Here in SE Ohio we have a terrible coyote problem. They have
wiped out the small game and have serious damaged the deer
herd. We have not been able to get anything done against them.
The coyote is not native here. All we have got were excuses and
typical denials.
What more do you "want done"? In Ohio, it's open season on coyotes all year with no bag limit. The state can't legally or ethically put out poison that would kill anything and everything that eats it. I think there may be some restrictions on coyote hunting during deer season, but that isn't year round. I suppose the state could organize a series of organized hunts, like what was done for black bears in some state, or for the big snakes in Florida. Other than that, what are you gonna do?
As far as coyotes not being native to Ohio goes, coyotes are actually native to the entire North American continent. Their populations will spread into any and every state that offers an abundance of small game for them to prey on.
Contrary to popular belief, coyotes have not been "introduced" to any state, including Ohio and West Virginia, to "control" other species. That's baloney, no matter who says it. No, coyotes were
not imported into Ohio by "college boys".
Now the coyotes overplayed their hand. They
killed a horse at a bording ranch. Now all of a sudden there is
going to be a meeting at Centerville, Ohio- with DNR and other
state agencies.
When and where will this meeting take place? I'll be interested to hear what comes out of it.
In reference to the horse being killed, I haven't seen any reports that blame just coyotes. According to an article in Ohio's
The State Journal, this took place at the RJ Ranch in Jacobsburg.
Quoting from that article:
"The USDA and the game warden have both been on site. They say it was either a coyote, a coy-dog, a bobcat, or an eastern cougar, because they've all been seen in the Jacobsburg-Centerville area."
The article is way short on facts, saying that the horse was found two days later. No one says how far away from the ranch or even where it was found, but the implication is that it was far enough away so that it wasn't easily found. I don't believe there's a coyote on the planet that can drag a full grown horse any distance at all. A deer or a sheep or a calf, sure. But a horse weighing hundreds of pounds? No. And I don't believe coyotes in a pack would actually work together to drag a kill off to another place. They'd be too busy eating. Like most canines, coyotes are gorge eaters. They'll return to a kill, but don't drag it away to hide it like cougars and other really large predators do.
The article also says coyotes are "potentially" killing animals. The rest of the article is devoted to a couple of a coyote scare anecdotes.
Fact of the matter is, no one knows for sure just
what kind of animal killed the horse.
