Coyote.. myth or fact?

[TheBullLady]

Ever since we moved to central Texas (11 years ago) I've heard conflicting stories about coyotes. Will they kill a calf (healthy) or can a pack of them kill a cow? I've heard they are killers and will take down a healthy animal, and I've heard they are carnivorous (sp?) but will only eat an animal that is already dead. What is your experience?

 

[certherfbeef]

I am in Ohio and sit in the field during calving season w/ my little old 20gauge and pick them off usually two or three a night when I'm calving heavy. Had a pack (4) kill a set of twins few yrs back. Two of them kept mamma busy while the other 2 got the calves. Coyotes or just wild dogs I don't know but that is the last calf of mine they got.

 

[Oldtimer]

Bulllady- They will eat anything they can kill or sink their teeth into- I've seen packs working to get to a calf that mama was protecting- many times have seen them try to draw a doe out away from a fawn, while the others move in and get the fawn. I've found cows bogged down still alive that they had ate the whole back end out of and part of the hind quarters-had to shoot the cow. Working in pairs or packs they can kill a pretty good sized calf, although they usually go for easier targets. I've heard of coyotes smart enough where they'd grab the calf as the cow was having it and eat a portion before it was born.

Do you watch PBR bullriding? They have a little yellow bull named Coyote on sometimes that only has a stub of a tail- the owners claim that a coyote got the rest of the tail as he was trying to get away.

 

[Bez]

Well,

I have a bunch of stories on hunting, fishing and shooting - but one of my favourites concerns a coyote and a family member who thinks red meat comes on styrofoam platters wrapped in shrink wrap.

A few years ago we were quite over run with yotes - we were also over run with barn cats. I think we had about 30 of them darned cats by the time winter hit.

So, we left the barn door open a crack and practised a little "coyote birth control". After we got down to about 10 cats or so I started closing the barn door all the way at night.

About 0800 on Christmas morning I was putting together some Santa delivered Barbie stuff - do not EVER volunteer to do that - especially if you are as ham fisted as I am - when I heard the phone ring.

It's my sister-in-law, city dweller, professional, never been in the country, farms are smelly, animals are dirty, anti-gun, anti everything unless it fits into her special world of heels, fancy cars, manicured lawns, best dressed husband, kids in up to date styles of clothing and so on.

Simultaneously, my youngest squeals out - Daddy a coyote is chasing Fluffy up a tree. So I trot down to the bedroom and haul out my trusty 25 - 06 and a couple of rounds. Meantime Wiley is now sitting about 20 yards from the kitchen window licking his lips while this darned "favoured barn cat" is hissing from up in a small tree.

I roll into the kitchen as my wife is talking to her sister and load up in the house - pointing the muzzle at the window of course.

Wife - Looks at me and rolls her eyes - it's one of those "Here we go again" looks - all you married guys have seen that look at least once in your life.

Wife - "Debbie I have to put the phone down for a second - Bez is about to shoot something from the window."

Debbie - WHAT!!???

Wife - Yeah - he'll only be a second, but it gets loud in the house when he does this and we like to cover our ears.

Debbie - WHAT!?!?!?!? Are you OK - ARE YOU IN DANGER?

Wife - It's ok - he usually only gets one shot off. (No wise cracks fellows)

I quietly roll the window up a couple of inches - all in house are braced, watching from other windows and have ears covered.

Debbie on the other hand does not get it and has phone tight to ear and is screaming - Is everything all right?

Me - now REALLY enjoying this - Boom - yote rolls over and oldest daughter looks for her knife to skin the tail out - she had quite a collection for a ten year old at the time. She's hollering - Where's my knife, where's my knife?

I look at wife - big shite eating grin - her with hands on hips - she was wearing one of those "Did you really have to do that with Deb on the line?" looks.

Me - "Hon, just wait another minute or two before you pick up the phone - let her sweat a bit."

Finally we can't hold it in any more and laughing starts in the kitchen - S-I-L is having a sh*t hemourage on the phone.

Never could figure out how my wife and her sister could be so different.

To this day wife's sister has never been out to the farm!

And, come to think of it - that's not really all that bad!

To the TheBullLady

Yeah,

They are smart, determined and will take down lots of things you would never think possible - they are true eating machines - but I have to admire them for their ability to thrive in almost any envronment.

Oldtimer and certherfbeef have it 100% right.

Best regards,

Bez

 

[certherfbeef]

GREAT story Bez, GREAT story

 

[Texan]

This always causes a big debate in our area, as well. Often leads me to believe that coyotes in different areas have different menus. I'm not trying to further the argument. I believe everything you guys are saying. But, just to be contrary, our experiences are different.

Hardly a day goes by that I don't see coyotes in the pasture. We have some every year raise pups with the calves. Many nights can't sleep for the coyote racket. To my knowledge, have never lost a calf to them, and I see nearly every dead calf we have.

The cows tell it like it is as far as I'm concerned. They pay no attention whatsoever to coyotes walking through them. But they get very nervous and upset when a dog approaches. This tells me that they worry about the dogs a lot more than the coyotes, so I do, too!

I do get kinda wary of them in the dead of winter when they start ganging up. If we happen to have anything calving at that time, we watch them closely, but don't just automatically kill them. If they ever cause a problem, the rules will change.

Things can always change, but at this time we consider the coyote our ally. I've watched two or three of them together spend all morning catching gophers in a hay meadow. And back the next morning. And the next. The field rats, gophers and other small rodents could easily take over without the help we get from the coyote.

