Coyote Prevention - Tips and Tricks (Phoenix: living in, fences, safety)

[LBTRS]

Originally Posted by 6.7traveler

Unless your fence is 8 feet tall and lined with barbed wire, a fence is merely a minor deterrent for a coyote.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=WO4p76uzse0


https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=YCcuWQ3COjk

Nonsense...

I can show you many more videos of criminals entering fenced yards. Do you not let your children play in your backyard because a criminal may jump the fence and kidnap them?

This concern about coyotes getting in fenced backyards and eating your pet is much ado about nothing.

[6.7traveler]

Originally Posted by LBTRS

Nonsense...

I can show you many more videos of criminals entering fenced yards. Do you not let your children play in your backyard because a criminal may jump the fence and kidnap them?

This concern about coyotes getting in fenced backyards and eating your pet is much ado about nothing.

I posted the videos to show that coyotes can and do jump/climb rather large fences and you shouldn't assume your small dog is 100% safe from coyotes unattended inside a fence. Just as you shouldn't assume your children are 100% safe unattended inside a fence, even though that was quite a stretch comparing kidnapping criminals to coyotes....

I used to live in a very rural part of Arizona and coyotes would get into all sorts of animal enclosures, even ones that were designed to keep them out. They are pretty crafty animals when it comes to food.

Go ahead and feel free to keep a small dog unattended in your fenced yard. It will probably be ok 99% of the time, but that doesn't mean it can't or won't happen eventually. I have pictures from an old game camera of several coyotes attacking and killing a full size deer for over a half an hour. If they are that determined, surely a regular fence won't do much to stop them.

[LBTRS]

Originally Posted by 6.7traveler

I posted the videos to show that coyotes can and do jump/climb rather large fences and you shouldn't assume your small dog is 100% safe from coyotes unattended inside a fence. Just as you shouldn't assume your children are 100% safe unattended inside a fence, even though that was quite a stretch comparing kidnapping criminals to coyotes....

I used to live in a very rural part of Arizona and coyotes would get into all sorts of animal enclosures, even ones that were designed to keep them out. They are pretty crafty animals when it comes to food.

Go ahead and feel free to keep a small dog unattended in your fenced yard. It will probably be ok 99% of the time, but that doesn't mean it can't or won't happen eventually. I have pictures from an old game camera of several coyotes attacking and killing a full size deer for over a half an hour. If they are that determined, surely a regular fence won't do much to stop them.

That is my point exactly...the odds are much less than the 1% you're stating. I'd imagine the odds of your pet getting eaten/attacked by a coyote in your fenced back yard are worse than the odds of winning the powerball jackpot.

You know how many dogs there are in backyards around this country and how rare it is that one is attacked by a coyote? Yes it has happened, yes a coyote can get over a fence, etc., however, the likelihood of this makes it something that most folks don't need to worry about.

Your pet is much more likely to get hurt in an auto accident going to the groomer, kennel or vets office or the dozens of other routine things your pet does on a daily basis. A prime example...you know how many FAT dogs I see that their health is in jeopardy because their "pet loving" owner thinks that free feeding spot is the nice thing to do. These same people will then carry on about needing to keep their FAT dog on a leash in their fenced backyard so spot doesn't get eaten by a coyote.

[sloguy1496]

In my neighborhood, several dogs and cats have been taken from fenced backyards in the last year, to a point where it is becoming an epidemic of sorts. I have walked out into my own backyard and ran across coyotes chasing rabbits on the lawn a number of times. My neighbors have now installed a motion sensor in their backyard because of the problem, and another neighbor had a coyote get inside their home by chasing their little dog through a dog door. There was even a string of events a year or two ago where people sleeping outside in Sun City were bitten by coyotes in their own backyards. They are not a problem to take lightly, but there are certainly ways to prevent and deter them.

DO NOT leave your pets, particularly small pets, unattended outside, whether your backyard is fenced or not. Coyotes are not only incredibly adaptable predators, they are also pests. Desert Ridge is on the urban fringe, and you will have many coyotes in your area. Do not leave food out, and do not leave open trash containers out. If you have a pool or water feature, this may also attract coyotes looking for a drink (primary reason why we get coyotes in our backyard). Once they know your backyard is a safe and comfortable place, they will keep coming back. Defnitley carry some sort of weapon (a stick, baseball bat, etc) while walking alone in the desert or with your pets. This is all common advice.

If you see a coyote, yell at it, throw things at it, spray it with water, wave and look big, etc...anything that will deter it and scare it away.

