the heart to
take another creatures life unless it was threatening me or my family.

I can tell you how, but please don't ask me to do it. I have no issues with controlling
predators and taking furbearers, however my days of doing the job ended in June 1991.

The Coyote is eternal. They will outlive humanity, and be here long after our species
has left the Earth. Do what can be done to manage them, but they will never be
eradicated..and I think that is a good thing.

The Songdogs are out here tonight, too, as I can hear the pups howls as they're
chasing and playing in a huge timbered area just across the river from home.

Hearing 'em over there makes me smile, every time.

**************

Hope you all don't mind the long read...guess for the first time I felt like putting it into
words tonight.

 

[bartholomewroberts]

Holly: With respect, yes, I would like you to tell me how WE are destroying the earth.. I live in a very tiny community. ^here comes the standard joke... HOW TINY`.. well we are so tiny that I still have dial up internet service... I do not know if you have heard of the term `100 mile diet`.. Well up here, we have the 100 foot diet. My wife and I raise all our own food in the gardens, we generate our own power from our river,shoot our meat, venison, in our fields, raise our own chickens and turkeys cook on our wood stove, heat the house with wood.... well you can get the idea. We also use one of our ponies in the cart to go to our local general store for the occasional shopping foray I am also a machinist... so what parts for our equipment are needed, generally, I will make . I vermin proofed our property by putting farm fence around the whole acreage.. The coyotes that come onto our property are down.... every one of them. I have had them kill some of my livestock... I have even had a pack stalk me at one point. I also had a cougar stalk me grandson.. but that is a whole nother story. The point of this rather long ramble is.... my wife and I are pretty low impact, if that is the term, on the planet. City life does not work for me. Personally, I feel that city living is a real problem.. If more people lived off the land, there would be less difficulties. Anyway, suffice it to say that we will agree to disagree... I do not feel that WE are the cause of the worlds problems... And again, I have no problems with downing any coyote.

 

[bartholomewroberts]

Speaking of coyotes I hear some now.

I just went out to feed the horses... Heard a couple from across the road.. Some people like the sound.... NOT me!! LOL

 

[DizzyDigger]

I just went out to feed the horses... Heard a couple from across the road..
Some people like the sound.... NOT me!! LOL

I'm sure were I in your situation that my opinion would be much the same. Not sure where in BC ya are,
but if up in the north country I expect you've got more than just the coyotes to deal with. I fear damn few
animals, but wolves and grizzlies are two that I've always taken a pass on hunting down. The black bears
around here kill far more elk calves each year than the coyotes, wolves and cougar, yet most don't even
consider them a predator..lol

 

[DizzyDigger]

In regards to the issue of humanity destroying the Earth..well, I'll have to go with
the wisdom of George Carlin on this one:




(Caution: This is George Carlin folks, so the language may not be suitable for all ages, or the workplace)