 

[Campground Cattle]

Never lost a calf to coyotes that I know of but I have had fits with dogs. I had to put a donkey in the pasture to keeps the dogs out. My neighbor about 2 miles over had thirteen dogs, buzzards kept killing them I think.don't know. Cause evrytime I would see one had a buzzard sitting on it. Agree on being covered up in coyotes Texan.

 

[frenchie]

We have had more problems with dogs then coyotes.

 

[dun]

This always causes a big debate in our area, as well. Often leads me to believe that coyotes in different areas have different menus.

I used to be pretty easy going when it came to coyotes, they provided an ocasional tatget when calling, but generally didn't really care one way or the other. Until we lived in the San Joiquin valley in CA. The neighbors cows would come over the hell towards our place to calve. They would calve within a hundred yards or so of our house. On several occasions I saw coyotes ripping calves out of the cows while they were still being born. I've had a vendetta against them ever since. Around here we have lots of coyotes. The cows generally just ignore them unless they get fairly close, then they run them off. During calving season it's a whole different story. The won;t tolerate a coyote within sight and act the same towards them as the do dogs. Zero tolerance.

dun

 

[SPRINGER FARMS MURRAY GRE]

I agree with oldtimer and Dun.I have not lost any calves,but my neighbor has in the same manner, the pack would hit the cow that was isolated,and down having her calf. We kill them on sight.

 

[kjerckie]

For a few years I raised pygmy goats. Big coyote population. I'd pen them up at night in a chain link corral for safety. Sometimes I'd hear coyotes yipping and goats screaming, run out there and they'd been trying to dig under. Sold the goats and now have a five month old Dexter bull. No one seems to bother with him.

 

[TLCfromARK]

I agree with Old Timer, Dun, and others on the zero tolerance on yotes.
I haven't seen them rip a calf out of a cow but I have found new born calves that had been eaten. Don't know if calf was born dead, cow left it for a few minutes or what but it was eaten pretty quickly, just a little hide and bones left. I've found that if you magnetize them ( .22 Mag ) they lose their hunger for beef! And another strike against them is they eat every turkey they can catch!

;-)

 

[dun]

And another strike against them is they eat every turkey they can catch!

;-)

Funny you should mention turkeys. The other day I heard some turkeys "putting" like crazy in the pasture we have a couple of heifers we're fattening. I went down to see what the problem was. There were a couple of turkey hens and a dozen or so partly grown pouts, about the size of chickens. Standing at the edge of the woods maybe 20 feet away was a lone coyote. They raised so much of a ruckus that it took off across the pasture, I guess the turks being alert was more then it could stand. But with a little intervention on my part they won't have to worry about it anymore.

dun

 

[sidney411]

Here is a pictore of 2 coyotes my dad and I shot in the beginning of the year. We called up 3, got 2 of em. We have had a couple of calves come up missing, I figure coyotes got them. Had one old cow that was all eaten up. Had a little dog that got eaten right before we shot these. I let him out to potty at night and when I went out to call him in all I herd was a bunch of yelping ang yipping. I was so upset. I shoot every coyote I see. I will agree though, we have more problems with the neighbors dogs then coyotes. It is a funny thing that all the dogs I see on my place have a bunch of buzzards on them, must be coincidence - hmm :lol:

 

[Craig-TX]

We've lost two calves in the past year to them. When working together they go for anything that's at a disadvantage: young, sick, calving cows, etc. When working alone they will kill anything they can sneak up on such as rabbits or chickens. Killing them gives tremendous satisfaction.

Craig-TX

 

[dun]

We've lost two calves in the past year to them. When working together they go for anything that's at a disadvantage: young, sick, calving cows, etc. When working alone they will kill anything they can sneak up on such as rabbits or chickens. Killing them gives tremendous satisfaction.

Craig-TX

I get a kick out of watching singles out hunting mice and rats in the pasture. I enjoy it so much I'll sit and watch for half an hour or so before I wack them.

dun

 

[Craig-TX]

We've lost two calves in the past year to them. When working together they go for anything that's at a disadvantage: young, sick, calving cows, etc. When working alone they will kill anything they can sneak up on such as rabbits or chickens. Killing them gives tremendous satisfaction.

Craig-TX

I get a kick out of watching singles out hunting mice and rats in the pasture. I enjoy it so much I'll sit and watch for half an hour or so before I wack them.

dun

Dun, I like the way your mind works.

Craig-TX

 

[dun]

We've lost two calves in the past year to them. When working together they go for anything that's at a disadvantage: young, sick, calving cows, etc. When working alone they will kill anything they can sneak up on such as rabbits or chickens. Killing them gives tremendous satisfaction.

Craig-TX

I get a kick out of watching singles out hunting mice and rats in the pasture. I enjoy it so much I'll sit and watch for half an hour or so before I wack them.

dun

Dun, I like the way your mind works.

Craig-TX

It's kind of firewood heats you twice. Once when you cut it and again when you burn it. I get pleasure from both parts of the coyote deal.

dun

 

[certherfbeef]

I get a kick out of watching singles out hunting mice and rats in the pasture. I enjoy it so much I'll sit and watch for half an hour or so before I wack them.

dun

Dun, I think maybe you are starting to scare me a little. First, lead boluses for sick bottle babies, then fornicating mothe and now this???
Is this wwhat happens when one becomes a gru?

 

[sidney411]

I think Duns absolutely right, it is fun to watch them hunt little varmits. They run, dash and jump around. But I don't care how entertaining they are, they are killers and need to be shot. IMO. I also like to watch deer when I go hunting, I have passed up some really nice bucks because I was too busy watching them just be deer. Wild animals are fun to watch when they don't know you are wathing them, you can learn a lot from just watching and noting their behavior. Same goes with domestic animals.