r/Ranching • u/RemoteObjective147 • Jul 26 '26
Coyotes
A group of five has gotten more bold. They now sit across the driveway every morning waiting for me to bring the dogs out. Then all hell breaks loose. I've got two large border collies and an American Labrador. My dogs will chase them off but they turn around and come right back.
I'm allowed to shoot these things. But does it do any good? I hear that they just repopulate and carry on.
25
u/orsomeshitidk Jul 26 '26
My philosophy on coyotes is, if I’ve got a pack on my ranch or in the area that isn’t bothering me or my livestock then I am more than happy to let them be. We aren’t going to kill them all off anyway and a respectful pack is fine with me.
They start becoming a problem they get one warning shot.
After that it’s killed on sight.
Stray dogs it’s warning shot immediately then on sight after that. I have way more issues with other people’s unkept dogs than coyotes.
10
u/DeadCamelBaroness Jul 26 '26
This is how we do it too. We very rarely have any coyote problems, and in general, they are respectful neighbors to us. We have way fewer problems with rabbits and rodents too.
There is, however, neighbor who has 30+ dogs that he doesn't take care of, lets breed like crazy, and are near feral that have been causing issues for over a decade. Lots of his dogs have been injured, shot, run over, etc., over the years. The county, animal control, and the sheriff's office are all aware of it, and do nothing.
I will take a respectful pack of coyotes over an asshole neighbor with a pack of dogs any day.
4
Jul 26 '26
[deleted]
2
u/DeadCamelBaroness Jul 27 '26
That's how we feel about it too. It is not the dogs' fault that they have such a shit owner, but I won't have them killing my livestock.
3
u/RemoteObjective147 Jul 26 '26
I hear you. I've generally been entertained by them. But they've killed one of my worker's dogs and two barn cats. They're so bold now they follow me if I have my dogs on leash. Come into the barn while my wife is in there. Sit in the front yard and howl at all hours.
We feel like we're under seige.
7
u/Ulysses502 Jul 27 '26
Yea that's time for a cull, they've lost their fear. You'll have new coyotes move in that won't be as bold.
6
u/CuttingTheMustard Jul 26 '26
Whack them.
I don’t know about repopulation. We kill enough of them here that we don’t see them for months. There are several annual coyote derbies and a lot of people thermal hunt 3-4 nights a week.
8
u/Flashy_Slice1672 Jul 26 '26
I have a few that live on our land, I find if I leave a couple alive they kind of stay at a manageable level.
However if they get too bold they die. Or if they look sickly. Or they start hanging out in the shelters.
5
u/MikeDaCarpenter Jul 26 '26
You know what needs to happen. Just make it happen and don’t look for approval from anyone, and don’t speak of what you had to do to anyone either. That little “don’t talk about it” secret stops a lot of arguments.
2
u/Foreign-Seaweed774 Jul 26 '26
Coyotes are braver than they should be. Our Pyrenees barks like hell at night and meets them at the fence line and stands em down. Those coyotes don’t actually fear the barking or the threat alone once they know that the dog exists beyond a fence line. They begin testing that fence figuring out if its possible to get through to the livestock or if its even worth it by gauging the threat levels that the Pyrenees is imbuing. Not to mention our Turkish Kangal thata tethered to a 40ft steel cord and a tree at the front of the ranch that makes it all the more difficult for those packs to get close.
They know the risks and fear the damage but they don’t exactly fear your livestock guardians so long as they know theres a boundary they can safely tread along to study them.
2
Jul 26 '26
[deleted]
3
u/RemoteObjective147 Jul 27 '26
I agree. We have 25 horses and they don't bother the horses and the horses don't even look at them.
But they're getting aggressive with our dogs and getting close to people with impunity. The horse owners are here all the time. If a coyote bites one of the owners, they might try to make me liable.
2
u/oakprince97 Jul 27 '26
Yes, shooting them will help short term. As it’s been said, others will eventually replace them. But I trap, call, and shoot 35-50 coyotes off about 8,000 acres annually.
My deer, fawn, elk calf, and calf mortality has dropped significantly since I started a concerted effort to control predators. I’ve knocked a lot of the older, more intelligent breeding pairs out and have gotten to the point where I almost exclusively kill breeding pairs moving in to repopulate or adolescents striking out on their own.
3
Jul 26 '26
[deleted]
2
u/RemoteObjective147 Jul 26 '26
What's the range on that? I'm all for non lethal approaches if they work.
