cat people

[Pat]

Mosey, Actually I did change Mother Nature. I converted that feral cat from a bird killer to a coyote snack. I don't have a problem with cats per se, I'm not one of those "I can't stand cats!" people. I have had pet cats but I choose to intervene when cats start using my bird feeders as cat feeders. I really wouldn't shoot just any cat, especially if it resembled a friends animal. I'd mention that I'm having a problem with cats and will shoot them and that if theirs might wander as far as my feeder they might consider some sort of intervention at their end. Then that said, I'd shoot any cat near the feeder.

The one I shot had been living around my property for a few years and was getting bolder and bolder about killing the birds we feed. I figure it was a bad thing for ground nesting birds like Bob White quail and killdeer too.

Dumped pets are a problem in our area but not always a bad thing. A good friend and neighbor ended up with a dumped dog that has turned out to be the best little dog imaginable. It wants to go everywhere with him. It rides in a box on the fender of his tractor and wants to go in his truck everywhere he goes. Smart, pretty obedient, great personality, and friendly. It seems to be (sure looks it) a pure bred Tibetan Temple Dog, the breed name escapes me just now.

My stray dog policy is if I know whose it is and it isn't a problem I don't shoot it. If it is just passing through, I let it go. If it hangs around too long, bothers stock, or is in a pack of 3 or more that is grounds for summary execution without appeal. There are just too many cast off pets and too much irresponsible breeding mostly on the part of folks with wishful thinking in place of reason. A lot of these get dumped around here.

[img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img] Pat [img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

[Mosey]

How much do you know about coyotes? We heard them howling and screetching every night a couple years ago. When we got the cats one of our main concerns was the coyotes. But, for some reason we haven't heard or seen any signs of coyotes for 2 years. Do they migrate? Maybe they're smarter than me and moved south to a warmer climate!

[Stoneheartfarm]

Danny,

I suspect they migrate a little bit, based on food supply and hunting pressure. We've got a pretty bad infestation of them right now. So far, they haven't bothered any of our critters or the neighbors' barn cat which always seems to be hunting in the ditch at the end of our drive.

One of my wife's cousins has been trapping them about 1/2 mile behind our back property line, he said trapping has been good, so I'm hoping he can put enough pressure on them to get them to move elsewhere.

Steve

[Pat]

Mosey, Coyotes are very wiley (pun, Wile E. Coyote of road runner cartoon fame). They are extremely adaptable and virtually omnivorous. It doesn't take but 2-3 to sound like 12-15. It could have been a pair and a litter who moved on due to food availability, threat, loss of habitat (this is a tough issue as coyotes are so adaptable).

In SOCAL there are oodles of coyotes. They even live in Holyweird. There are lots of Coyotes in close proximity to humans in San Diego. Predation of pets where folks are adjacent to canyons and other "wild spaces" is a common thing. I have had friends who lost dogs off the back porch within a few blocks of downtown San Diego.

Since so few sound like so many, if a varmint hunter shot a couple or one got hit by a car it could have devastated your "chorus."

We definitely have coyotes in our area. So far I have done nothing to discourage them. I leave beaver etc out for them to eat. Many of their dropings this time of year are nearly 100% persimmon seeds sometimes with rodent hair mixed in. Even though we definitely have them, we go for fair periods without hearing them. Sometimes they are terrifically vocal and sometimes not. I have seen a few live coyote near the road and several dead ones (roadkill) but in 4 years have only seen one coyote on my 160 acres. They are out there but not making a very visible presence and we go for several months without hearing a thing. I think that sometimes they chorus in the wee hours and it is likely I just don't notice. I have heard them in the wee hours of the morning 1-3 AM and not at any other time for a period of months.

I really like to hear them and will cut them slack until or unless they prove to be a problem. Most often they get blamed for what cute little pet dogs do when they get in a pack and their thin veneer of civilization vanishes. Killing calves etc.

[img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img] Pat [img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img]