A pack of coyotes live in a little grove about 200 yards from my house. I did not know that coyotes “lived” in a particular area, I thought they roamed. My first misconception.
Last week my cat died of natural causes. I was looking for a place to bury her and my neighbor suggested a spot near a shed in his field. I went over to look around and stumbled upon a coyote sleeping in the shed. We were both surprised and quickly headed in opposite directions. What struck me was another misconception I held: the animal was quite striking with a very handsome coat and distinctive markings. I had never seen a coyote before except in photographs and they weren’t very remarkable in appearance.
I should point out that I don’t live in a rural area. More like what some people call the rural suburbs, about 60 miles from Manhattan as the crow flies. I first became aware of coyotes in the area on Sept. 11, 2001, around 2am, when a pack was yipping and screaming nearby. Over the last few years I’ve heard them a few times and it always feels like a bad omen. Silly superstition, I know.
Lately it seems like they are everywhere. I’ve seen lone coyotes several times while driving down my road. One was hit by a car this morning was eventually shot to death by the police. Poor creature was badly injured but still on the move.
Coyotes are rather stealthy animals but they have an amusing weakness: whenever the firehouse siren goes off they instantly have a group yip-fest. They carry on for minutes at a time.
I have two male cats now and I have been keeping them indoors at night, but I still worry. My neighbors have a two-year old boy and I would imagine this situtation makes them nervous (they are closer to the grove.) I’ve never seen a coyote in my yard, but I know that means nothing.
I’m writing this because I’m not sure what to do, if anything. I wouldn’t shoot an animal unless it was directly threatening a person or a pet. I also don’t own a gun, so I would have to run out and buy one and then race back to take on the threatening beast. I’ve been hesitant to call the town animal control office. I don’t know if they would take any action and if they did, maybe I wouldn’t agree with it.
Anyone else dealing with this problem? Know of any totems or substances that make coyotes recoil in fear and loathing?
If you are about to hit a coyote with your car, go ahead and hit it. Better that than swerving into a person.
That’s about all you can do.
Most of totems and substances you would put out to make a coyote recoil in fear will drive away stray and loose dogs and racoons and so forth - leaving less competition for the coyotes who want to sleep in your shed and eat your garbage and housepets.
I’ve lived in a few coyote-inhabited areas and basically I keep my cats in, always.
When I was in Vancouver there were problems with people leaving lots of garbage around for them to snack on, feeding them directly and, of course, having lots of yummy pets for them to snack on. As a result, the coyotes were losing their fear of humans and there were a few incidents of children being bitten.
Keep your yard clean, consider converting your cats to indoors only and recommend your neighbours do the same. Do you have a fence? Is it feasible to build one?
I can’t think of much that would deter a coyote other than a large alert dog. Coyotes are quite intelligent and adaptable.
I live in CT, have a cat and a dog, and have coyotes visit my yard from time to time. There’s a small pack in the neighborhood, which is fairly close to a state park. They are not harmless, but neither are they terrifying. 'Yotes are mostly scavengers and opportunists. The ones in this area do not pack-hunt the same way wolves do. I have even surprised a 'yote in the open while walking my dog*, and the 'yote was very anxious to get away.
*My dog is a 100# Rottweiler-Rhodesian Ridgeback mix, which may have had something to do with the 'yotes reaction.
So my bottom line: Keep the garbage covered, keep the wild feedings (bird feeders, etc) to a minimum, keep an eye on your cats and kids, and don’t worry too much.
The same rules apply to black bears, BTW. We have them in our area, and I’m going to guess from your OP that you are in an area the already has them, or will soon.
There are no cats or small dogs to be seen in our neighborhood, as coyotes consider them a nice alternative to cottontails, packrats, and insects. I see a coyote about once a week…usually wandering about apparently looking for food.
I actually watched one stand at the edge of a road peeking out of the creosote bushes. It watched the traffic, and waited for a break, then slowly trotted across the road and up an arroyo.
At night we get to hear the other-worldly sounds that the packs can make. I suspect that they hunt socially at night, but individually during the day.
They are a nice part of the landscape here in the desert. We don’t feed them, except for our pets. The only hardware store isn’t named “Acme”, and there are roadrunners.
I once lived on the edge of an arroyo, and at night we could hear coyotes yipping. I could tell from the timbre of the yips that there were pups out there, but I could not see a den.
Then early one morning I was sitting quietly on the balcony, and saw an adult coyote trotting along a path on the other side of the arroyo. She stopped and looked long and carefully across at our house and at each house in the arroyo in turn. She took a long time and examined every home thoughtfully. Only when she was assured that no one was watching her (I remained absolutely still), she turned and trotted five feet further on and into the mouth of a burrow. This burrow was directly across from my balcony, but it was so subtly disguised with brush and stones that I only recognized it as a hole once I saw her go in.
Those critters are damned, damned smart. I’m still not very fond of them, but I respect their toughness and survival skills. And I also vote to keep kitties entirely indoors, and don’t keep pet food outdoors as it is just an invitation to a free buffet. How high of a fence will keep a coyote out?