Declaring "war" on coyotes here...

backwoods · #1 05/29/13, 12:20 AM

A few nights ago, a coyote killed one of ducks. Today, there were two of them in my yard, with 4 of us sitting outside on the deck talking at the time! When I saw them, they took off back into the woods in opposite directions from one another. They appear to be young, and had I not seen the movement in the yard, I would've never known they were there. I have a 4yr old dd, and a 2 yr old ds who play in this same yard every day, so it freaked me out pretty badly. I heard them a few nights ago behind the house back in the woods, and it sounded like there is 30 of them back there. I want to do some serious coyote control around here. What are my best options? I've been advised to put out some poison hamburger after dark. Trying to actively hunt them isn't really an option for me. Not experienced at snares, or traps. I've located a couple of well traveled game trails, where they each disappeared to today. Any ideas you can help me out with? TIA
backwoods/her

Pops2 · #2 05/29/13, 12:43 AM

Contact your state trapping association and see if you can trade out permission to fur trap other critters in winter for some coyote removal now?

**alleyyooper** · #3 05/29/13, 05:23 AM

Put up a notice at the local sproting shop, sportsman club you need varmit hunters to help remove coyotes.

We get calls all the time some one having a problem and know some one who knows of us.

Al

fishhead · #4 05/29/13, 06:47 AM

Put up an electric fence wire on the edge of the yard and put tin foil smeared with bacon grease or peanut butter on the foil. They'll learn to go elsewhere for their rabbit dinner.

Once they prime up in the fall snares work well. There is lots of info online on using snares.

Micheal · #5 05/29/13, 07:04 AM

Small word of caution:
Traps, snares, poison, electric fencing, etc are non-discriminating choices..... Take care in their use around small childern, pets, and non-threatening animals.

I know locally we have a number of "coyote hunters" with trained dogs that work to keep the population down.

Wintergrower_OH · #6 05/29/13, 07:39 AM

Trapping only get the young coyotes . Older coyotes know better . contact a local hunter club or . Another option is to get 2 or more dogs that are known to protect the family . Go to the forum on guard dogs . You need more than one dog . One is not enough to combat coyotes .

**GREENCOUNTYPETE** · #7 05/29/13, 08:51 AM

trapper , if they use foot holds and cable restraints there is no danger to your family , pets , live stock , or neighbors pets as any pet caught in a foot hold or cable restraint can be released , snares do not release when a animal stops pulling , a cable restraint is basically a wire version of a dog training collar if the animal stops pulling it loosens up a little so they can breath

and these trap sets play to their natural behavior ,there are multiple points to catch them and the traps are out 24/7 something not many can afford to do any other way

Toad sticker · #8 05/29/13, 08:57 AM

Experienced trappers catch even old wary coyotes...they also make the sets so that non target animals are rarely caught...Trapping is a skill like anything else, if you practice and learn technique you are way ahead of the curve.

TS

Wintergrower_OH · #9 05/29/13, 05:35 PM

Not sure if you can find a trapper these days , let alone one skilled at trapping coyotes . But with the shortage of ammo . coyote can be shot with a shotgun . This may be the way to go over bullets. Trapping or dogs is the way to go if using a gun is impossible due to shortage of ammo . . I do have a friend that does trapping . But not coyotes . The time of year is important when hunting coyotes . Not sure when its idea to trap coyotes . Coyotes let their guard down when it mating season.

fishhead · #10 05/29/13, 05:52 PM

If you follow the basics coyotes aren't near as hard to catch as some believe. If you don't then yes they are very hard to catch.

I would focus on securing your animals when you aren't with them and making your home unattractive to predators. If they don't get rewarded for their efforts they move along.

Tacoma · #11 05/29/13, 06:53 PM

We had a serious coyote problem on our property and in the conservation acreage behind us. First my cat was torn apart by 2 young coyotes that cornered him against my chain fence. We also had a large number of squirrels and discovered that that food sorce was drawing them to us. We went to war and found a den in the ground with pups. Well after a year, with a .17 rifle and several baited "squirrel on a stick" as bait, we got over 30, only on our property. It had to get under control as not any of my small animals were safe. Adjoining neighbors lost their little dog, kept the young grandkids in. We saw them day and night but much moreoften early moring and thru the night. This county has a $85.00 bounty on them. So, call your local gun shop and find out if they have hunters willing to come for a possible bounty. Good luck.

