Hunting & Fishing First Coyote

eleaf

eleaf

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Oct 12, 2009
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The Bluegrass
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#1
And he's a HUGE song dog (though he may be a coydog - he has coyote feet, ears, tail, scat and fur, with what looks like a dog snout and some stout legs).

EDIT: At the local weigh in for a regional coyote competition, he weighed in at an official 57.5 lbs. Of the 7 people there, 4 thought he was pure bred coyote, and 3 thought he was as mix (though were very surprised because of the rarity of coydogs in this area).

It was the 2nd stand of the morning. We were overlooking a small cow pasture and it just felt right. Many of those cows had dropped a calf seemingly not more than 3 or 4 days ago, so it seemed like coyotes would be in the area trying to take advantage of the situation. We were right.

Not 15 seconds after we started to call crows were swarming, and a red tailed hawk showed about a minute after that. They hung around for a bit, but then moved on their way.

About 8 minutes in to the stand, I see him. He popped his head over the ridge at about 10 o'clock and stopped, looking for the sound. The wind was a good crosswind coming in at 90 degrees from 9 o'clock so there was no chance of being smelled out. I gave him a second to show more of himself, but he wasn't moving. He could have seen me if he would have looked, and he was only about 40 yards out. I felt good with a head shot using an R-15 in 204 Ruger with a SS 1-4x with donut reticle and exposed turrets(is this perhaps the first kill with these new scopes which shipped out just a week ago?) so I took it.

He dropped in his tracks, not moving an inch. Done.

Despite my wanting to jump up and get a look at my first song dog, I sat while my spotter kept calling for me. After a minute or so with no more dogs, we stopped to get a look at my kill.

And I know he's big. Real big. I humped him for about 3/4 of a mile through thick mud in a cattle lot (that was real fun, lemme tell ya). It's the biggest song dog my spotter had seen, and he says the prettiest too.

He weighed in at a whopping 60 lbs on the home scale.

Rig:
Remington R-15 VTR Rifle in 204 Ruger
SS 1-4x24 HD (Donut reticle/exposed turrets)
American Defense Recon-X (30mm rings)
Nosler Custom 40 grain ballistic tip

Coyote.jpg
 
#2
Re: First Coyote

That definitely looks like a coydog to me. The coloration on the head/throat just don't look right. It looks about correct except for the head and neck, maybe a little dark, but that's more of a regional thing. Almost looks like a husky cross.

xdeano
 
#3
Re: First Coyote

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: xdeano</div><div class="ubbcode-body">That definitely looks like a coydog to me. The coloration on the head/throat just don't look right. It looks about correct except for the head and neck, maybe a little dark, but that's more of a regional thing. Almost looks like a husky cross.

xdeano </div></div>

Regional coyotes here have lots of black in their coloring. It must be a Bluegrass thing.

Husky cross was what we thought too if it is a cross.
 
#4
Re: First Coyote

Pretty blocky looking nose. Definitely NOT a coyotes head.

I vote for coydog. More common than one thinks in more urban areas as coyote numbers increase. Many times they look VERY coyote like and nobody gives em a second look.
 
#5
Re: First Coyote

Based on that picture, that would've been really tough for me to pull the trigger. That looks wayyyy to much like a dog for me. I agree though, it doesn't look quite right to be all dog but it definately, IMO, looks more dog than yote. I think, depending on the area, I would have let that one pass. Especially since my 8yr daughter usually goes yote hunting with me. I think I would have had a hard time with my sell job to her about how every yote we kill we are saving hundreds of baby animals lives. She probably would have freaked out if I shot that.
smile.gif
 
#6
Re: First Coyote

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: kill_goose</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Pretty blocky looking nose. Definitely NOT a coyotes head.

I vote for coydog. More common than one thinks in more urban areas as coyote numbers increase. Many times they look VERY coyote like and nobody gives em a second look. </div></div>

This wasn't anywhere near an urban area. We were in the middle of the bluegrass. Nothing but farms for dozens of miles around.

Agreed on the nose. Seems too short for a coyote. But who knows what regional characteristics crop up in different areas. Perhaps this is an anomaly of some sort in a localized gene line. Eastern coyotes are known to be genetically different from those in the west. It does seem unlikely though.

He definitely has coyote ears though. Long and triangular. Not short and fat triangular like one would expect from a husky-type dog. Had the stereotypical coyote feet too.

Filled with worms and fur in his scat too!
 
