Growin' them thar coyotes big around here this year

[Uzuri]

So I'm trying to decide who's been circling the outbuildings lately, and it's down to domestic dog or coyote. The tracks and behavior are definitely more along the line of a coyote (They've got the X-shape between the pads, ovaloid tracks, hindpaws landing squarely in tracks of forepaws, narrow track line, new tracks only in the mornings, not seeing evidence of any canid out and about during the day, coyotes known to be in the area, etc) but the blasted paw prints are rather larger than my sources are saying for coyote; more 3" to 3 1/2" rather than 2" - 2 1/2" that the sources are claiming. I know eastern coyotes are supposedly larger, but I don't know what my sources are coming up with their numbers from, so I don't know if that's "larger than a 2 1/2" paw" or something else!

So does anyone know if that big a paw is on par for a coyote in Ohio? Haven't had time to get photos of the tracks while they're fresh (in the morning I need to feed, decide if I'm letting out/locking up, and get the heck out of there to get to work on time).

 

[babalubird]

Luckily in Texas so far, our yotes are still small. I think I got this link off another post here. It's long but fascinating. If you read down far enough, part of it addresses coyotes in Ohio. Apparently, by selection and cross-breeding w/wolves, coyotes are getting bigger just about everywhere...

http://hal_macgregor.tripod.com/kennel/Anatomy.htm

Connie

 

[aprophet]

wolves have been making their way southwards from a coupla northern states, we are not supposed to mountain lion / cougars here but someone got a picture with a game cam about a year ago. be careful

 

[sheila3935]

nothern coyotes have wolf bred into them thats why they are larger than southern ones. I'm surprised that as bad a winter as we have been having I havent seen any. Becareful and keep a good eye on your chickies.

 

[Davaroo]

Quote:
The largest coyote on record tipped the scale at over 70 pounds, so it is possible. It makes it doubly bad if they are up to their usual nocturnal tricks.
This does not bode well...

 

[farmerlor]

We have some coyotes that have crossed with dogs out here. I saw the pack last summer one evening and for the most part they were small, dark coyotes and then I saw this one that could ONLY be a cross between a yellow lab and a coyote. It was well over a foot taller and yellow but with some gray on the tail and down the back. Sure enough, there was a black one same size so I know that we have some hybrids around here.

 

[woodmort]

Quote:
I doubt it, they only tend to cross at the edge of their range where there aren't many females and, even then, the off-spring have a very low survival rate. Coyotes would rather kill dogs than breed with them. You might want to do some reading on coydog hybrids. There is both a yellowish and a black color phase to coyotes.

 

[darkmatter]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coydog

Seems the Coyote can crossbreed with most any canid variety. I have shot feral dogs(?) that did not resemble any way someones pet, weather they were feral for a long time or born to it could not be told. One very muscle bound looking feral dog I shot had very worn pads and old barb wire scars all over. I saw it first while waiting with my kids (when they were young) for the school bus and noticed this "thing" cruising thru the underbrush just out of clear view on several occasions. The strange thing was that the neighbors dogs that barked and chased anything that moved would turn their heads and look away ignoring the "thing". I assumed they had encountered the feral "thing" before and learned not to interact. A few weeks later, an opportunity presented itself, and I dispatched the "thing". It was so strange looking, very muscle-bound, very worn footpads, very scared from barbed wire and thorns apparently, and a coat color pattern that looked like gray tiger-stripes. It was male and fortunately I have not seen any descendants of this "thing".

P.S. This was before digital cameras and the MonsterQuest "Mutant Canids" episode, it would of fit right in that episodes concept.

 

[crtrlovr]

yep, they're big here this year too.

My next door neighbor saw one (maybe the same one that was here last year) cross her field, then our field, hung out around a brushpile back in our field, then came up to my fenced (6' chain link) run. I went out later and in the mud (obviously several days ago since there is NO mud (frozen ground) and plenty of snow (6" from Mon., and is snowing like mad right now...) and the track was bigger than my palm. I saw the 'yotes later (2 of them), and they're: 1) definitely coyote and 2) BIG.

 

[Show Me Chick]

I can guarantee they cross quite frequently in my area. We have shot many crossbreds here in Missouri. The fur dealer that buys our fur turns those hides down since they aren't pure.