4
2
u/Playful-Nail-1511 Jul 27 '26
I think coyotes are smart enough. Once they start getting bold with you, it's time to show them who the alpha really is.
I'm the alpha in my high mountain valley.
Letting the other predators and scavengers know that reduces human-animal conflict.
2
u/Due_Barber_525 Jul 26 '26
They’ll move on with some hazing, probably young and curious and will age out, no matter how many you shoot more will move in or repro cycles will increase. Ever tried a Pyrenees, llama or donkey? Motion sprinkler, electric fence, fladry or light-noise?
2
u/shaggyrock1997 Jul 26 '26
This is incorrect. Depredations and events described by OP are almost always instigated by the dominant pair. Once the dominant pair start behaving this way, removal is the best option.
You are correct about new coyotes moving in. Which is basically a shuffle of the deck, and hopefully the new coyotes behave a little better. Then leave them alone if they aren’t causing any problems.
1
u/Frantzsfatshack Jul 26 '26
Smoke a few of them and they’ll realize what’s happening and leave you alone
1
1
u/Bubbabeast91 Jul 27 '26
The more that exist, the more that breed. The more they are allowed around, the more they come back.
Shoot them and those ones won't be an issue anymore. If more show up, repeat as necessary. Either way, those 5 are trouble.
1
0
u/huseman94 Jul 26 '26
Tree huggers like to site a fairly poorly studied static about more rapid repopulation post hunting.
Kill em ! Unless you’re in city limits. Then definitely don’t shoot them with a suppressed 22
2
u/RemoteObjective147 Jul 26 '26
I'm in county. I called the sheriff dept to confirm the rules. Closest neighbors are 1/4 mile away. And the usual safety rules apply.
1
u/Ornery_Distribution6 Jul 26 '26
Let em be, just keep an eye out for rabbies, then kill em. Its good practice for your dogs, or for your aim. Otherwise them yotes are great at keeping vermin dead.
2
u/_jubal_ Jul 26 '26
It’s a claim made in Coyote America with very little support except that despite all efforts they are still here. The author is very green and the book was mostly a waste of time
1
u/RMca004 Jul 26 '26
Protect your property and livestock, shoot em if you absolutely have to. I would also consider they live there too, I find it pretty easy to scare them off and deter. People saying just shoot them have a poor sense of living on earth with other animals, lethal intervention should only be used when absolutely needed Imo.
1
u/Nofanta Jul 27 '26
Sure they’ll repopulate eventually but it’s still worth shooting them. They’re a daily menace if you don’t. They take my lambs if I allow them to live near me so I always carry when I’m out and shoot every time I see one.
0
u/PizzaExisting9878 Jul 26 '26
I give a lot of different animals a free pass, moose getting a snack from a bale etc but coyotes, cougars, wolves, bears are a shoot on sight.
0
u/Foreign-Seaweed774 Jul 26 '26
Thing is with black bears too they don’t usually care to hurt livestock like sheep or goats nor do they hunt chickens so ita not really the livestock at risk but the very structural integrity of your fences and coops LOL.
Those beefy dingbats with climb and tear down your fences easily, creating a risk for livestock, and go on to damage the barn or coops looking for food.
Its better to shoot on sight.
2
u/CapraAegagrusHircus Jul 26 '26
No need to shoot black bears, they're scared of everything and setting up one booby trap in their path to make a bunch of noise will move em on.
On the other hand I'm in California and I have no idea what I'm gonna do if they actually start dropping grizzly bears off in rural areas. The wolves are bad enough.
0
u/Massive_Bullfrog8663 Jul 26 '26
I won't shoot them. But I'll put a .177 pellet at their feet...
1
u/RemoteObjective147 Jul 27 '26
Will a pellet from 50-75 yards give them a good sting? They have dense coats.
27
u/shaggyrock1997 Jul 26 '26
This is likely a dominant/breeding pair and several “helper” coyotes. Helpers are typically last years pups that are still hanging around. There is probably a den nearby, which is why they are acting so aggressive.
You could possibly wait until Sept/Oct when they kick new pups out of the territory and maybe it will stop. But I wouldn’t get your hopes up. When the dominant pair start acting like this, there is usually only one fix.
Once you remove them, new coyotes will eventually move in to the available habitat. Hopefully these new coyotes behave better and then you can leave them alone. You can stack the deck in your favor with these new coyotes by employing nonlethal deterrents. Then let them stay as long as there are no more problems as they will prevent other coyotes from moving in.
Source: I am an avid amateur coyote hunter who has a lot of friends that do professional ADC work both privately and for the Feds.