Toad sticker · #12 05/29/13, 07:03 PM

Winter I am in NW Ohio(Lima/Findlay) now also...but grew up trapping yotes out west.
What Fishhead said is very true...once you take care of the basics they are fairly easy to catch...the ones who don't take care of basics catch some young ones and educate the others so it is harder for the rest of us.
TS

tarbe · #13 05/29/13, 09:33 PM

My dying rabbit call seems to get their interest.

4 or 5 coyotes going at it can sound more like 30, so I am pretty confident when I say you don't likely have as many as it sometimes sounds like!

Tim

mekasmom · #14 05/30/13, 06:28 PM

The first thing I would do would be to have 2-3 big LGDs. And, legal or not, I would find a way to get rid of them quickly. But, if you do that, then keep quiet. Not everything in life needs to be communicated to others. If you don't hunt, then do you have any friends who do? family? Do you have traps?.... There are ways to get rid of them if you want to. But not everyone needs to know about it for your own safety.

bruce2288 · #15 05/30/13, 07:29 PM

I would not put out any poison hamburger,you will kill everything from bluejays, to your cat. predator calling works great, just don't miss the shot or they just got a great education

mekasmom · #16 05/30/13, 07:32 PM

I agree about not using poisoned meat. Remember those deer hunters who poisoned some venison to try to kill coyotes? They ended up accidentally killing an eagle, and became felons. GWB did pardon them at the end of his Presidency because it was accidental, but they went through a lot of heartache first. Don't put out poisoned meat for any predator issue.

Allen W · #17 05/30/13, 07:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wintergrower_OH

Trapping only get the young coyotes . Older coyotes know better . contact a local hunter club or . Another option is to get 2 or more dogs that are known to protect the family . Go to the forum on guard dogs . You need more than one dog . One is not enough to combat coyotes .

Good thing my boy doesn't know that, He's been catching coyotes where I say he can't since he has been setting traps. He brings in more big ones then pups too. He thinks it is embarrasing to catch a pup.

**alleyyooper** · #18 05/31/13, 06:29 AM

Coyotes can be called any time of the year. They come to the distressed rabbit calls, chickens clucking, yippie dogs barking. coyote challange calls, mouse squeeks, bird squeeks, and we even use a siren call to locate them.
We use 22 center fires, 243,244, 25-06, 260. 7MM08, and 12 gauge with number 4 shot and some times slugs too.

We havn't been able to get a coyote to howl around here in 4 years.
Trapping is fine but to do it right there is a learning curve bigger than gunning for them in a do it your self removal effort. Yes you can wise them up and that works also as they learn PDQ they get shot at in some areas and avoid that area.

Al

charliesbugs · #19 05/31/13, 09:12 AM

We hunt coyotes in west central Ohio in about a 20sq. mile area with dogs. we get 50 or more every year in the same places. You will never get rid of them ,only control them. The one section we hunt is good to jump one or two every other day they just move into an area that they like, which would be food supply. I also day call sometimes and I think the two best calls are fawn bleat and house kitten,bird distress is good to. They are here to stay, I have a saying I quote often, ""The wild will always win."" Good luck.

**GREENCOUNTYPETE** · #20 05/31/13, 09:50 AM

I think it is completely possible to eradicate a predator , the question isn't if it is possible it is if it is possible with todays land owners and so many safe havens for them.

the wolf was almost erased from much of Wisconsin and Minnesota , farmers shot every one they saw and trapped many more but this was at a time when there was a farmer or farm worker to every 5 or 10 acres. now we have large tracks of land worked by very few and watched very little , the sportsman has become the tool for controlling the population of any given species.

I live in a fairly poor rural county if you made a bounty on coyote that would be equal to a days wage and licensed people to go and trap and hunt with gun or dog anywhere so long as they didn't shoot or trap withing a hundred feet of a primary home that they didn't have permission too
i would give the coyote a year maybe , but you have to make it worth their time and dog food .

but when the farmer eradicated the wolf , it was worth their time at least to them, the loss of just a few animals made the difference between make it or break it for their books for the year

my grandpa and great uncle talk about their fox and cat hunts , the bounties and the time they spend and tactics , when they were done it was decades before, if , the fox population ever recovered I didn't see a fox in my home counties (we lived on the line between 2) till i was in my late 20's that made it 40 + years after grandpa and his hunting party and many like him nearly eradicated the fox from the area

the rattle snake was almost completely remove form Wisconsin by the mid 60's and they are just now starting to see the population come back in south west Wisconsin.

can it be done , sure , will it be , i don't ever see it happening again.