suburban Coyote deterrent advice

[Rover Mac]

So i get a call at 2am from a friend in the hills who was woken up by coyote's attacking her feral (but fixed ) outdoor cats. The cats had taken refuge on the roof of the single story home, but the coyote jumped up after them, (using the storage shed). This coyote apparently has no fear of humans, flash lights or loud noises.
She had called the her 24hr armed response security company (not interested) and animal control (aware of the problem)

She was all for shooting the animal with her 357 revolver (not a great idea, and was probably going to endanger her neighbors more than the coyote, I have seen her target shooting )
She has dogs, terriers which are great with horses, and show no fear of the coyote but probably not going to fair so well if confronted by a cornered and hungry coyote.

I found the cat the next morning


So any advice for deterring a coyote (without shooting it)

 

[garrett]

She needs bigger dogs that are designed to keep predators like coyotes at bay. Like Great Pyrenees and Maremma's. These breeds were originally bred to guard against wolves. They are traditionally a nocturnal dog and can be annoying to neighbors as they tend to bark at night.

In my experience the Maremma is a bit more aggressive. A well trained one of these dogs is not something to fuck with.

 

[p m]

Between a fox terrier and a coyote, I'd bet on a fox terrier.

 

[Rover Mac]

She needs bigger dogs that are designed to keep predators like coyotes at bay. Like Great Pyrenees and Maremma's. These breeds were originally bred to guard against wolves. They are traditionally a nocturnal dog and can be annoying to neighbors as they tend to bark at night.

In my experience the Maremma is a bit more aggressive. A well trained one of these dogs is not something to fuck with.

Thanks,
My suggestion was a Rhodesian Ridgeback, used them to pull down red deer in Scotland (some stalking "clients"were not the best shots, and occasionally a deer would be wounded by poachers) they can also run for miles so might work well with her horses.
Although I have my reservations about recommending a larger dog, (IMO the last thing she needs is another "pet" ) and the dog will have to be "good" around horses and her terriers.
Short of a larger dog, and getting rid of her cats (before they are eaten), poisoning is not an option i was wondering if there were any other suggestions.

 

[Rover Mac]

Between a fox terrier and a coyote, I'd bet on a fox terrier.

The 2 Terriers she adopted are some sort of "border terrier "mix and when tired on long rides have their own saddlebags, I know Terriers are fearless and tenacious, but I was hesitant about telling her to let her dogs out of the house, especially if they ended up chasing the coyote , they would stand a fair chance of getting lost, assuming they were not injured in the process. And if that happened It would of course be my fault

 

[brian4d]

Don't forget they hunt in packs or 2 or sometimes 3. They are smart little fucks and will lure 1 dog into an area where both will attack. Get more then one dog.

 

[garrett]

Thanks,
My suggestion was a Rhodesian Ridgeback, used them to pull down red deer in Scotland (some stalking "clients"were not the best shots, and occasionally a deer would be wounded by poachers) they can also run for miles so might work well with her horses.
Although I have my reservations about recommending a larger dog, (IMO the last thing she needs is another "pet" ) and the dog will have to be "good" around horses and her terriers.
Short of a larger dog, and getting rid of her cats (before they are eaten), poisoning is not an option i was wondering if there were any other suggestions.

I had three GPs and one Maremma and all were great around horses, livestock, etc. Just not all the keen on other dogs coming onto the farm. I have a GP mix now and she hasn't been around the horses - yet. They are coming to the house/barn in a month, but I am certain she will not be an issue. Most dogs seem to learn pretty quick or they get a thump or bite to their head.

The coyotes up north (New England/Canadian Provinces) are getting not only more aggressive, but larger as they are breeding with wolves. Two of them killed an adult female a few years back and the following year another adult was attacked in one of the parks.

She's going to have a hard time finding a solution to this other than killing or trapping them. If she does go the trapping route she will have to displace them far enough away so there is no chance of them coming back.

 

[Levi]

I've had several Great Pyrenees growing up on a farm and they were all great guard dogs as well as gentle giants but nothing to mess with. We never had any problems with them and the horses, cattle, or barn cats. One female we had lived with the cow heard most of the time. From my experience the males are a lot more aggressive with coyotes but tend to roam, even when neutered. We had one that was very aggressive with coyotes and would take off after them when they would howl. He had a spiked collar and did this for years until one time he never came back. If your friend goes the big dog route I would highly recommend a Pyrenees.

