I'll fling arrows at them but haven't shot one with a rifle in years...always worry how it might mess up my hunt. I actually let 2 walk by this morning and I just started wondering what everyone else does?
Killing coyotes when deer hunting
- Thread starter david k.
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wmd
Active Member
Any hunt becomes a coyote hunt if coyotes show up. I have killed coyotes and then killed a deer soon after. I killed two one morning this season using a rifle (shot one coyote twice), left them where they died, and a few hours later my son killed a deer from the same tree (we were hunting together). Neither the shots nor the dead coyotes seemed to have any impact on the deer from my experiences.
shot one this year. I always kill them. hasnt seem to mess up a hunt yet. Shot one early this year and had deer feeding in the field around its dead body. Ive also shot a doe and had a young buck try and nudge her and mate her while she laid dead in the field. I think we overestimate the "dead" factor.
Personally I have not ever shot a coyote.I have not hunted fields in twenty plus years and even then the ones that I can recall seeing would have been been long pop shots at best.I do recall missing a deer a time or two and telling partners back at camp that I was shooting at a coyote back in my younger days 
The handful that I have seen over the last decade or so have been in some thick hardwoods and come through so quickly that I would have struggled to have gotten a shot off even if I had wanted to.Now with the said,I have nothing against shooting them but I personally do not believe that I would given my current hunting set ups due to fear of spooking deer.I know that people do and still shoot deer after that but for the time,money that I spend to enjoy what little time I personally get to be in the woods.Im not going to risk it
The handful that I have seen over the last decade or so have been in some thick hardwoods and come through so quickly that I would have struggled to have gotten a shot off even if I had wanted to.Now with the said,I have nothing against shooting them but I personally do not believe that I would given my current hunting set ups due to fear of spooking deer.I know that people do and still shoot deer after that but for the time,money that I spend to enjoy what little time I personally get to be in the woods.Im not going to risk it
fairchaser
Well-Known Member
Live and let live. Ever since I've learned that coyotes will fill an area to the available food supply, I haven't bothered with shooting them. According to the experts, coyotes will populate an area from the outside or with increased liters if there is food available. You can try to kill all you want but they will keep coming! As I've gotten older, I'm not as blood thirsty and just enjoy watching nature.
I haven't been able to take a shot at one yet, and have only seen 4 while hunting in my life. But, 2 of those yotes were over 150 yds out, crossing a ridge, and just a min behind them was 2 does, seemingly trailing them. I thought that was pretty strange, but I figured from that point that if I shot one that my hunting would likely not be affected.
megalomaniac
Well-Known Member
Shoot on site. In fact, you will not be invited back to hunt my farms if you see a coyote and don't take the shot. We are up to 7 kills so far this year, another 6 we couldn't get shots off before they cleared out.
When I was up last week, I watched a big male stalk and hunt a 1.5 y/o 6 ptr. Every one dead is at least a couple fawns saved, plus quite a few adults saved. They have become a plague on my farms. Last Sunday, I saw 19 antlerless deer. 18 adult females and 1 fawn.
Will they repopulate just as fast as you can kill them- almost. Will you make much of a difference shooting one here and there? Probably not. BUT if you get lucky and get the alpha pair, it will take the rest several months to reestablish a new alpha pair that does the breeding.
I plan on coming back up in February to call and set traps, but it takes dedicated year round trapping to really reduce the population.
As far as affecting my hunting for mature bucks- I don't know if it hurts or not, we don't have any trouble killing big mature bucks, even after we've shot yoties. I had several 3.5 y/o bucks walk within 10 yards of a couple coyote carcasses I had shot. They smelled them, went on alert looking, but didn't spook.
When I was up last week, I watched a big male stalk and hunt a 1.5 y/o 6 ptr. Every one dead is at least a couple fawns saved, plus quite a few adults saved. They have become a plague on my farms. Last Sunday, I saw 19 antlerless deer. 18 adult females and 1 fawn.
Will they repopulate just as fast as you can kill them- almost. Will you make much of a difference shooting one here and there? Probably not. BUT if you get lucky and get the alpha pair, it will take the rest several months to reestablish a new alpha pair that does the breeding.
