I got a coyote problem, help!!

[PirateGirl]

I haven't read all replies, so apologies if this is repetitive.

1. stop coyotes from digging under fencing by adding a skirt/apron
2. stop coyotes from easily scaling fencing by adding coyote roller bars

I'm sorry but once they have good hunting grounds they tend to come back until the food supply is depleted before moving on, day and night. Please take precautions to protect your dogs and cats as well.

Another thing that may help (though I usually see it for stopping bears) is making a scat mat. This might be a good addition near the actual coops where most birds will be at night.

 

[NHMountainMan]

Lots of good ideas above. I went with the electric netting. I bait it with bacon because we have a black bear problem. The bear touches with his nose and/or tongue and learns not to go there. Each of my dogs got zapped once and never went there again without me giving a OK after turning off the energizer.
I’ve been zapped a few times. Shocking but not painful.

I’m not sure where you live. But someone mentioned leaving your large dog outside. If you live in the the northeast (NY, New England, Ontario, Quebec) Coyotes are much larger than the rest of the US. DNA shows them at 80% coyote with 20% mix of dog and wolf. A single large dog will not stop a pack. So please don’t count on the dog. You need either the actual barrier fencing or psychological barrier e-fence.

 

[SarahGfa]

Just wanted to add that I am skeptical that adding thorny branches will work. We used to use coiled barbed wire (before switching to electric) and the coyotes could squeeze through the barbed wire without slowing down.

 

[SarahGfa]

This isn't a solution so ignore it for now and work on your solution, but after you solve immediate problems I suggest anyone dealing with Coyotes or living amongst them to watch this.

we as a species are doing a poor job of handling Coyotes. I have my own solution for them but its a collective solution, the more people who listen to Dan Flores on the topic the more people will get the education on Coyotes to find a better solution. The video is 140 minutes, that almost 2 and half hours) so save it for when you are in the mood to learn about Coyotes.

Can you post a summary for people who don't want to listen to Joe Rogan for 2.5 hours?

 

[Compost King]

Can you post a summary for people who don't want to listen to Joe Rogan for 2.5 hours?

Its why killing Coyotes just causes their numbers to increase. As soon as a Coyote is missing from the pack the females go into heat and produce more pups than the number of Coyotes that went missing. As long as you do not kill either all the males or all the females of a pack, the pack will just grow every time you kill them. I am not going to get preachy and tell someone not to kill Coyotes because if I am in a situation where I see them near my birds I have no problem with killing them myself but I believe if more people know about this phenomenon with Coyotes it may lead to better solutions.

 

[SarahGfa]

Its why killing Coyotes just causes their numbers to increase. As soon as a Coyote is missing from the pack the females go into heat and produce more pups than the number of Coyotes that went missing. As long as you do not kill either all the males or all the females of a pack, the pack will just grow every time you kill them. I am not going to get preachy and tell someone not to kill Coyotes because if I am in a situation where I see them near my birds I have no problem with killing them myself but I believe if more people know about this phenomenon with Coyotes it may lead to better solutions.

This is a myth spread by animal rights activists to discourage people from killing coyotes. It is illegal to shoot coyotes where I live, but the population has exploded anyway. It is totally normal to see a coyote walking down the street in the middle of the day. Back when fur trappers were around, no one ever saw a coyote anywhere.

 

[pennyJo1960]

Hardware cloth lots of it all over the place

 

[Sunshine Flock]

I have lots of dogs and cats and was worried about electric fencing. But I feel it's an excellent option. It's not harmful to them. It hurts and that's the point. It's a good investment and there are different options.

But I would focus on one coop at at time and bury fencing or whatever you have that will create a heavy duty barrier.

I did mine by hand in hard clay. I took a long handled screw driver and also a small piece of rebar, just using what I had, and dug a small trench straight along the fence line. It was only an inch or two at first. The idea was to create a place for water to pool and saturate the earth. I sat on a pillow as I worked and added more water as I went. Once I broke through the surface and was down a good few inches, it became much easier.

The deepest I could go was maybe 12", but I think two feet is best. I cut lengths of scrap fencing, both hardware cloth and the 2x4" fencing and made sure it was long enough to secure to the chicken yard fencing, overlapping it by a few inches and then attached with wire. At the bottom of the trench, I dug it out wide so that I could bend the bottom and make a cup shape. I piled gravel and odd rocks in the pocket to weigh it down and then packed the trench with the dirt I dug out and watered and tamped hard.

The next part is important and I feel should always be done even if you're able to go down two feet. This is the skirting folks are talking about.

I dug down about six inches and then out 16" and lined it with flat panels of fencing scrap. I stitched it to the trenched fencing so it can't be pulled out. Then I piled more gravel and dirt and compacted it down really hard.

You can't tell I did any of this work. It's all buried.

Other options are renting an auger, I think it's called. You can power dig everything in minutes. Maybe instead of fencing, pour cement down in there if you have some spare bags. Or surround the chicken yards with cinderblocks, stepping stones, boulders. It's better than nothing and may actually help.

For huge chicken yards, though, I doubt many people would do this. That's where electric fencing is your best option.

 

[Willowspirit]

I have lots of dogs and cats and was worried about electric fencing. But I feel it's an excellent option. It's not harmful to them. It hurts and that's the point. It's a good investment and there are different options.

I’m very impressed with all of the work you’ve done!

My big dog got loose one day and headed around the horse paddock where the horses were and there were a couple of chickens too. She got zapped getting into the paddock and then was too worried about the tape to escape.

The next time she got out she skipped the horse pasture entirely and just circled the chicken pen fence. Nothing would have convinced her to risk that tape again. One warning though is that she has a short coat. A furry dog might not feel it.

 

[NHMountainMan]

Just wanted to add that I am skeptical that adding thorny branches will work. We used to use coiled barbed wire (before switching to electric) and the coyotes could squeeze through the barbed wire without slowing down.

Agree- with @SarahGfa - and thorns can actually cut, injure or infect your pets, while electric fencing will not do actual harm. Electric fences don’t work like you see on tv