Coyotes.

[Barry Willis]

I don't expect if this will apply to many of you folks in Ontario but thought I'd post it anyway. Out here in Calgary over the past few years (Fish and Wildlife estimate there are a little over a thousand coyotes here in the city) there have been several attacks on dogs, some on people, moms being threatened while going for a walk with their infant in a stroller, children being threatened by them right in their front yards and pets going missing from yards that aren't fenced properly. Coexisting with them is becoming more difficult as they are getting bolder every year. Quite often (too often) especially in rural areas a single coyote will come in and lure dogs out and away from the yard to where a pack is waiting in ambush and attack and kill the dog. And some people wonder why I shoot them - in their words - the poor things. 

[CrowMan]

Big polarizing issue in my home town of Oakville. Some little old ladies are even afraid to come out of their house. Local social media fuels the paranoia, especially among new Canadians that have had little exposure to wildlife. It's the "big bad Wolf" syndrome.

As far as I know, the only time there have been threatening interactions between Coyotes and humans is when people feed them, and they get conditioned to humans as a food source. Most of the "stories" of pets being eaten by them have turned out to be urban myths.

Personally, I don't see them as a threat at all. There is a pair that walk past my house every morning like clockwork...they don't bother me, I don't bother them. On a few occasions, where I've come head to head with them in the local park...either a bark from my Vizsla (not a big dog) or a clap of my hands has sent them scurrying away with their tail between their legs.

They're here, because food is here...frankly, I like the fact they keep the local rodent population under control. The rat problem is one of the dirty little secrets of the  suburbs.

 

Edited January 19 by CrowMan

[porkpie]

Nothing that 50 grains from the triple deuce can't solve.  You've reminded me to dust off my winter whites.  I had more than I care to see on the cams this fall.  If no one else does, the deer will thank me!

[lew]

53 minutes ago, porkpie said:

 If no one else does, the deer will thank me!

Coyotes ripped apart a young fawn 100 feet from my back door a few years back.

[porkpie]

For sure nature is cruel.  It always amazes me how many people think wildlife die of old age.  Mainly killed and eaten in the most unpleasant fashion imaginable by some toothy critter, or freeze to death or starve.  I don’t begrudge coyotes their living, but I do thin them out a bit when I start to see them too frequently, when they become too bold, or  when farmer friends complain about livestock harassment or loss!

[lew]

My bud lived over in Norwood across the road from a farm that raised beef and sheep and every spring when the lambs & calves were born they were overrun with coyotes trying to get them. 

[Headhunter]

We see them a lot in our backyard here in Scarborough. We have a ravine behind the house and they use it all the time to travel throughout the neighbourhood. Neighbours have lost dogs and cats when they have left them out and un-tended.

i think they follow the deer that we alos see quite often, being part of the Rogue trip system.

HH

[BITEME]

I’m gonna weigh in a bit here. Growing up in Oakville once upon a time when there was nothing above the Qew we use to hunt coyotes from upper middle road to Acton. some of it was just to go out and shoot coyotes to control them in our local area which if you don’t know was bountiful with all the variety of game a frost bitten Canadian boy could want. Absolute smorgasbord of wild game

From our local area up it was all about the farmers. A large group of us from all points around the Halton umbrella would converge on farmers fields with their permission and begin the purge. Dogs and guns! It was a lot of fun always, really good times! But then the areas where we could discharge firearms got pushed further and further toward acton eventually putting an end to our very bountiful hunting escapades. Oakville was built with all interconnected  trail systems effectively making it the perfect food conveyor the coyotes took full advantage and rein as kings raccoons are next and squirrel rats rounds it out. Before I left the coyote population was as big aa I’d ever seen it was nothing from rebbeca to the hiway to see 4 or 5 ia lot of mangy and sick looking to yotes 

I like coyotes like watching them hunt,out with their pups just being coyotes 

they can not be allowed to reign as it stands in the Gta it is a real and troubling issue but the bleeding and faint of heart types know what the solution is but just don’t have the stomach for it. No one else wants them. This is not cruel it’s reality.

or just let binky Buffy and patches get carted off over the fence

and most important of all DONT FEED THEM!!!!!

I feel better now

[smitty55]

I've lived here in Lanark since 97 and the coyotes certainly go in cycles. They hit their peak maybe 6-10 years back and there wasn't an evening spent outdoors or with windows open where you didn't hear coyotes sounding off from all four directions, sometimes pretty close to the house. Now its rare to hear them and last year I even started seeing a few rabbits around, that never happens anymore. There was always a local hunt gang that had wide spread permission from most farms that would use dogs and I'd see their truck parked all over the place for miles including just across the road. They don't hunt them anymore. Don't see any Fishers around anymore either. That's good because they do way more damage to the local feline population than coyotes as they are excellent climbers.

[floater]

I had my first ever Coyote hunt yesterday out in Wingham Area, The dogs chased two coyotes around for about two hours, Eventually one came to us and we got it. While this was going on we had several locals stop by and thank us for reducing their numbers. They even pointed out new areas for us to hunt. I think i'm hooked. It was a neat way to hunt

[John]

On 1/19/2024 at 2:54 PM, CrowMan said:

Big polarizing issue in my home town of Oakville. Some little old ladies are even afraid to come out of their house. Local social media fuels the paranoia, especially among new Canadians that have had little exposure to wildlife. It's the "big bad Wolf" syndrome.

As far as I know, the only time there have been threatening interactions between Coyotes and humans is when people feed them, and they get conditioned to humans as a food source. Most of the "stories" of pets being eaten by them have turned out to be urban myths.

Personally, I don't see them as a threat at all. There is a pair that walk past my house every morning like clockwork...they don't bother me, I don't bother them. On a few occasions, where I've come head to head with them in the local park...either a bark from my Vizsla (not a big dog) or a clap of my hands has sent them scurrying away with their tail between their legs.

They're here, because food is here...frankly, I like the fact they keep the local rodent population under control. The rat problem is one of the dirty little secrets of the  suburbs.

 

Probably the most sensible response to the  Coyote " problem" I have read in some time. 

[BassMan11]

On 1/19/2024 at 2:54 PM, CrowMan said:

Big polarizing issue in my home town of Oakville. Some little old ladies are even afraid to come out of their house. Local social media fuels the paranoia, especially among new Canadians that have had little exposure to wildlife. It's the "big bad Wolf" syndrome.

As far as I know, the only time there have been threatening interactions between Coyotes and humans is when people feed them, and they get conditioned to humans as a food source. Most of the "stories" of pets being eaten by them have turned out to be urban myths.

Personally, I don't see them as a threat at all. There is a pair that walk past my house every morning like clockwork...they don't bother me, I don't bother them. On a few occasions, where I've come head to head with them in the local park...either a bark from my Vizsla (not a big dog) or a clap of my hands has sent them scurrying away with their tail between their legs.

They're here, because food is here...frankly, I like the fact they keep the local rodent population under control. The rat problem is one of the dirty little secrets of the  suburbs.

 

I mean there is some validity to the increase number of animals and humans being attacked by yotes in suburban area's. There are a few news articles a year outing attacks on toddlers in their fenced in back yards or people out for walks. 

In 2022 several pets were killed and several people were attacked by a yote in Ottawa's south end. 

The closer you get to "town" the more aggressive they become. I'm all for wildlife being around... until they are causing a problem.

Last spring we had a bear in our community for a couple weeks taking down bird feeders all down the street.... thats fine and all.... but with a 5 and 4 year old playing in the back yard.. not overly keen on just letting them be around.