COYOTES

[oosik]

There is one area - north of me - 50 to75 miles. Up around Chewelah and Colville - south of Kettle Falls. You best be on your toes - deer aplenty and they like challenging cars and pickups.

I ALWAYS slow down thru this area. And I go this way quite often. Either the Kettle Falls loop or the Inchelium/Gifford loop. I've gone this way for 40+ years and haven't hit anything yet.

Kind of spooky when a deer will charge out and run alongside your vehicle for a short ways.

Makes me think - coyotes must be banned from this area. OR, at least, have plenty of alternate food sources.

 

[Rockbadchild]

I worked with a guy who's wife swerved to miss a squirrel and hit another car head on. I think it killed the other driver and messed his wife up really bad. I've never forgotten that and told my kids about it and told them never swerve to miss an animal.

Very good advice,
That's always on my mind and would be the ultimate nightmare... It is one thing to say I will not swerve but it is something else to not do it when the time comes, sometimes it is a reflex or habits that can be hard to break but if you start doing it for squirrel and rabbits that are easy to swerve around, it will become a habit and an automatic reflex. Obviously not saying to run them over on purpose but training the mind to not swerve carelessly.

There is one area - north of me - 50 to75 miles. Up around Chewelah and Colville - south of Kettle Falls. You best be on your toes - deer aplenty and they like challenging cars and pickups.

I ALWAYS slow down thru this area. And I go this way quite often. Either the Kettle Falls loop or the Inchelium/Gifford loop. I've gone this way for 40+ years and haven't hit anything yet.

Kind of spooky when a deer will charge out and run alongside your vehicle for a short ways.

I heard many stories of moose or bear sprinting for it to cross the road and hitting the side of vehicles or the trailer of haul trucks. A bear did that to me once, he got out of the bush full sprint with his head down and cross the road, I lost sight of him under the hood, but he came out the other side. I was hauling a horse trailer I did break but never had time to stop.

 

[Slowpoke Slim]

Animals must be smarter in your neck of the woods. I think some whitetails get sick of being hunted, or nagging does and fawns and just commit suicide by car. I don't think many people intend to hit a deer with their car.

Small critters? Not going to risk damage to avoid them or to hit them. I remember one time we were driving along a gravel road between Rapid and Sturgis. I think in a 20 mile stretch dad must have clipped 6-8 birds that had had enough of this life. There is no avoiding them. You just hope they don't break your windshield (or anything else expensive).

Reminds me of the Friday afternoon I was returning to Bismarck from NW of Kenmare (far north west corner of ND) and I had a flock of Pheasants fly up into my service van from the side of the road.

I hit at least 5 of them. Had to throw those undies away. I drove it the remaining 5 hours back to Bismarck. I was expecting to get pulled over, at least when going through Minot, but it didn't happen. Not much else I could do about it when it happened in the middle of nowhere on a Friday afternoon.

On the next Monday, I asked our fleet manager if he could get his glass guy to come out and fix a chip in my windshield...

 

[Yander]

Wow, 5 pheasants, what kind of pheasants? We have ringneck around here and after the blizzard of 78 put the hurt on them they are a rare sight in Ohio. Love to see them though.

 

[BnRidge]

We had a deer trying out to be a gymnast. Ran out, jumped up, over the hood rolled over the roof, landed off the back and took off. Perfect 10.
I was out taking photos with a tripod at night once. Must have sounded odd, crunching around in the snow, that it attracted one of the locals (coyote). Came bounding down the lane like a horse from 300yrds away to within 20ft of me, in the dark. I couldn't see a thing. It let out a howl, I let out my best warrior scream and got ready to rumble. Makes the enemy pause if they think your nuts. At least it all made him take off.

 

[Slowpoke Slim]

Wow, 5 pheasants, what kind of pheasants? We have ringneck around here and after the blizzard of 78 put the hurt on them they are a rare sight in Ohio. Love to see them though.

