I'm pretty sure I'm not cut out for this...

[Missymac]

Good luck. We have a pack a small one of 5 or so that are in our area. I am hoping they stay away.

 

[looptloop]

Oh my goodness. I would have been a wreck too! I agree, you would have had no idea what a potential problem you could have on your hands had you not been home.

I know they are in our area too, my husband and neighbor have both seen one on our dirt road. I know they are pack animals, so if you see 1, there are others lurking somewhere close. It may be that it's a female looking to feed it's pups in a nearby den.

I also let my girls out during the day. I was surprised to see 2 black dogs up at my garage one day last week, I went flying out there hollering at them, and they did leave. My dog is great with my chickens, so they may not even know to be afraid of dogs.

We've also got guns, but with small kids, they are unloaded, in a safe with the ammo in a different safe. By the time I figure the combinations to both safes, figure out how in the world to load the gun, I'd be way late. Guess I'm better off hollerin for now, LOL! Oh, but I do always have a shovel or rake out by the coop, I could grab it in a pinch....

 

[MMPoultryFarms]

Quote:
It can be very hard for you to do I understand But you might try to do it now while its a protective issue then later when its a rage issue. you dont want to see the damage they can truly do. This I Promise you...

 

[Cmstudent]

I dont know if you know or not no one here has stated it so I will when you shoot it shoot here
https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/uploads/82428_30_11_705_4.jpg rite inside the highlighted area you will hit the heart or lungs and it will go down ALWAYS aim for the vitals https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/uploads/82428_anatomy_coyote_side_2.jpg you will get a kill 99% of the time

This, most people dont realize that the vitals of a coyote are actually behind the front shoulder.
I'm not sure that your air rifle has enough power to penetrate that deep, you might be better off to try to trap them.​

 

[tennesseeckn]

My hope is that I hit it enough to make it hurt and not want to come back. When I hit it with the BB gun it still hesitated at the bottom of the hill, debating if it should come back. I want it to KNOW it doesn't want to come back.

I've not seen any signs of it. The girls were very relaxed this morning and all day today. I really, really hope one BB was enough...

 

[Cmstudent]

As long as it associates the sting from the bb with humans it will at the very least be extremely cautious about returning.
The thing to remember about coyotes is that their not called wily for nothing, they are extremely smart and cunning.
Don't let your guard down.

 

[schellie69]

if you live in town I would call the local animal control and see what you can do, I know we are not allowed to shoot firearms in town. I would see if they have a program for dealing with coyotes. Good luck and don't let your guard down.

 

[Cass]

Quote:
Please don't ever go after a coyote or unknown dog with a rake or shovel. They are WAAAAAY stronger than they look and can come through that little piece of wood in a couple of bites. You may stun it with a shovel swung at the head, but you won't get far before they shake it off and come after you. If they don't retreat when you holler, retreat and call the police and Animal Control officer.

I do understand the "young children", but if you feel you might need a gun to protect your flock or home you might want to consider keeping a couple of bullets in the locked case with the gun so you only have to remember ONE combination to get your stuff. (A 22 would be my choice, since the bullets are so small, you could lay them in an old match box and they wouldn't be obvious to children they were there) You would only need one or two, cuz nothing you would be shooting at will stick around for the third gunshot.

 

[SallyF]

I grin every time someone suggests calling animal control or a shelter. They've never even helped me with domestic animals, much less wild ones. We had two options in Charleston SC: Wildllife Control or a private company that specialized in getting rid of "pests". Now that I've moved to TN, there's not even those options. Our only option is to kill it ourselves, and if it's domestic, adopt it ourselves.

 

[tennesseeckn]

I tried animal control in our town and they said, "Good luck with that".

I am not going to be able to relax until it's gone. I think I'm going to call some hunting friends to see what they'll do. I'm not a big fan of baiting and shooting, but I think I'll keep my mouth shout if it means I can sleep at night again.