coyotes in austin

[G Grasshopper]

^ Cool! I have seen a few hawks "visiting" my bird feeders, but I think my big trees as well as the beams over my deck obscure the route too much for any real dive bombing. I do think a large owl (like a great horned owl) will take a cat, no problem. But I have no idea what the chance is of an owl taking a cat vs. a coyote taking a cat. I think it really has to do with the environment (arrangement and type of trees, grass areas, size of lots, amount of cover, distribution of rodents, etc.) We can't forget, too, that raccoons will kill cats. I have known of a few cats that went that way. In a cat vs. raccoon fight, the cat really has no chance. I think that Texas, in general, has a lot more "critters" than many states, and may not be the best state for outdoor cats. Not that there aren't a lot of them, but I suspect their life expectancy is shorter here than in a lot of places. Personally, I am glad that Texas has not killed off all its predators. But the large predators are mostly gone - that's why we have been overrun by deer.

[barton_rogers]

Originally Posted by G Grasshopper

Trying to control the population of coyotes is a useless enterprise. They are self regulating for the amount of food they can get. The alpha pair in a pack are the only ones that reproduce, and they are the two that are out finding food sources (and the ones we see most). If you kill them, one or more pairs in the pack will start reproducing instead (new alphas.) Studies have shown that efforts to reduce the population often result in increases in reproduction, resulting in a higher population. That is why they are such survivors; other species of predators are much less able to adapt to population losses. Coyotes do sometimes hunt in packs, but mostly, they are lone hunters, and see their packs when they come back to take care of pups, rest, etc. Their favorite food is rodents, but cats are definitely on the menu. They seldom go after deer, but if the drought conditions of the last year have resulted in a low population of rodents this year, they may shift their eating habits. They are very adaptable and smart, and will change their lifestyles to fit human environments. The best thing to do when living around coyotes is to cut your risks by not putting food out (including pets) and not trying to approach them. Coyotes are almost never dangerous to people, and the only humans who have been hurt by coyotes (on record) are children from families that were actually feeding them. If they start thinking of your yard (and you) as a food source, then you have a problem. Peoples' "outside cats" are at risk, no doubt, not only from coyotes, but from foxes, raccoons, and in some areas, bobcats.

This has proven to be true with various dog species around the globe. Kill the alpha and the group may split up and reproduce to make up their numbers. This happens with cape hunting dogs in Kenya and Dingos in Australia.

[BevoLJ]

Originally Posted by G Grasshopper

^ Cool! I have seen a few hawks "visiting" my bird feeders, but I think my big trees as well as the beams over my deck obscure the route too much for any real dive bombing. I do think a large owl (like a great horned owl) will take a cat, no problem. But I have no idea what the chance is of an owl taking a cat vs. a coyote taking a cat. I think it really has to do with the environment (arrangement and type of trees, grass areas, size of lots, amount of cover, distribution of rodents, etc.) We can't forget, too, that raccoons will kill cats. I have known of a few cats that went that way. In a cat vs. raccoon fight, the cat really has no chance. I think that Texas, in general, has a lot more "critters" than many states, and may not be the best state for outdoor cats. Not that there aren't a lot of them, but I suspect their life expectancy is shorter here than in a lot of places. Personally, I am glad that Texas has not killed off all its predators. But the large predators are mostly gone - that's why we have been overrun by deer.

One of my neighbors and her daughter witnessed their small dog get taken by one of the great horned owls. Those owls are huge. I just have to think that most cats I know are to fast and smart for coyotes. They can fly up a tree in a second. lol. At least most cats that spend any time outside can. Let a cat outside for a little while and they always seem to turn into a whole new creature and go into 'hunt mode' lol. I would imagine the big predatory birds we have would be more successful in catching them than a coyote.

I myself am not much of a cat person. I prefer dogs. But we keep an outside cat. We used to have really bad problems with little critters getting into the walls of my house. We would spend tons and tons of money having people come out and try to figure out how they get in or to try to do something about them, and nobody seemed to be able to keep the little critters out of our walls. Then a friend suggested we go to one of the shelters and get some feral cats and just let them out in our yard and put food and water out for them. So we got two young feral cats from the shelter that nobody wanted and took them home and put out food and water. One ran off to never be seen again, and the other stayed. Within like 2 weeks our critter problem was solved. The cat lived on our deck for 5 years, and always hated us and any other people. We could never domesticate but still loved it, and it became like a part of the family nevertheless.