If you take the necessary precautions to protect you and your pets, living with coyotes is easy, and they wont be a problem. They only become a problem if you ignore the common sense rules of coyote prevention.

[stevek64]

Originally Posted by sloguy1496

In my neighborhood, several dogs and cats have been taken from fenced backyards in the last year, to a point where it is becoming an epidemic of sorts. I have walked out into my own backyard and ran across coyotes chasing rabbits on the lawn a number of times. My neighbors have now installed a motion sensor in their backyard because of the problem, and another neighbor had a coyote get inside their home by chasing their little dog through a dog door. There was even a string of events a year or two ago where people sleeping outside in Sun City were bitten by coyotes in their own backyards. They are not a problem to take lightly, but there are certainly ways to prevent and deter them.

DO NOT leave your pets, particularly small pets, unattended outside, whether your backyard is fenced or not. Coyotes are not only incredibly adaptable predators, they are also pests. Desert Ridge is on the urban fringe, and you will have many coyotes in your area. Do not leave food out, and do not leave open trash containers out. If you have a pool or water feature, this may also attract coyotes looking for a drink (primary reason why we get coyotes in our backyard). Once they know your backyard is a safe and comfortable place, they will keep coming back. Defnitley carry some sort of weapon (a stick, baseball bat, etc) while walking alone in the desert or with your pets. This is all common advice.

If you see a coyote, yell at it, throw things at it, spray it with water, wave and look big, etc...anything that will deter it and scare it away.

I agree with your experience. In a neighborhood we used to live in Surprise, there were missing signs often posted for missing small dogs and cats. Some were taken from block wall backyards. I never understood the practice of one leaving dogs/animals in backyards unattended in backyards in our region for this reason, let alone the threat from snakes, scorpions, and even toads, but that's me. We would take a walk around the street and coyotes would be seen walking around the streets some nights and early mornings. And this neighborhood didn't back up to any open desert/farms. They were very skittish of us/humans but as you say they will certainly take out a small animal in a blink. Here in a more rural area of Goodyear, I've seen Coyotes but mostly Bobcat's hanging around the more residential parts but I hear/see coyotes at night in the washes/open desert in our development. I'm sure they are around but I don't see them much but hear them howling in the foothills at night sometime when they make a kill.

In the end, in the vast majority of cases, coyotes will leave people alone and common sense type precautions that have been already addressed here is all that's needed. In the end, I personally fear some humans much more than I do coyotes. The stats are on my side on that belief as being valid and rational.

[wpme]

Originally Posted by BIG CATS

You got lucky. Ive heard of packs of coyotes surrounding and mauling dogs.

I'm pretty sure it had more to do with genetics, they were Dalmatians, a breed that can run down any other dog (distance, not sprint), and although not known for starting fights, they sure knew how to finish one. I used to run them on the outskirts of Chino, I'd ride the mountain bike 15 miles non-stop with them running the whole way, we'd get back to the house and collapse in the driveway. After a 5 minute breather when I stood up to put the bike away they would take off down the road at top speed ready to run some more, sometimes they kept going and were gone for several more hours, quite to my consternation.

[crf450ish]

Ya know the simple solution here is to just shoot the coyotes. But since we live in a country full of bleeding heart liberals and laws that prevent logical solutions to problems, people are left trying to solve problems in ways that are socially acceptable. Just get a 12 gauge, get some buckshot....next time you see a coyote, shoot it! I GUARANTEE you they won't come back!

[stevek64]

Originally Posted by crf450ish

Ya know the simple solution here is to just shoot the coyotes. But since we live in a country full of bleeding heart liberals and laws that prevent logical solutions to problems, people are left trying to solve problems in ways that are socially acceptable. Just get a 12 gauge, get some buckshot....next time you see a coyote, shoot it! I GUARANTEE you they won't come back!

Given the fact that there are usually local laws against discharging a weapon in a residential area where the vast majority of people live in the situation you are describing, that might not be a cool thing to do.

[crf450ish]

Originally Posted by stevek64

Given the fact that there are usually local laws against discharging a weapon in a residential area where the vast majority of people live in the situation you are describing, that might not be a cool thing to do.

Yeah I know:roll eyes:.......laws. darn those things....

[rosco917]

My apologies if this has been suggested:

I'm sure Coyotes have a natural enemy, that hunts them, like a bobcat, mountain lion etc. Find a place that sells the Urine. Casually drop samples around the permitter of your outer property line. Nobody will smell it other than the Coyotes. They may not like being in that area anymore. Just a thought.