Last night may have been the worst as there were so many of them!!
I awoke out of bed at 3:39am to the sound of my dogs barking.
We jumped up each opening a window....the sound was terrible.
A huge pack of coyotes were going wild in the horse fence.
I wanted to put this up so you get the idea,add way more barking and double the amount of coyotes,put them 200 feet from your house,barn and livestock....worst feeling ever.
coyotes howling
There had to be 10 maybe more.
One big one was barking aggressively like a rabid dog,one smaller,younger one sounded to be whimpering like it was hurt,the rest were howling and chattering.
I have not ever heard so many different calls and noises come all at once!
Once the coyotes would quiet for a moment a creepy noise that sounded like a whistle was blowing was coming from the back field behind the barn.
When this whistle noise would sound the coyotes would go wild.
My husband thinks it was a bird...I checked today for night birds that could sound like that,the closet was a red tailed hawk but I'm not convinced it wasn't my neighbor who has traps set for them trying to call them in.
With cows due it is nerve racking to say the least.
Sunday night around 2am, several were here.
One behind the house by the horse fence,one by the barn and one behind the barn in with the cows.
They were barking.
The one in with the cows whimpered as if it were hurt,I heard cow horns clanking together...I assume two tried to pin the coyote or at least hit it and were successful but hit horns in the process.
That was the last sound Sunday and they moved on.
They have been here nightly for over a week.
I suspect the fact that my neighbor is baiting them to traps is the main reason.
I'm not happy about it.
I will try to take a video tonight if they are back, of the howling.
Why oh why do they even exist??
Such a terrible creature.....
Does anyone know of a coyote call that sounds like a whistle being blown or is it a red tailed hawk??
I hope they move on but I know that is not likely.
I just pray my cows and barn cats continue to be safe......
we've had trouble here, too, on occasion. they were pillaging the livestock the new neighbors brought in behind us (chickens, geese, goats) night after night. the neighbors finally started firing off a gun when they heard them howl. i think they also put up some trail cams as i saw some flashes going off in the woods. seems it has scared the coyotes off a bit again. for a while they were getting aggressive and coming up into the yard after my dogs. not a good feeling. i hope you can get thru their 'hunger' season!
ReplyDeleteDid the noise sound like this?
ReplyDeletehttp://www.myoan.net/sounds/wheeze.wav
I heard that noise one night, really loudly, and it turned out to be a deer who wanted me and my dog to GO AWAY.
(Love the photos of your animals!)
I googled it and found that there are many, many "Predator Calls" that mimic the sound of coyote prey (rabbits, mice, rats, deer, etc.) in distress. All of them are high-pitched.
ReplyDeleteI've always wondered how terrifying it must have been for folks headed across the prairies when our countries were expanding, to hear a pack of coyotes for the first time. I'd have been sure it was ghosts and high tailed it back to whatever city I came from.
Oh Farmer I know how anxious you are feeling I know it very well as you know. We lost a lot of calves last year and had very spooked cattle which makes them more dangerous for me to be among everyday.
ReplyDeleteWe are 12 into new calves and I watched one coyote run across the field this weekend. So far so good. I am always terrified of another winter like last winter.
The good news is not all coyotes will kill. Our neighbours shot a bunch last winter and we have had no problems with these new ones we see.
I hope you just have normal coyotes that kill rabbits, and rodents and such.
The red tailed hawk is like a high pitched scream they are territorial also. If they did see the coyotes by their area they would certainly put up a fuss.
Good luck Farmer I do hope things work out. I do not know what else to say. Hug. B
Not a good situation, I wish you the best.
ReplyDeleteWe have coyotes all around too and while I was at the other house with the dogs, my husband said that a coyote came right to the edge of our front yard and started howling, he thinks it wanted our big dog to come out..very strange as it was daytime. - That sound could be a type of owl, we had a strange sound and it turned out to be a pair of horned owls hunting the mice and rats that come in our chicken yard and the garden after dark. - I do hope this all works out for you as they are very frightening when they make all of that noise...like a group of bad gang members getting ready to riot. Don't you have authorities that take care of this..like game wardens? xo
ReplyDeleteDo you own a gun? Even a shotgun with birdshot could spook them away.
ReplyDeleteWe're just starting to get them here on the East Coast. Not many have been seen, but knowing they're here is unnerving. I how all is safe on your farm.
ReplyDelete