Aggressive behavior from a coyote?

bowhunter57

bowhunter57

Well-known member
Example:I'm hunting coyotes fairly frequently and my wife's concerned that I'll get attacked. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif I tried to tell her that the critters are more affraid of humans than we are of them. I'd have to say that more coyotes see hunters than hunters see the coyotes. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

Examples:
1. Shot one and as you approached it, it made a lunge for you.
2. You shot, missed, but instead of running away it ran toward you.
3. You've had one or more coyotes follow you out of the woods.

Has anyone experienced an aggressive coyote, while hunting them?
Thank you, Bowhunter57
 
Every coyote I have ever killed went straight down and was dead before I got over to it.....except one. I shot her 3 times and knocked her down all 3 times as she was running away from me. She stayed down on the 3rd shot, when I got to her she was still alive, and she just looked at me until I could put one more in her to end it. It took 3 shots due to projectile malfunction(thats my guess anyway) as all 3 shots were pass thru's to the shoulder area. She never lunged or acted aggresively.

But my experience is a very small sampling.

Chupa
 
There was a post from a member who goes by Nahuatl in March of '07 where he stated he had been attacked 3 times and bitten once that season.

There is another thread where he tells about the attacks.

I did a search and here are the threads.........

Telling of the attacks

 
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I had a wounded one try to bite me. Usually the coyotes, wounded or not are trying to get away. I've had far more bobcats try to get on me when they were wounded. Now, I don't pick anything up until I'm 100% certain it's dead.
 
I agree that they are more afraid of humans that visa-versa. I did have one denning female that growled me all the way back to the vehicle once, many years ago. Other than that, I'd say the biggest concern (which is not that big) is coyotes shot and not dispatched. They will get a bit defensive at times, but nothing that an ethical shot can't handle.

No need to fear.

Tony
 
I shot one with Jimanaz and when I went to pick it up by the hind legs it lunged and nipped my hand. My fault for not checking to see if it was dead.

Gary Clevenger (is that name in the swear filter?) was bitten on his triceps I believe by a coyote that came into the stand from behind and saw movement and jumped up and bit his arm. I have personally heard his account of the incident and have seen the pictures of the bite marks. Exciting stand for sure.

I had a coyote jump through a bush and land in my lap 3 months ago. I was hand calling while sitting and heard the foot steps as he ran up and all of a sudden the coyote came through the bushes I was up against on my left. The coyote was as startled as I was and he put forth everything he had to get away from me as fast as he could.

Another time with Andrew and Tyler I had a coyote come up to my ladder and I missed a 10 foot shot through the AR scope. Rather than run off the coyote stood his ground and exhibited what I believe is called an 'agonistic gape', where he opens his mouth wide displaying his teeth, I understand this is done as a threatening gesture. Needless to say his gape didn't last long.
 
There are a lot of reports of yotes attacking people, not me, not yet. You can go to varmital's.com hope thats right, and read them. If thats not right, do a search here for varmit al's it should come up. blue
 
Almost never happens. I had one try to jump on me once calling. I was hidden really well. I was trying to call one for my Son to kill so I was totally hidden. I heard the Coyote coming and was aware that it jumped at me. I swatted at it with the Barrel of my Shotgun, we both wet our pants, and my Son never saw it. What a rush, I hunted every day for several days after that, but I did not hide where I did not see an approach.
 
You are in more danger of a car crash on the way to your hunting spot than any serious injury from a coyote.

Heck, the possibility of getting bit by a rattlesnake should worry her more.

At least she cares. Buy some term life tell her not to worry.
 
I've had two nearly jump in my lap over the years, but they were both when using mouth calls with me hidden extra good. I don't think you have to worry about that when using an ecaller unless it is sitting awfully close to you. I have had hawks and owls nearly knock my cap off several times when using mouth/hand calls, which will scare the devil out of you at times, especially if it is a big redtail hawk crashing down through a cedar bush.
 
The closest I've come to a coyote attack was 1-1/2 yrs ago, shot a coyote at 70 yds just before dark off our back deck, bad shot /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smiliesmack.gif, hit her in the spine about half-way back, saw her thrashing and yelping. I grabbed the pistol and walked-up on her, she tried to come my way with jaws biting, her front legs worked but luckily the back legs did not; she was PISSED.
Hit her 3 times with the 45 Win Mag; that was the end.