I plan on coming back up in February to call and set traps, but it takes dedicated year round trapping to really reduce the population.
As far as affecting my hunting for mature bucks- I don't know if it hurts or not, we don't have any trouble killing big mature bucks, even after we've shot yoties. I had several 3.5 y/o bucks walk within 10 yards of a couple coyote carcasses I had shot. They smelled them, went on alert looking, but didn't spook.
I never shoot a coyote I don't call. Plus if I am deer hunting then I am trying to kill a mature buck, not going to educate by taking pot shots at coyote. Plus coyote season is long, I will find them after deer season.
Mike Belt
Well-Known Member
I don't think you can put a dent in their population randomly shooting one while you're deer hunting but in my mind's eye I see a new born fawn at least surviving and not being eaten by those I do shoot. I have them on camera yearly and had a healthy pack of 5 last time I pulled one of my camera cards. While on stand if my deer hunt is over for that trip and one comes by he's in trouble. Elsewise I don't take a chance of spooking a deer that may be just before showing himself to me.
It may not hurt the population but they're good target practice. Killed two yesterday within 5 mins.
fairchaser":bdzvky4t said:
I agree. Studies such as the Virginia Tech one show that coyote numbers can't be reduced with conventional hunting or trapping methods. Some even show that populations increase when trapping or hunting pressure is applied. I quit shooting them several years ago. I see less now, but that's just anecdotal.
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JCDEERMAN
Well-Known Member
Depends on where I'm hunting. If I'm in one of my prime spots, I won't. Also depends on the time of morning or evening. Having said that, I've been acquiring the equipment to start predator hunting over the last year. I plan on starting that in January.
Hunter 257W
Well-Known Member
I shoot them anytime I see one while deer hunting. Doesn't matter about time of day or anything, it's just like a cat reacting to a twitching string when a coyote passes by me. I got one the other day that came trotting by my shooting house. I squeaked with my mouth in an attempt to stop it but it only paused so I hit it a bit farther back than intended and took another shot. I've shot a bunch of them this way over the years and never had a deer react to the carcass in the days following. True it could very well spook a deer that is just about to present itself for a shot but I'll take that chance. Big antlers honestly don't mean that much to me any more.
Regarding studies showing litter size increases after a significant reduction in coyote numbers, I think the findings from those studies has gotten misinterpreted over time. There is no way that coyotes can make a conscious decision to retaliate against humans and squeeze out a couple extra pups with each litter after their numbers are reduced due to hunting or trapping. The larger litters have to happen due to better health caused by more available food for the surviving coyotes. That is going to take some time, at least a year I'd guess, to occur. During that time, deer have at least one fawning season to bounce back somewhat.
No matter how killing the occasional coyote might affect deer and other prey animals, I guess I have to admit to being more of a shooter than hunter and simply can't resist busting one if it trots by me while deer hunting.
Regarding studies showing litter size increases after a significant reduction in coyote numbers, I think the findings from those studies has gotten misinterpreted over time. There is no way that coyotes can make a conscious decision to retaliate against humans and squeeze out a couple extra pups with each litter after their numbers are reduced due to hunting or trapping. The larger litters have to happen due to better health caused by more available food for the surviving coyotes. That is going to take some time, at least a year I'd guess, to occur. During that time, deer have at least one fawning season to bounce back somewhat.
No matter how killing the occasional coyote might affect deer and other prey animals, I guess I have to admit to being more of a shooter than hunter and simply can't resist busting one if it trots by me while deer hunting.
Ditto! Haven't shot one in years, usually see 2-3 a year while deer hunting.fairchaser":bfu1wc21 said:
I've never shot one on my place, but I keep getting more pics on my cams each year, this year seeing the most so far. I wonder when they'll start to decrease if I keep not shooting them? I plan to try to do some predator hunting next year as well bc I too keep seeing a fawn or two, maybe a few poults and rabbits saved just by killing one.
Do you skin them out, or just let them lay? I'm curious because I would not know what do with it after I pulled he trigger.
