Howling creepy thingies in the night!

country_wife · #1 05/05/06, 02:28 PM

lol..I was sitting here last night paying homage to the great unblinking icon (that means sitting at the pc like a zombie

) when I heard howling..not just one critter but a whole pack of 'em! It was coming from the woods near my bunny pen, I think. I opened the door to check and my dogs started barking, so whatever it was took off.

I know we have a fox nearby, he's been spotted more than once. He also ate a guinea and two chickens.

Do foxes howl in groups or is that just coyotes? We've had foxes, coyotes, and feral dogs here before but never any howling like that. Any ideas? Other than sitting up again tonight, waiting and armed...which is already planned.

JAK · #2 05/05/06, 02:43 PM

Sometimes a windigo can sound like more than one at a time, I am told.
You gotta admit that life is a lot more exciting with long-leggedy beasties.

From ghoulies and ghosties
And long-leggedy beasties
And things that go bump in the night,
Good Lord, deliver us!
- Traditional Scottish Prayer

Some say that ever 'gainst that season comes
Wherein our Savior's birth is celebrated,
The bird of dawning singeth all night long:
And then, they say, no spirit dare stir abroad;
The nights are wholesome; then no planets strike,
No fairy takes, nor witch hath power to charm,
So hallowed and so gracious is the time.
--Marcellus.
So have I heard and do in part believe it.
--Horatio.

- From Hamlet, William Shakespeare

BrahmaMama · #3 05/05/06, 02:49 PM

A fox has a "Yap" sort of sound. I heard it and saw it with my own eyes once when a fox chased my Tom cat back to house one morning. It's kind of a creepy sound but definately a "Yap" ...with a "Rrrr!" on the end of it.

I think what you described is probably Coyotes or Dogs.

Edited to add ~ Now a Screech Owl... Is something I'll NEVER forget. Makes my blood run cold and the hair on the back of neck stand up!

triana1326 · #4 05/05/06, 02:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JAK

Sometimes a windigo can sound like more than one at a time, I am told.
You gotta admit that life is a lot more exciting with long-leggedy beasties.

From ghoulies and ghosties
And long-leggedy beasties
And things that go bump in the night,
Good Lord, deliver us!
- Traditional Scottish Prayer

My mom taught me that prayer a long time ago...thanks for bringing back such a fond memory! I'll have to remember to bring it up the next time we talk...

wolfhavyn · #5 05/17/06, 01:36 PM

probably coyotes. They seem to like howling in big groups here in KY. Get an electic fence up around that bunny house and you aughta be fine. Coyotes won't bother people.

Mae

trixiwick · #6 05/17/06, 01:46 PM

Yeah, take care of those bunnies! Listening to the howling probably scared the manure out of them.

We occasionally get to hear howling cats in heat screaming right outside our bedroom window in the middle of the night. That's always pleasant.

Unregistered · #7 05/17/06, 05:01 PM

Fox do not howl, just a small yap sometimes. A single coyote will sound like several animals and a mother with pups will sound like a very large pack.
Western coyote do not pack up as much as the eastern. They are usually single, couple, or a pair with pups. The eastern is a larger coyote and will sometimes have a pack much like wolves.

vegascowgirl · #8 05/17/06, 08:30 PM

If the howls were high pitched and maybe with a few yips, they were most likely coyotes. A wolf will have some high pitch to them but usually start out long and low. Dogs howls can vary.

I used to be able to call them up to our front deck when I lived in AZ. there howls are very easy to mimick.

tinda · #9 05/17/06, 10:07 PM

Two coyotes can sound like a dozen. They sound like they are right under your window but are probably half a mile away. Ventriloquists?

Coyotes are just as scared of you as you (humans in general) are of them

My grandchildren were here last week-end -- city kids, After dark we took blankets out on the grass and listened to the coyotes singing. One would start from one direction, then others would chime in.

"Hi, how are you?" one would say
"I'm fine. How are the kids? came the answer.
It went on like this for quita a while. They soon realized there is nohing to be afraid of.
We also saw some "falling stars" and I showed them the big dipper and how to tell time by it's movement.

Pink_Carnation · #10 05/17/06, 11:35 PM

Coyotes are usually shy with people but that changes. In our neighborhood we have coyotes that aren't even afraid of cars. Farther north they had 3 people bitten and a dog attacked by one.

Just be aware that behavior patterns can change in wild animals when exposed to people.

BarbG · #11 05/18/06, 12:21 AM

Watch out for Foxes though.. We had one jump our ele. netting, kill a chicken, then try and jump back out. But the chicken was too big and the fox got out and the chicken got left behind. I woke up to a eeehhh ehhh noise (sounded like a squeking crib lol) and here is this fox trying to get 'his' chicken and hitting the ele. netting. He made the weirdest sound I've ever heard come out of a animal. He hit it about 4 or 5 times and just wouldn't stop... even with my huge flashlight on him. SO dh.. there wasn't a gun in the house.. shame on us... chased him away. He has not been back. Sneaking little buggers though. Good luck. Barb