Nothing sounds creepier than a pack of coyotes howling and yipping in the not too far distance. When you are backwoods, you need a gun and really good dogs. I don't mean the pretty and sweet dogs who wear bows. You need well-trained and burly German Sheperds. My in-laws have two amazing Sheperds, and they are the only things that makes me feel comfortable being outside at night.
Did I mention, you need a gun? Yeah, no fru fur here either. Get a few, learn to use them and make them count.
(Coyote: Information provided by http://www.desertusa.com/animals/coyote)
Coyote Behavior
Alone, in pairs or in packs, coyotes
maintain their territories by marking them with urine. They also use
calls to defend this territory, as well as for strengthening social
bonds and general communication. Coyotes can easily leap an eight foot
fence or wall. They have been spotted climbing over a 14 foot cyclone
fence.
Although the coyote usually digs
its own den, it will sometimes enlarge an old badger hole or perhaps fix
up a natural hole in a rocky ledge to suit its own needs. Dens are
usually hidden from view, but they are fairly easy to locate because of
the trails that lead away from the den. The coyote uses the den to birth
its young and to sleep. The coyote does not hibernate.
Coyotes have a good sense of smell,
vision and hearing which, coupled with evasiveness, enables them to
survive both in the wild and occasionally in the suburban areas of large
cities. They are common in most rural areas, but because of their
secretive nature, few are seen. Efforts to control or exterminate the
coyote by predator control agents seem to have produced an animal that
is extremely alert and wary and well able to maintain itself.
Food & Hunting
A coyote travels over its range and
hunts both day and night, running swiftly and catching prey easily. It
has a varied diet and seems able to exist on whatever the area offers in
the way of food. Coyotes eat meat and fish, either fresh or spoiled,
and at times eat fruit and vegetable matter and have even been known to
raid melon patches.
Although the coyote has been
observed killing sheep, poultry and other livestock, it does not subsist
on domestic animals. Food habit studies reveal that its principle diet
is composed of mice, rabbits, ground squirrels, other small rodents,
insects, even reptiles, and the fruits and berries of wild plants.
The coyote is an opportunistic predator that uses a variety of
hunting techniques to catch small mammals likes rabbits and squirrels,
which comprise the bulk of its diet. Although it hunts alone to catch
small prey, it may join with others in hunting larger mammals like young
deer or a pony.
The coyote often tracks its prey
using its excellent sense of smell, then stalks it for 20-30 minutes
before pouncing. It may also take advantage of its stamina to chase its
prey over long distances, and then strike when the quarry is exhausted.
In the dry season they may try to
dig for water or find a cattle tank to have a drink. They also derive
moisture from their diet. Everything they eat has some moisture in it.
There are also the coyote melons which grow in the desert. To humans,
they taste terrible but they provide moisture; coyotes and javelina are
about the only animals that eat them.
Urban coyotes take advantage of
swimming pools, dog water dishes, ponds and water hazards at golf
courses and other water bearing human artifacts as a source of moisture.
However, the majority of coyotes never see people.
What should I do if I see a coyote?
You want to
harass or scare the coyote so it fears you and leaves. You can do this
by shouting or yelling at the coyote. Wave your arms and throw rocks at
the coyote if necessary. You can make loud noises by clapping your
hands, blowing a whistle, knocking two boards together or by using a car
horn, air horn or other noise making device.
All the information above is great, but you still need a gun and a dog.