Hunter 257W
Well-Known Member
I let them rot the same as I used to do with groundhogs, my all time favorite animal to hunt(shoot). Even buzzards seem reluctant to eat coyotes though. They lay there a long time.
This is one of the factors that makes deer hunting less fun than varmints. When you shoot one, you have just created a bunch of work for yourself in processing it. Not near as much fun as standing in a major blackbird flyway about half a mile from a roost with a grocery bag of shotgun shells picking off individual birds for an hour.
This is one of the factors that makes deer hunting less fun than varmints. When you shoot one, you have just created a bunch of work for yourself in processing it. Not near as much fun as standing in a major blackbird flyway about half a mile from a roost with a grocery bag of shotgun shells picking off individual birds for an hour.
Mike Belt
Well-Known Member
As I understand it usually only the dominate pair do any breeding. When you shoot one or two and they happen to be the dominant breeding pair there's a mad dash to take over that dominance. During this time frame and until a new pair emerge all of them participate in breeding and you have surge in their population. Random shooting of those you see while deer hunting doesn't really put a dent in their numbers and can actually cause at least a temporary increase if you happen to nail the dominant pair. They live and prosper through available food sources. If the immediate area doesn't have enough to go around then they disperse into adjoining areas so not only may shooting them increase their numbers, it may spread them into areas void of them beforehand.
Hunter 257W
Well-Known Member
It's kind of hard for me to believe that only one pair in a given area breed???? Are you sure about that??? How would the dominate pair prevent others from breeding? I can see a pair maybe dominating an area to the extent that other coyotes back away from hunting if they smell the dominate dogs but not breeding sounds far fetched.
buckaroo
Well-Known Member
Let me put it this way, the last 9 shots from my treestand have been at coyotes, not deer, that appears to be our problem
Omega
Well-Known Member
When I purchased my little plot of land, the remains would disappear pretty quick, a couple days at the most. I placed a game cam over the remains once and caught just about every scavenger in the area on it, bobcat, vultures, eagle/hawk, racoon, opossum, and even a squirrel on it. I only had one coyote show up. I seen him once where I could have, but didn't take the shot. Now, 6-7 years later, I hear at least three groups, maybe separate packs, maybe just a large one separated for a hunt. The decline in deer is noticeable, though other factors may be at play as well, but there is a bunch of scat with deer hair in it, all up and down my trail. I need to call some in, specially now that my season is over. I may not make a dent, but it should be fun trying.
I kill Every coyote I see.
Documented 30% reduction in your deer heard if you have them.
Personally I think we should be allowed to hunt them at night and poison them on private property.
Documented 30% reduction in your deer heard if you have them.
Personally I think we should be allowed to hunt them at night and poison them on private property.
JJ3
Well-Known Member
fairchaser":tdwq0kot said:
My thinking was much like Fairchaser's and I used to enjoy watching them, especially when they were hunting around field edges for mice and birds, but then one day I witnessed a pack making a coordinated hunt and chase on a 1.5 yr 4 pt — we didn't shoot that day because I didn't want to mess up the hunt. But now if I see one and it presents a shot I will shoot. I know I'm not making a dent in the population, though, only shooting one every few years. It goes against what I practice otherwise — only shooting something I'm going to do something with (like eat), but they are ever expanding and something needs to be their predators in the chain.
Matador
Well-Known Member
I agree. That's is hard to believe.Hunter 257W":3vbrncu7 said:
Stu
Well-Known Member
I used to pass them up in rifle too but now i kill them. Ive shot them and 20 min later had deer come right by including shooter bucks.
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Omega
Well-Known Member
Actually, that's normal for many pack animals. Some beta females will sometimes give birth, but she runs the risk of losing the pups, or getting thrown out of the pack.Matador":1mgiqc2u said:
If you read the scientific research on coyote populations, you'll see that populations typically experience some decline after three years of extensive day to day trapping, only to rebound to pre-trapping numbers within a year of when trapping ceases. Shoot them if you like, or if you enjoy it, but you better learn to live with them. Populations will always thrive due to immigration from transient coyotes in surrounding areas, as long as the food is there to support them.
