Coyotes getting worrisome

[hawkeye08]

We have lost a number of our outdoor cats over the years... seems they are very vulnerable right after getting fixed, perhaps the coyotes smell something, or the cats are not quite as wary as normal. We are down to one outdoor cat right now and the coyotes come into the yard close the house at night, hoping to catch him.. They got his brother perhaps 6 months ago. I'm likely to get a pair of barn cats to put in the shop sometime soon.

 

[DieselBound]

As winter approaches it seems the coyotes start getting nearer. They've done their part to reduce the rabbit and deer populations so now they're running low on food. Lots of open space adjacent to me: hundreds of acres.

I worry about my dog, but I have no fencing, no way of really keeping her from ranging: I'm trying to get fencing up, but it's lots of work and I can only work in the drier portions of the year (that portion has past now, so not until late spring will I be able to resume).

When we do get fencing up, it'll only be around the homestead site (meant to help protect our fowl), we'll be adding electric to the top. I'm a complete believer in electrified fencing: been running layers behind electronet fencing for some 5 1/2 years now and have never lost a single one to a ground-based predator. Have lost two geese in about 1 1/2 years (not sure what happened to the second one, but odds say coyotes were responsible- dog wasn't out). Ducks get wiped out! Latest batch of ducks has been doing pretty good, knock on wood. Ducks and geese get managed- let out and put back in their Run. When fencing is done we'll be getting multiple LGDs (livestock guardian dogs); any coyote that gets inside the fence is going to be looking to get out real fast!

 

[oosik]

I firmly believe that normal outdoor human activities will definitely deter the encroachment of coyotes. A pair of big dogs helps, especially at night. Friend down the road is Basque and has a LARGE herd of sheep( > 5000). He has several of those big white dogs - Great Pyrenees. He only looses a very few sheep to the coyotes each year. But his dogs are 100% work dogs and not pets.

As far as fencing - I've seen coyotes & coons climb six foot high chain link - but there was no "hot wire" on top. Badgers will simply dig under.

 

[JRobyn]

Thanks for reminding me Deerherd - I've got a couple of unused cameras I need to put up, at least right behind the house where they seem to like to run. Will help me assess just how many I'm dealing with.

 

[DieselBound]

Be interesting to hear the results on the rabies testing. For the most part wild animals won't approach humans; if they do then one should suspect rabies.

Anyone who needs to assert some protection might consider putting up a few strands of electric fencing. If you want to assist in the "training" you can drape some bacon or such over the wires (make sure your dogs are kept away!) and you can then rest assured that coyotes that get bit by your fence will NOT come back.

oosik, yeah, burrowers make me nervous. Thankfully I've had no such issues. For climbers you have to have at least a two wire electric solution of POS and NEG to top your fencing. I can't afford really tall fencing; I also don't want to limit the travel of deer on my property (other than garden and orchard areas).

 

[DieselBound]

JRobyn, do you have a corridor there? This might be perfect for tossing up a segment of electrified netting.

Report on electric fencing's efficacy on controlling coyotes:

https://journals.uair.arizona.edu/index.php/jrm/article/viewFile/7094/6706

This is essentially what I'm using for my layers (from another vendor, but same):

https://www.premier1supplies.com/detail.php?prod_id=20170&cat_id=139

Had a cow (wandered over from the neighbor's- no other electric fencing around) touch some of this once and watched it back off quivering like a shaken bowl of jello!

 

[dmccarty]

We used to see 7-9 does in the herd around the house, then we went to 3-4, and I have only see a couple does in the last year or two. I think the Coyotes have just wiped out the deer. We have had coyotes yelping in the back yard within a few feet or the house. I would guess they had gotten a deer and were celebrating. I have found deer skin and legs by the barn and a leg right next to the front porch.

I have seen ONE coyote and that was when we first moved into the house. I went out one morning to go to work and the coyote was walking down the driveway without a care in the world. I surprised him when I opened the door and he ran into the woods, stopped and watched me before running off. Last time I have seen one but we hear them from time to time.

We hear them yelping from time to time, especially late at night. There is a nearby power line and I think they are using that as a K9 Superhighway to move around looking for food. Sometimes they are near us and other times they are else where.

Later,
Dan

 

[DaveNJ]

Believe it or not we even have coyotes here in new jersey. I live near a large tract of preserved forest and farmland and we hear them all the time but never see them although one was recently killed by a car. There is speculation that many of the east coast coyotes may actually be "coywolves or coydogs" These breeding hybrids tend to be larger and be more likely to engage in pack behavior than the usual more solitary coyote behavior.

 

[ovrszd]

Interesting to hear different people's perception of the Coyotes around their areas. A person needs to use patient logic before speaking about this. Several comments that have been made absolutely don't hold up under scrutiny.

Coyotes, like all wild carnivorous animals must kill to survive. They very cleverly weigh the cost versus reward. They must be successful at this calculation or they die.

If we had to live like that the human population would be thinned dramatically.

 

[DieselBound]

Interesting to hear different people's perception of the Coyotes around their areas. A person needs to use patient logic before speaking about this. Several comments that have been made absolutely don't hold up under scrutiny.

Coyotes, like all wild carnivorous animals must kill to survive. They very cleverly weigh the cost versus reward. They must be successful at this calculation or they die.

If we had to live like that the human population would be thinned dramatically.

Absolutely!

This is why my dog has an advantage: she's well-fed and in excellent shape- she can afford to spend lots of energy just on a chase, whereas coyotes (and other wild animals) really need a jackpot at the end of that energy expenditure.

I don't go looking to track down and kill any wild animals (other than freaking rats and mice!). My losses to coyotes are pretty low: until I put up netting over my Run for my ducks and geese I was getting more losses from aerial predation (duck kills).

 

[oosik]

The pack that took my lab had three, maybe four. It was hard to tell - except for the one carrying the carcass - they split up like a star burst and ran in all directions. Your experiences are much like mine road hunter - I think the biggest "grouping" I've ever seen in the daytime is three, maybe four. Nighttime - who knows.

 

[SandburRanch]

I have fun playing games with my coyotes. To my knowledge none are boy or girl scouts and know how to un-tie a Clove Hitch knot, but at least one sure knew where to chew the rope so he/she could drag the front of a deer carcass to a safer place to dine.

 

[roadhunter]

My neighbor told me that one day he saw a coyote chasing an antelope and started watching. Apparently the antelope was trying to get the coyote away from a fawn so it would run up to the coyote within a few feet and then let the coyote chase it. He said this went on for about 45 minutes before the coyote moved on after being completely worn out by the antelope. Coyotes might be fast but they ain't catching an adult antelope (2nd fastest land mammal).