walkaboutlou | Coyote Yipps

Kinky Tail Carries On Inspiringly, by Walkaboutlou

To the left: 1st Denning Area . . . . secluded, but wolves circuit here regularly. To the right: Rendezvous area. Much more “coyote” friendly. Grasshopper, voles, berries galore. Pups can self educate and grow in skill as she comes and goes.

Good morning Janet,

I haven’t mentioned Kinky Tail a long time..Ive not been to “her people” awhile, the people who know her and local coyote 3 human generations!

She has had a very tough denning season but is on the upside of it. In the last days of her pregnancy her mate and yearling son simply disappeared. It could of been so many things. In that areas roads and vehicles are far away…But the fact that both disappeared same exact time likely point to being killed. It could of been humans or wolves. Both locally will go for coyote on sight.

So KT pupped alone. 9 NINE👀! pups.

3 days after birth she was observed hunting voles hurriedly. She established a pattern of quick vole hunting then dash back to den. She lost ALOT of weight but kept milk going. 3 weeks into it, she detected a car hit deer that died near her den. Salvation. She ate over and over. And made constant trips back and forth days, regurgitating venison to 3 week old pups. 5 days of this….the pups exploded in growth and she gained her condition.

Likely due to carrion scent…6th evening..2 wolves came. Trail cams show them going to den site. There were major vocalizations hours. Next morning..the den site was obviously dug into…but..all 9 pups came out afternoon. It was obvious Kinky Tail had skirmishes hours to save her pups. The den held out.

She moved them that day to 2 separate locations. Weeks of constant 24-7 rounds of hunting feeding grooming naps.

As of now…they are in New rendezvous area. They are hunting voles independent of her and eating berries and grasshopper. She showed them a tiny seep of water. And they are flourishing.

KT is worn and exhausted but has done it so far. Last week she was seen with a new male…and he actually seems to have moved in. He isn’t feeding pups but does tolerate their play and mobbing and chased a ranch dog away from them.

Kinky Tail has endured SO MUCH but her tiny body and cunning mind have never given up. How she managed to get 9 pups alone to rendezvous stage…is just unreal.

I try to always be open observer to wildlife and ranges.

But I love Kinky Tail. She embodies so many traits and skills and her life story is typically coyote and gobsmaking same time.

Lou

Hi Lou —

OMG, Kinky’s story is both heartbreaking and unbelievably awe-inspiring. I, too, have fallen in love with her and her story — and I think everyone who reads this will also fall in love with her if they haven’t already. Thank you, Lou, for her continuing story and update: it’s so intense, so moving, so revealing of who she is and who coyotes are as a species. It also shows how brutal her enemies are: humans who shoot them and wolves who kill them simply because they don’t want them around. 🙏 Janet

Hi Janet,

Kinky is typical of her species but still amazing. The underdog who never stays under but overcomes. They aren’t enjoyed by many. It matters little. They faced and lived among mega fauna and many human types and cultures. And outlasted all.

Kinky Tail just carries on and in the face of wolves, cougar, hunters and dogs. She is awe inspiring and humbling to think about. She is really a lesson for all coyote. And humans. Lou

Proving Innocence, by Walkaboutlou

Hello Janet,

Fall is coming along well. Lots of doings with the dogs patrolling properties as usual. We recently wrapped up a 3 week “investigation” into 4 coyote packs who were accused of livestock predation on sheep.

We worked with cooperating landowners, and some biologist students, as well as Ranchers.

This is progress, as historically the answer to sheep being killed is to hunt every coyote within 100 miles. This only leads to the surviving coyote booming in population, and never solves issues or give solutions.

I am proud of my dogs in helping clear accused coyote…though they don’t see it that way.

The sheep ranch sustaining losses is surrounded by a 5,000 acre Quail Hunting Preserve. Coyote have fairly large packs there. 4 distinct packs or family groups. They don’t affect Quail numbers. In fact, they removed feral cats that were affecting Quail introductions.

Proving coyote innocence takes time, skill, and impartiality. We WANT to be accurate and find the raider, who risks all local canids being suspect, ranch dogs, coyote, or wolves.

The Pack and I travel miles and miles and miles along tracks and trails. The dogs mark and leave scent as we travel, advertising our route. Of course, this greatly irritates coyote, but they come along after we move on. The marking insults between dogs and coyote are kept track of and studied.

Scat doesn’t lie. It is irrefutable proof of diet. All 4 packs of coyote, for 3 weeks, countered my pack with markings, scat, and vocalizations. Not a single wool encased scat.

Deer hair (deer hunter scraps or road kills) are in some, but overwhelmingly…all 4 packs show vole and gopher diet. And a few late berries and spawned salmon.

When we finally did locate wool encased scat, biologist students brought trail cams and liberally set up in that area.

Long story short, not a single coyote scat with wool for over 5,000 acres was ever found.

But it seems 3 pet dogs let loose in evenings are our proven suspects. Trail cam and scat proof literally from pastures to their country home.

It’s very easy to suspect coyote in pet or livestock raiding. And it does happen. But most people would be shocked…far more often…its unsupervised dogs killing livestock.

Have a good night.

4 packs of Coyote exonerated.