Anyway... lol... long story short, it was a very smart cat. Good hunter and all that. But eventually an owl got it. We got another feral cat and it vanished one night after like a year. I don't know what happened, but now we have another and it has been with us for a few months. It eats the critters that come near the house, and unfortunately I know eventually it will someday be eaten by something as horrible as that is. But I guess that is just the cycle of nature.

At least they get a few years to hunt in our yard rather than be euthanized by the shelters like most feral cats. And we haven't had critters in our walls in years now. =)

[verybadgnome]

Originally Posted by BevoLJ

One of my neighbors and her daughter witnessed their small dog get taken by one of the great horned owls. Those owls are huge. I just have to think that most cats I know are to fast and smart for coyotes. They can fly up a tree in a second. lol. At least most cats that spend any time outside can. Let a cat outside for a little while and they always seem to turn into a whole new creature and go into 'hunt mode' lol. I would imagine the big predatory birds we have would be more successful in catching them than a coyote.

I myself am not much of a cat person. I prefer dogs. But we keep an outside cat. We used to have really bad problems with little critters getting into the walls of my house. We would spend tons and tons of money having people come out and try to figure out how they get in or to try to do something about them, and nobody seemed to be able to keep the little critters out of our walls. Then a friend suggested we go to one of the shelters and get some feral cats and just let them out in our yard and put food and water out for them. So we got two young feral cats from the shelter that nobody wanted and took them home and put out food and water. One ran off to never be seen again, and the other stayed. Within like 2 weeks our critter problem was solved. The cat lived on our deck for 5 years, and always hated us and any other people. We could never domesticate but still loved it, and it became like a part of the family nevertheless.

Anyway... lol... long story short, it was a very smart cat. Good hunter and all that. But eventually an owl got it. We got another feral cat and it vanished one night after like a year. I don't know what happened, but now we have another and it has been with us for a few months. It eats the critters that come near the house, and unfortunately I know eventually it will someday be eaten by something as horrible as that is. But I guess that is just the cycle of nature.

At least they get a few years to hunt in our yard rather than be euthanized by the shelters like most feral cats. And we haven't had critters in our walls in years now. =)

Were the cats you made feral fixed? Did the folks at the shelter know you were using them for this purpose? Even if they were I don't think feral cats have a very good life and they are a nuisance themselves.

[TexasHorseLady]

Originally Posted by verybadgnome

Were the cats you made feral fixed? Did the folks at the shelter know you were using them for this purpose? Even if they were I don't think feral cats have a very good life and they are a nuisance themselves.

These days there are programs, run by shelters, to adopt out feral cats as barn cats, etc., after they've been "fixed". The cats that are adopted out this way are not suitable and never will be suitable for house pets, but fixed and with an outside "job", they also keep the feral cat population down simply by filling a niche that would otherwise be filled by a reproducing cat. Some programs just catch the feral cats and fix them and give them shots and then release them.

[barton_rogers]

My friend tells me that Eagle Owls of unknown origin are dining on the local cats and small dogs in various parts of the UK.

[W_Alfonso]

Originally Posted by TexasHorseLady

These days there are programs, run by shelters, to adopt out feral cats as barn cats, etc., after they've been "fixed". The cats that are adopted out this way are not suitable and never will be suitable for house pets, but fixed and with an outside "job", they also keep the feral cat population down simply by filling a niche that would otherwise be filled by a reproducing cat. Some programs just catch the feral cats and fix them and give them shots and then release them.

That is an excellent idea. Rather than just killing them have a neutered cat take up territory and you kill two birds with one stone or in this case 2 rats with one moggie. Take out a cat and another will take its place, neuter the cat and no cats breed in that area.

[barton_rogers]

As someone who always enjoys seeing wildlife in town I don't think coyotes should be punished simply because they are filling a niche created when humans throw out tons of garbage every day