Ack! We've got Coyotes!

I would lock your sheep and goats up at night if you are worried. Someplace close to the house in a barn or a pen with a high tight fence. The thing about coyotes is they are cautious, they don't take risks that can get them killed. They won't like going near your house cause they are scared of people. I really doubt they brought down a healthy deer. If it was already injured by a hunter or by car then maybe. Around here I don't think the coyotes bother to kill anything anymore they just wait for the cars to do it for them!

Coyotes aren't that bad if you don't leave stock out unprotected. Stray dogs are actually much worse from a livestock perspective. They have no fear and will kill and kill and kill just for the fun of it which coyotes rarely do.

i saw a program on this very thing they were gov damage hunters they used a live dog to bring the pack in range and they shot the lead alpha male and the 2nd in the lead if they could this totally messed up the pack structure and it took month for them to recover. this way they didn;t have to kill all of them.

Lock up the animals at night but that does not mean they are safe in daylight. Just two weeks ago at dawn we saw our pet cat running across the yard towards the trees and a coyote coming up fast behind. We both ran out of the house yelling and hubby with gun to rescue our cat. He was SO happy to see us!

First of all don't be quick to kill the coyotes just because they are there. If you do they will be replaced with other coyotes who will move into their territory. If the existing coyotoes are not killing your livestock then everything is cool. If they start killing your livestock that is another matter.

Second, get livestock guard dogs (LGDs). They don't have to be fancy pure bred animals. They just have to do the job. They, like their wild cousins, work best in packs. If you have a lot of predator pressure then several are a lot more powerful than a single LGD. We have bear, polecat, coyote, coon, two-leggers and who knows what. Our four LGDs take care of them all. Predators foolish enough to enter our pastures get eaten. The vast majority stay outside the dogs' marked territory - predators don't generally have health insurance.

Traps, poisons and sitting out late at night with a gun are a waste of time and resource (including sleep) as well as dangerous. LGDs work 24/7. They have far sharper senses of hearing, smell and night sight than we do. The dogs are also fearless. On top of that they keep down the local vermin population. I find my LGDs much more cuddly and useful than my gun.

With training, good multi-purpose LGDs can be used for guarding, herding and as general doorbells.

Lastly, I would be more worried about the spotlighters.

Cheers,

-Walter
Sugar Mtn Farm
in Vermont
where the predators are many
but the LGDs are fiercer

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SugarMtnFarm.com -- Pastured Pigs, Poultry, Sheep, Dogs and Kids

No. In Virginia "It is unlawful to:

Hunt wild birds and wild animals with firearms or other weapons on Sunday, except on licensed shooting preserves. Raccoon hunters may hunt until 2:00 a.m. Sunday mornings.

Discharge a firearm, crossbow, or bow and arrow in or across or within the right-of-way of any road.
Cast a light attached to a vehicle or from a vehicle beyond a roadway upon places used by deer without written permission of the landowner or at anytime while in the possession of a rifle, shotgun, pistol, crossbow, bow and arrow, or speargun. " from the Virginia Division of Game and Inland Fisheries 2004 hunting regs.

Road hunters have created a lot of havock over the years. Several years ago there was a fella that worked with my Mom at the division of forestry and he took his family up on the Blue Ridge Parkway one week end to watch deer. He had a rifle in his truck in a rack behind the seat. It was not loaded. He pulled off at an overlook that over looked a large open field and swept his headlights across the field. There were deer in the field. When he did this the game warden was behind him in just a minute. They had been watching this area for some time as people had been poaching deer at night. The took his truck and his rifle and he had to pay a large fine.

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ChuckinVa


Authentic Appalachian American

Hello just found this wonderful site today. Hope to be able to help out here and also learn a few things. Now, a little about myself. I live in Northern Maine with my son and wife of 12 yrs. I am self employed as a carpenter,animal damage control agent and also a Fur trapper.
While reading through the post today, I found a few things that really caught my eye. Patty says, it is unlikely that the coyotes took down a healthy deer. I would have to disagree with this statement. I see on an average year, anywheres in the neighborhood of 35 healthy deer taken down by coyotes. What a lot of people don't know is during the summer and early fall, mother coyotes are teaching their yound survival. This means ---how to catch food. I have seen coyotes kill health deer and then walk away and never return to the prey. This being--a learning lesson for the young as how to live and hunt for themselves.
Patty, also said...... Contact your local Trapping Association and they can refer you to a local trapper. Very excellent idea and one I wish more people heeded. If one could wait until the trapping season opens, then they wouldn't have to pay a ADC agent a fee to harvest or remove this animal or animals. I personal charge a fixed fee to set up my traps and then another fee for each animal I catch. So in writing this, I personally would go with a local trapper if the species is in season.
As for LEGHOLDS--- trappers don't use legholds. These types of traps are called foothold. One doesn't want to catch an animal on the leg but across the paw. This does 2 things--one doesn't mane the animal if your releasing this and also a foothold is meant as a restraining devise. If you paw catch a non target animal(cats and dogs included) you can release them unharmed and they will be okay in a hour or 2 as long as they were foot caught. I have caught my own trapline dog numerous times and he has yet to cut the skin or break a foot. Just doesn't know to stay away from a hole in the ground with a smell coming out of it--LOL.
In closing, I hope I didnt come on to strong but we as trappers need to defend our sport. Anti's love to hear the word leghold and there isnt a trap that is called that.
Have a wonderful day,
John Porter
http://martentrapper.proboards28.com

I don't care for spotlighters, but in this area everyone does it. It's nothing to be scared of.

We're in PA.

You have a lot of trappers in PA. The season is in right now so you should be able to find a few trappers to radicate your problem. You email or pm me, and state what town your in and I'll find a few honest and responsable trappers for you.
John Porter

Well, I've learned a lot from all the posts I've seen. It seems everyone really likes livestock guardian dogs, but what about guardian donkeys? My goats literally hate dogs and will not even drink after one. They are horned, I always hoped it'd help them somewhat in the event of a stray dog attack (which I've had more problems with than coyotes).
They do go to the barn at night the animal housing part of it faces the house and is pretty well lit up at night will all the lighting so we can easily look out the bedroom windows and check on them.
After reading everything, I'm not even sure we actually have a coyote problem. I don't want to be like an ostrich and stick my head in the sand though either. We have yet to loose any animal to them, everything that's been killed here has been hit on the road. (That road is quite vicious!)
The trapping idea would work too. My dad used to trap to try and supplement his income a little. I remember that well and I'd much rather pay someone else to do it!

I've heard some discouraging things about guardian donkeys, like, they'll try to mate with their wards, and if you have more than one they'll ignore the livestock they're supposed to protect all together.

For the donkeys,, it is best to get a weanling Jenny. That way they become part of your herd at a young age,, and the Jenny will be more likely to guard your herd as it grows up.
You also only want to get one,, that way they make what ever animals you have part of its herd.

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Shari