From that point on I never go coyote hunting without a pistol, in close quarters it's that or a knife. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused1.gif
 
Never had anything that even remotely resembled aggression from a coyote. I did go to pick up a badger I shot once and he was not very friendly at all. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif
 
Wounded two one evening doing some spot and stalk. Both were on the run. I had a pup with me that I have been training. I had a hard time getting either wounded coyote to engage with the pup. One did bite my boot.

Two winters ago I got stuck in the snow and I was walking to where I knew help was. I got the creepy feeling that something was following me. When I came to a spot that was clear I stopped and waited and a coyote was following me. It just sat down and looked at me but did not show any signs of aggresion. I didnt have a gun.
 
Gary (Nahuatl) who unfortunately does not come here anymore, and I discussed these incidents a long time ago on a different site but I was making a daytime stand not too far from Las Vegas a lot of years ago. A then famous call maker gave me a couple of his calls to try out and one of them sounded so good I started paying more attention to the call than to the situation around me. Before I knew it I had a coyote run up and leap on me trying to bite my face. I didn't have enough time to raise the rifle so I used it to bar him from biting me. I actually felt his breath on my face. I was sitting down leaning against a Joshua tree and pushed the coyote about 5 ft back and tried to stand up. The coyote got up and leaped on me again trying to bite my face. He was growling. I again pushed him back and brought the barrel of my rifle to bear and when he jumped on me again I stuck it in his chest and pulled the trigger. The coyote went backwards but the barrel was only laying across his chest and the bullet did no damage. The muzzle blast had knocked him backwards.

I stood up and tried to get another round in the chamber but the bullet came out of the case and turned sideways in the chamber jamming the gun. The coyote was at my feet scrambling to get to his feet and throwing rocks and sand over my boots. He finally made it up and trotted......Not ran, but trotted away. I was frustrated and wound up like an eight day clock because he scared me and now he was just loping away.

My partner was sitting about 20 feet to my left and a little behind me and would've had a clear shot at the departing coyote. He was still just loping away. I screamed, "DON!! SHOOT HIM!!! SHOOT THE SON OF A B***H!!"

Nothing......and then more nothing. I watched the coyote disappear into a ravine and turned to my partner to see why in the name of god he didn't shoot. Turns out he was laughing uncontrollably. He thought the whole situation was fairly humorous. I did not. I still don't. Some of the animals we hunt get rabies which isn't a laughing matter.

Murray Burnham talks about getting bit by a coyote. He thinks, and I agree, that the coyote sees a hand or a part of your body that's uncovered and goes for it. Murray once even had a coyote's broken tooth embedded in the bone of his forearm.

I can't remember the guy's name but a member of the California Varmint Callers Association back in the 60's was making a daytime stand. He went to the edge of a clearing in the heavy brush and leaned up against a rock and started calling. He figured that nothing would come in from behind him because he'd just come that way so he was just watching the clearing in front of him.

Turns out he was wrong. A bobcat came in from behind him and saw the top of his head bobbing around while he was blowing on the call. The cat attacked his head and bit and clawed the guy almost senseless. The story made the news. Now that was funny.
 
If I remember Gary's story about the coyote, he was standing, as he does a lot, in thick cover, and the coyote came charging in and jumped right into him. Don't recall where he got bit or scratched. I do know he was piling up a lot of fur about then.
 
Quote:
If someone shot you, wouldn't you try to bite them?



Coyotes are not the same as humans and they do not think the same way as we do. The only thing on the mind is survival, food and sex..

I've been around coyotes cornered in barns, wood piles and in some cases wound and in a culverts, no big deal..
In most cases all the coyote wants to do is get away from the hunter. If you have a coyote in a trap or a wounded one laying on the ground and you get to close to its mouth, yes its going to bite..
In Garys case the coyote did'nt know what he was or where he was and was most likely on its way out and just happen to run into Gary and if Gary moved or what ever the coyote most likely felt threaten and a natural reaction is to bite at whats there.. Just make sure they are dead and keep away from the jaws untill you know for sure,, no big deal..
 
"Coyotes are not the same as humans and they do not think the same way as we do. The only thing on the mind is survival, food and sex.."

On whose mind, the coyote or the human? sounds like they are the same to me. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif
 
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