#7
Re: First Coyote

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: samson</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Based on that picture, that would've been really tough for me to pull the trigger. That looks wayyyy to much like a dog for me. I agree though, it doesn't look quite right to be all dog but it definately, IMO, looks more dog than yote. I think, depending on the area, I would have let that one pass. Especially since my 8yr daughter usually goes yote hunting with me. I think I would have had a hard time with my sell job to her about how every yote we kill we are saving hundreds of baby animals lives. She probably would have freaked out if I shot that.
smile.gif
</div></div>

4 experienced coyote hunters from that area thought he was actually full bred coyote (and not a mix). I'm betting that they know something about the local population that I don't which leads them to think he is full bred. The other 3 thought he might be a mix, but none of them had ever seen one and were surprised because they are very rare in these parts (we have large, stable coyote populations).

Perhaps there is a weird gene line here that gives them that doggish nose and head.

That said, in person, rather than looking like dog with perhaps some coyote, he looked like a coyote with perhaps some dog. The only dog look he has to him is in his head. Everything else is all coyote (tail, ears, feet, fur, that stereotypical curly cue in his scat - those characteristics were all coyote).
 
#13
Re: First Coyote

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: DFOOSKING</div><div class="ubbcode-body">

I've heard of coydogs but never saw one if in fact that is what it is....

</div></div>

The further east you go, the more likely you are to see coydogs. Coyotes have been out west forever in high density populations that the east has never had. Coyotes have always been here, but only in the last 20 or years have coyotes been showing up in significant numbers. From what I have read about coydogs, they generally only occur at the edges of coyote territories. It's very plausible that you would never have seen a coydog, and that you never may because their populations are huge and have been steady for a very long time.
 
#14
Re: First Coyote

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: eleaf</div><div class="ubbcode-body"><div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: kill_goose</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Pretty blocky looking nose. Definitely NOT a coyotes head.

I vote for coydog. More common than one thinks in more urban areas as coyote numbers increase. Many times they look VERY coyote like and nobody gives em a second look. </div></div>

This wasn't anywhere near an urban area. We were in the middle of the bluegrass. Nothing but farms for dozens of miles around.

Agreed on the nose. Seems too short for a coyote. But who knows what regional characteristics crop up in different areas. Perhaps this is an anomaly of some sort in a localized gene line. Eastern coyotes are known to be genetically different from those in the west. It does seem unlikely though.

He definitely has coyote ears though. Long and triangular. Not short and fat triangular like one would expect from a husky-type dog. Had the stereotypical coyote feet too.

Filled with worms and fur in his scat too! </div></div>

Well, farms usually have dogs. So there ya go.

Another possibility, is a straight up mutt dog with about half a dozen breeds to its credit! Ive shot my fair share of them too, if they be out running, they be fair game!





<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: DFOOSKING</div><div class="ubbcode-body">

On a similar side story have any of you seen a "Sivicat?" Something like part cat/part skunk...I bagged one one night east of Huron,SD. Had skunk profile....lighter grey color to it and white dashes instead of the typical black with whites stripes. Thought it was just old but it looked slightly off.

</div></div>


Its "civet cat". Which may refer to a ring-tailed cat, or a spotted skunk, neither of which are civets. For SD, id be willing to bet it was a spotted skunk.
 
#15
Re: First Coyote

Heres a crappy cell phone picture of a coydog I shot a few years back.

The dog on the left is a normal, low 30ish lb male, pretty average for here. The dog on the right is quite a bit bigger, mid 40's is memory serves correct, which is pretty damn big for here. Also, his face is OBVIOUSLY not coyote. The rest of him surely was. I figure one of his grandparents was a dog.

coydog.jpg
 
#18
Re: First Coyote

I don't know, your coyotes in the East must look alot different than the yotes we have out West cause the more I look at that pic the less coyote I see. Body, head, fur look huskyish with some German Sheperd mix.

I've only hunted/shot coyotes as far East as Chicago but I have never ever saw a yote that looked anything like that.

I'm not saying it's not a yote hybrid of some sort it just doesn't look like any coyote I've ever seen.
 
#19
Re: First Coyote

Agreed with Samson. Never seen coydog so all I can say, is that looks like a dog to ME. It may be one of these coydogs, but the bushy tail is the only thing I can maybe reference to a coyote from that pic.
 
#21
Re: First Coyote

i've hunted coyotes in about evry corner of this country. you definately have a coydog there.

no worries though....i actually like to shoot those more when the chance pops up. i actually believe i know where there is a coyote being bred by a german sheperd right now and i am curious as to what the pups in this area will look like. i have let the german sheperd walk twice now while i have been on stand. no collar but i know he is full blooded shep and i can't bring myself to deep six his ass yet.
 