They were ring necks. All were hens that I remember. The flock in question were all sitting there nice as you please on the side of the highway until right as I was going to drive past them. They popped up, but didn't have time to gain any flight speed before I drove through them. I'm sure I "got" at least 5, maybe more.

They are vulnerable to die offs in hard winter seasons (they are also vulnerable to van windshields), but they usually come back after a couple of years.

 

[YanmarFever]

I use to hunt Yotes at our last place we lived, they ate our cat, killed the neighbors dog, attacked my chickens, and killed 3 fawns behind our house.
I bought a nice .223 and a caller after taking a few classes from a friend who hunted them. Every time I harvested a deer, I would have a gut pile to work with as bait.
Between the bait and the caller I put 27 of those killing machines down in a few years, then I would hang them on the back fence for their pals as a warning.

It did thin them down because after a while even the neighbors noticed a huge difference in sheep and calf losses.

 

[Jstpssng]

Animals must be smarter in your neck of the woods. I think some whitetails get sick of being hunted, or nagging does and fawns and just commit suicide by car. I don't think many people intend to hit a deer with their car.

Small critters? Not going to risk damage to avoid them or to hit them. I remember one time we were driving along a gravel road between Rapid and Sturgis. I think in a 20 mile stretch dad must have clipped 6-8 birds that had had enough of this life. There is no avoiding them. You just hope they don't break your windshield (or anything else expensive).

You and others are right. I should have said I never intentionally run over an animal… unlike some people I know.

 

[Torvy]

They were ring necks. All were hens that I remember. The flock in question were all sitting there nice as you please on the side of the highway until right as I was going to drive past them. They popped up, but didn't have time to gain any flight speed before I drove through them. I'm sure I "got" at least 5, maybe more.

They are vulnerable to die offs in hard winter seasons (they are also vulnerable to van windshields), but they usually come back after a couple of years.

Oh, for corns' sakes, Slim. You prolly killed half 'dem peasants in Nort' Dakohta.

The upped the limit in South Dakota since I was a kid. We could only take 2 rosters a day. I hear they let you take three nowadays.

 

[MossRoad]

About 15 years ago we were driving west on I90 across South Dakota, and turned north on US83 to go up to Pierre. We drove through the Fort Pierre National Grassland. I've never seen so many pheasants in one place in my life. There were thousands of round bales scattered around the fields for miles, and darn near every bale had a couple/three pheasants on them or around them. We kept having to dodge them as they rose from the roadsides right across our windshield. Then, the next day, we had to drive south and do it all over again. It was something to see.

 

[Slowpoke Slim]

Oh, for corns' sakes, Slim. You prolly killed half 'dem peasants in Nort' Dakohta.

The upped the limit in South Dakota since I was a kid. We could only take 2 rosters a day. I hear they let you take three nowadays.

I believe the limit is still 3 roosters here. But hens are a no-no. Some years they are everywhere, used to count dozens of them along the highway when traveling to various job sites. Some years you will go for months without seeing a single one. I think they're doing "ok" this year, but it is a fragile balance. One of the things that occurs in hard winters is that their tails (roosters) will actually freeze to the ground, trapping them and they die.

 

[Yander]

Years ago, on my other property I had the back two acres planted in switchgrass. The seed was provided to me by joining an organization called Pheasants forever. They were trying to provide more habitat for game birds like pheasants and quail.

I tried to burn it which you are supposed to do every 3 - 5 years but I was so close to town the fire dept. kept coming and putting it out. The neighbors called them I think. Kids would go play in it and we had deer laying in it often.

The habitat in Ohio is not what it used to be for pheasants in many areas. fence rows were torn out and the pheasant population has taken a hit. We used to hunt them but they are not really that plentiful like they used to be according to my dad, who hunted them from 1960s to about 1980. We had a German shorthair pointer who was an outstanding bird dog. I think they do release pheasants in some wildlife areas and let guys hunt that. Nothing like what you guys are describing though.

 

[Torvy]

I grew up in NE South Dakota. We had to work for our birds. Lots of walking and many hunts with only a bird or two. Dad said that back in the 50s they were thick everywhere. Later in life I had a chance to hunt Pheasant in the South Central part of the state. 10 guys less than 2 hours, 30 roosters in the bag. A good dog and plenty of birds.

