OT So just how smart is a coyote?

We have established a routine. I arrive with golf cart towing a squeaking trailer, back over to the pit about fifty feet from her den, pointedly ignore her while I unload the trailer.

She takes her time about getting up, then strides out, stretches, shakes, and, glaring balefully at me, walks slowly away until she gets to a rail fence. Sometimes she stands on the fence for a few more evil looks, but this evening she headed off into the field beyond to look for mice.

My wife had stowed away on the golf cart this time for the show. She was most impressed with the critter, especially with its apparent intelligence: over the years this coyote seems to have decided that the humans on the farm are no threat to her, but still she keeps a respectful distance. My wife wondered why the vixen (coyette?) chose a den near humans where there is lots of wild cover around.

Even when my parents had sheep they never lost any to predators. At the moment there is no livestock on the farm and we are looking forward to watching the little coyote pups (cubs?).

Any interesting coyote stories?

We have gone through about 3 outside cats a year for the last 5 years.(as in get 3 new cats and they are all gone by the end of the year, get 3 new cats, repeat, repeat)

They do okay as kittens when they stay near the house but as they get older and start to wander they don't make it back.

Any tricks to keeping cats alive in coyote country?

FrAnKiE

One of our Hereford cows had just given birth out in a pasture about 3/8 of a mile from the buildings. A couple of coyotes decided to try to get the baby calf and the mama cow started to try to stomp the coyotes. Unfortunately she was right over her calf and managed to step on its head, killing the calf almost instantly. By the time my Dad got there, the coyotes had run off and eventually the cow calmed down enough for him to check the calf. He left the calf there, so I suppose the coyotes ended up dining on it anyway.

We hunted coyotes for years around our ranch. I don't think I ever got 3 in a year, but sure kept them very wary of humans. I took some long shots with my old 30-30 and saw a few seem to go down, but was never able to find the carcasses. I killed one less than 10 feet from me with a handgun--I wondered if there was something very wrong with that coyote, since I had never been that close to an uncaged live coyote before.

Our old ranch was subdivided into 10 to 40 acre parcels and now there are lots more people living around here than when I was a kid. So I have to be a LOT more careful about shooting. Funny thing is that there now seem to be more coyotes than ever around here. I hear them most nights and find tracks in my yard.

Others my disagree, but if I had a coyote denning on my property and had any chance to do so at all, I would shoot that coyote ASAP.

Coyotes are very smart animals, are interesting to watch and probably eat a whole bunch of mice and other small animals. But they will also take your barn cats and any other small animal you might have outside. In my opinion, a coyote is something I want to fear me and stay far away from me and my stuff. Good luck!

In the absence of livestock this seems to have produced a balance of sorts. If I get ducks or chickens, of course, out will come the rifle at the first ruffled feather, but in the meantime, she is welcome to all the woodchucks and mice she can eat.

Then he started watching young foxes and coyotes growing up and lost interest in hunting them.

I usually take care of 25-30 coons a year and 1/2 dozen possums. She can handle a coon and tears apart possums.... I don't think she run fast enough and I don't want to lose her. thanks. Hound

Schmidty

Card says he"s a genius.

And from some of the mis-engineered stuff I"ve encountered at work that was designed by alleged "genius" people, I"d say the card was pretty well accurate.

casey

casey in SD

Reminds me of a lawyer friend of mine who helpedme get rid a couple more intrusive coyotes that lost their fear of humans. I was getting afraid that they might go after my two year old son and he told me he'd come out and get help.

About 8:00 he showed up with this little puffy poodle that belonged to his wife. I couldn't believe that he had brought this little buffy dog to my farm. He tied the dog to the space light pole in the back yard and we proceded to have a few cold ones while he showed me the finer points of his Colt AR15. About 10:00 it was good and dark and we started to hear the poodle whimper, flipped the space light on to reveal the coyotes creeping up on him. For a lawyer he got off three rounds on three targets in about 2 seconds - all head shots. I quit giving him a hard time about his "hunting dog", although his wife wonders why all his freinds call the dog "Bait".

casey