#22
Re: First Coyote

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Quote:</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Agreed with Samson. Never seen coydog so all I can say, is that looks like a dog to ME. It may be one of these coydogs, but the bushy tail is the only thing I can maybe reference to a coyote from that pic.
</div></div>


Another pic taken later by my hunting partner after he was taken in and weighed by the officials at the coyote competition. Some guys on another forum saw all dog until they couldn't see his face anymore. When all they could see was his body, their minds changed quickly.

IMG_0229.jpg


 
#24
Re: First Coyote

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: DFOOSKING</div><div class="ubbcode-body">A word of caution...just because it doesn't have a collar don't mean you can hammer it in some jurisdictions. We aren't really known for having wolves in eastern SD but apparently this winter somebody shot one in the Wessington Springs area and left it. The GFP are looking for those responsible...

If I saw it while legally hunting coyotes I probably wouldn't have given it a second thought and shot it. I know farmers that are the same way... </div></div>

In some places it could be a wolf, but in central KY? I doubt it. It's not out of the realm of possibility, but the probability is extremely small, I would think.
 
#25
Re: First Coyote

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: eleaf</div><div class="ubbcode-body"><div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: DFOOSKING</div><div class="ubbcode-body">A word of caution...just because it doesn't have a collar don't mean you can hammer it in some jurisdictions. We aren't really known for having wolves in eastern SD but apparently this winter somebody shot one in the Wessington Springs area and left it. The GFP are looking for those responsible...

If I saw it while legally hunting coyotes I probably wouldn't have given it a second thought and shot it. I know farmers that are the same way... </div></div>

In some places it could be a wolf, but in central KY? I doubt it. It's not out of the realm of possibility, but the probability is extremely small, I would think. </div></div>

I agree with this. I think it would be different if he was hunting someplace known for wolves. That would be like me shooting a wolf here in TX, the probabilities are very low, low enough in fact that I would not hesitate to "ground check" it.
 
#26
Re: First Coyote

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: battlestick</div><div class="ubbcode-body"><div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: eleaf</div><div class="ubbcode-body"><div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: DFOOSKING</div><div class="ubbcode-body">A word of caution...just because it doesn't have a collar don't mean you can hammer it in some jurisdictions. We aren't really known for having wolves in eastern SD but apparently this winter somebody shot one in the Wessington Springs area and left it. The GFP are looking for those responsible...

If I saw it while legally hunting coyotes I probably wouldn't have given it a second thought and shot it. I know farmers that are the same way... </div></div>

In some places it could be a wolf, but in central KY? I doubt it. It's not out of the realm of possibility, but the probability is extremely small, I would think. </div></div>

I agree with this. I think it would be different if he was hunting someplace known for wolves. That would be like me shooting a wolf here in TX, the probabilities are very low, low enough in fact that I would not hesitate to "ground check" it. </div></div>

Unless I had heard on the local news that a wolf had escaped from the zoo, wolf wouldn't even enter my mind as a possibility.
 
#27
Re: First Coyote

And the last time a wolf was seen around wessington springs sd was when the indians were lighting covered wagons on fire. At least the guy that shot it did not report him self to the gfp like the other guy up in roberts county did. The three s' apply to any wolf in SD. That one you shot would make a nice rug good work.
 
#31
Re: First Coyote

I shot a big mix a couple years ago. He was really yellow colored with the big mane around the shoulders solid black up the middle....fricken taxidermist went belly up and never seen him again. I am not too far away I am about 20 miles nrth of Louisville
 
#34
Re: First Coyote

It looks like an Aussie or Husky mutt knocked up a coyote to me. I've seen a lot of black in coyotes, and some big coyotes, but I haven't seen anything that looks like that much of a black and white pattern on a coyote. Coming in to a call like that though, coupled with the shape of the body, and the scat being full of fur and worms, it's at the very least a wild animal. I had the thought that it could be the pup of a Husky coydog. I'm not sure, but I don't think coydogs are sterile, so if that's the case a second-gen seems likely to me. Nice dog, I'd have taken the shot too. Which county did he come from?
 
#35
Re: First Coyote

That is NOT a coyote sorry but it aint even close white legs belly, blk rings around eyes etc. If its wild it probably is a run away or sumthing. Looks very Alaskan Malamute or husky mix, I see nothing even remotely related to a yote?
Google Alaskan Malamute pics and see what you think?
 