If you do try to shoot it the ones around here (midwest) will almost always stop and turn around to look long enough to get a good shot if you whistle at them and they aren't on full out run.

 

[K-rover]

My advice is get more than one large dog. The training of those dogs is just as important as the breed they chose. I have a 90 lb mutt that is as good as a guard dog as you could ask for. I spent a lot of time making sure that I can control him verbally no matter the situation.

They can also set up traps, but thats a bit tricky since they are so smart.

 

[Jake1996D1]

Thanks,
My suggestion was a Rhodesian Ridgeback, used them to pull down red deer in Scotland (some stalking "clients"were not the best shots, and occasionally a deer would be wounded by poachers) they can also run for miles so might work well with her horses.
Although I have my reservations about recommending a larger dog, (IMO the last thing she needs is another "pet" ) and the dog will have to be "good" around horses and her terriers.
Short of a larger dog, and getting rid of her cats (before they are eaten), poisoning is not an option i was wondering if there were any other suggestions.

I have a Rhodesian and he is a great guard dog. But he doesnt get a lot well with other male dogs. Between him and the pit mix we dont have problems with much of anything...

 

[I HATE PONIES]

I guess I don't see the problem with a Coyote eating Feral Cats. Seems like a win to me.

 

[rcshauger]

She can get bird-shot for her .357, but that requires the predator to be seen and close enough for the bbs to impact it.

 

[kennith]

She can get bird-shot for her .357, but that requires the predator to be seen and close enough for the bbs to impact it.

That stuff just isn't right. You'll chance blinding the animal without mortal injury.

It's always best to consider how the animal kingdom handles such issues. Step one is the marking of territory. There are lots of ways to do this. If you have a dog, it's going to happen automatically. If you don't, you'll have to figure it out yourself. If you don't want to mark it yourself, there are many fluids that can be purchased and sprayed.

Patrols are the next step. Again, if you have a dog, it's going to happen automatically. Any trespassing animals will be alerted to the presence of a restricted area by all the noise. On occasion, they will observe your dog walking the perimeter. If you don't have a dog, you'll have to figure this one out as well. It's not difficult. All you've got to do is be seen outdoors at the perimeter every now and again, and be sure to go ape-shit whenever you observe an unauthorized visitor.

You want to make it more convenient for the animals to walk around your property than through it. They aren't stupid. If they run into enough inconvenience, they will eventually go somewhere else.

If that stuff doesn't work, and sometimes even if it does, you'll have to attack the animals to get the point across. This normally isn't a big issue, but some times they will fight back. You've got to be prepared to win, but remember they are simply being themselves. There is no evil in their nature. Shooting them without deadly intent, spraying them with pepper, or otherwise damaging them severely isn't good behavior.

If you don't want to do that, trapping them isn't a horrible idea, and there are numerous humane traps available. Of course, something big enough to grab a coyote isn't going to be cheap, nor is it something you just want to leave about in the yard with little care.

In this event, a pair of dogs designed to defend one's territory against such predators is the best move. It's not the most convenient move, but it's the best move. It's been working for thousands of years.

Cheers,

Kennith

 

[Jake1996D1]

So shoot them with deadly intent or catch them in a humane trap.. Makes sense to me

 

[Some Dude]

I'd rather deal with one coyote. I went out in the back yard with a spot light a couple nights ago and counted 7 raccoon.

 

[apg]

I'd rather deal with one coyote. I went out in the back yard with a spot light a couple nights ago and counted 7 raccoon.

...sub-sonic .22. My air gun makes more noise....

 

[Roverlady]

The coyotes around here are getting bigger. My husband saw one last year probably 40 pounds or so in size and there was one that got himself stuck in my horse's paddock last summer (according to our neighbors). After being chased and kicked at by my horse he figured out how to get out.

If we, or friends, see them around here they get shot with whatever is available. I wouldn't let my dogs try to chase/hunt one. But we do have friends with a large sheep farm and they use LGDs and Maremmas for protection, like mentioned earlier.

 

[Andrew Homan]

Wish Coyotes were the only predator problem I had in my back yard

 

[garrett]

Wish Coyotes were the only predator problem I had in my back yard

No way.....you have unicorns?

 

[Jake1996D1]

I was thinking sexual predators.. A Tom maybe?