Side note: uncle from Oregon had German Shorthair Pointers. Awesome bird dogs.

 

[Topzide]

Definitely don't serve to avoid an animal. A buddy did many years back and the wood stove in the back of the suburban rocked up and took out the back window! Insurance didn't pay a dime! It was close to $300 way back then. Small critters crossing, I won't even brake due to possibility of being hit from behind! Larger ones, I'll try to slow down pending the road - speed and anyone behind me! Some just run right out to end it all! Picked up a 17 HMR to varmint hurt with. Need to get it sighted in!

 

[BoylermanCT]

I never swerve for animals even a moose or a bear, I will brake but not swerve much ratter hitting it and damaging my vehicle then rolling over or hit the rock cap in the ditch or having a head on collision with the oncoming traffic. Plus, if you swerve and go in the ditch, the insurance doesn't pay compare if you hit wildlife they will.

I went to school with a guy who's parents hit a moose in Maine. Both were killed, moose survived. I brake for moose...

A few years ago my wife and I were vacationing in Yellowstone, and were on the highway in Idaho driving south when an elk dashed across the highway right in front of us. I learned I brake for elk too!

 

[MossRoad]

I went to school with a guy who's parents hit a moose in Maine. Both were killed, moose survived. I brake for moose...

A few years ago my wife and I were vacationing in Yellowstone, and were on the highway in Idaho driving south when an elk dashed across the highway right in front of us. I learned I brake for elk too!

We were in Estes Park, CO back in 1992. Came around a curve and there was a herd of elk running across the road. We stopped. They kept coming. So many, that I got out of my car, went to the trunk, took out the camera, changed lenses, went to the front of the car and started taking pictures. They were still coming. Man, they had to be well over a hundred. That was something to see.

 

[goeduck]

I hit a flying duck once. I think it saw the gleam off of the asphalt on the hot day and thought it was water. Quacked up my windshield pretty bad. My wife asked me if I thought it killed the duck and knowing that she would cry if I said yes, so I said no. I told her I saw a sitting duck in my rear-view mirror in the middle of the road, so I think it will be okay.

 

[jaxs]

Ducks and pheasant aren't real high on my road hazard list but I'm constantly on alert for Armadillo and Turkey Vultures dinning on Armadillo. Possum on the half shell is obviously delicious stuff because vultures always take time for one last bite before flying away and vultures are slow getting airborne.

 

[3 Horse Ranch]

We have coyotes around, the bigger eastern kind. They have never caused any issues with any of my livestock or pets. As such, I enjoy seeing them and hearing them. Plenty of wild critters around for them to hunt.

Question, doesn't the government pay ranchers for predator losses? I know they do for wolves. Maybe not for coyotes? Always seemed a bit wrong that ranchers out West are grazing herds on public lands which they don't own, and then decide they need to kill all predators on said public lands. I know it is an out West thing as farms out East own their own land, and they fence their cows in and can protect them better that way.

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I will guess not, on your question about govt compensation for coyote kills. The reason for the compensation for wolf kills is that in many areas the wolves were reintroduced and the compensation was a way to mitigate against complaints. Plus, wolves are on the endangered species list, coyotes are not, paying for damages keeps them from being shot... as often.

 

[jaxs]

I will guess not, on your question about govt compensation for coyote kills. The reason for the compensation for wolf kills is that in many areas the wolves were reintroduced and the compensation was a way to mitigate against complaints. Plus, wolves are on the endangered species list, coyotes are not, paying for damages keeps them from being shot... as often.

I believe you are correct and the wolf compensation has been withdrawn in some areas if wolves wander onto private land. Landowners adjoining natl parks lease hunting rights to outfitters and outfitters get big $$$$ for guided wolf hunts. I've hunted my entire life,paid lease on land and leased land to others but I wouldn't kill a wolf that unsuspectingly wandered off protected land onto land where it wasn't protected.