#36
Re: First Coyote

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: kill_goose</div><div class="ubbcode-body"><div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: eleaf</div><div class="ubbcode-body"><div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: kill_goose</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Pretty blocky looking nose. Definitely NOT a coyotes head.

I vote for coydog. More common than one thinks in more urban areas as coyote numbers increase. Many times they look VERY coyote like and nobody gives em a second look. </div></div>

This wasn't anywhere near an urban area. We were in the middle of the bluegrass. Nothing but farms for dozens of miles around.

Agreed on the nose. Seems too short for a coyote. But who knows what regional characteristics crop up in different areas. Perhaps this is an anomaly of some sort in a localized gene line. Eastern coyotes are known to be genetically different from those in the west. It does seem unlikely though.

He definitely has coyote ears though. Long and triangular. Not short and fat triangular like one would expect from a husky-type dog. Had the stereotypical coyote feet too.

Filled with worms and fur in his scat too! </div></div>

Well, farms usually have dogs. So there ya go.

Another possibility, is a straight up mutt dog with about half a dozen breeds to its credit! Ive shot my fair share of them too, if they be out running, they be fair game!





<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: DFOOSKING</div><div class="ubbcode-body">

On a similar side story have any of you seen a "Sivicat?" Something like part cat/part skunk...I bagged one one night east of Huron,SD. Had skunk profile....lighter grey color to it and white dashes instead of the typical black with whites stripes. Thought it was just old but it looked slightly off.

</div></div>


Its "civet cat". Which may refer to a ring-tailed cat, or a spotted skunk, neither of which are civets. For SD, id be willing to bet it was a spotted skunk. </div></div>

civets are african too.
 
#38
Re: First Coyote

From what I can see in the picture, the feet don't look quite right, they look more rounded than the usual coyote "arrowhead" shape. His coloring is VERY Malamute, but both Malamutes and huskies have tails that curl over their backs, this doesn't seem to be the case with this guy. IMO, I think he's a cross. I would've poked him for sure.
 
#40
Re: First Coyote

ive killed many coyotes here in sc and never seen any that look like that, looks more like dog to me but i not a biologist, guess u could have dna run to confirm, I believe the pads on the feet of dogs have a diffrent shap than on coyotes, I dont rember how but I pretty sure they do, u can check that and if it got the yote pads then u at least know it got yote in it, hmmmm It just looks way tooo much like a dog to me, but if it was running wild it needed to b taken out anyway.
 
#41
Re: First Coyote

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: skinney</div><div class="ubbcode-body">nice work buddy, i shot one similar about a month ago, not nearly as dark as yours... hell yes thats a cross... you got more pics??? </div></div>

That vid was awesome!!! On one of the slow motion shots you can see the swirl as the bullet homes in.....very cool!
 
#44
Re: First Coyote

Absolutely NO WAY that is a coyote or even a coy-dog. That is a siberian husky. They come in exactly this coloration, it's called agouti. And many of them, especially the racing sibes, don't have curled tails. You just shot someone's pet. It has husky ears, face, fur, tail, color, size, build, EVERYTHING about this animal screams husky.

agouti racing siberian husky: http://texx-wolf-tails.webs.com/AgoutiHexStacked.jpg

another agouti husky: http://t1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSqsT5zYvJ4zi1acc9loQJW7Mv3rKF6JvUx_TWY-PLFNKuEN5ijuJFzzE0O

a third agouti husky: http://s1.hubimg.com/u/2234468_f260.jpg

#4: http://www.freewebs.com/sibemusher/Dogs%20044.1.jpg

#5: http://texx-wolf-hybrid-rescue.webs.com/Agoutiracinghusky.jpg
 
#45
Re: First Coyote

You shot someone's purebred Husky. The coloring is called agouti, google it. There should be a law about being able to identify what you are hunting. Unfortunately Huskies are escape artist, and I guarantee someone is worried about their dog right now. You might want to check your local lost and found on craigslist and let the owners know you'll shoot anything that walks in front of your crosshairs.
seppala_top.jpg
 
#46
Re: First Coyote

That is a dog! Look here is one of my dogs. It a Tamaskan type of dog.
003_crop.jpg

Here is a photo of three Tamaskan type dogs
315564_296937247002718_100000593362659_1153827_1036193367_n.jpg

And a Tamaskan
wiki-tamaskan-dog.jpg

That dog you shot looks just like my little girl. Tamaskan type of dogs are everywhere! US UK everywhere!
 
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