Coyotes! :[

Are coyotes a factor in reducing feral cat populations? My husband came home from work one night, stating that he was "a believer." I asked him what he was harping about, and he said he saw a coyote crossing the main road at the top of our street during daylight, at supper time, and get this; traffic stopped to let the coyote walk across this busy four lane street. The street-smart coyote
stopped in the middle of the street (the turning lane), and safely
proceeded crossing to the other side. He then stood with his tail out on a grassy ridge next to the street, and headed into the woods.

Yes coyotes, raccoons and even possums will attack feral colonies. Not a very kind way of population control, but a real threat to the poor cats. Usually when a coyote or a bobcat raids a colony, they leave little evidence but footprints behind.

Thanks, hissy, for your replies to both of my posts. The coyote sighting really scares me, because I wonder how many cats are just surviving in the woods. Last week, I received a call from somebody who contacted the local animal shelter. They found and were feeding a cat and wanted me to drive over to their house that's only about 1/2 a mile away, through the back wooded area. As it turned out, it wasn't my lost Mysty, but another family; two boys with a cat carrier and their Mom, had arrived at the house the same time I did, to claim their cat. The boys' cat was missing for two months. I left some pictures of Mysty, my lost cat. The next day, the boys' Mom called me and advised checking another larger animal shelter because she saw several gray cats there that looked like my Mysty. I drove out to the other shelter and left in tears. There were several beautiful gray cats and the cutest kittens, but no Mysty. It's so sad.

When Mysty was still with us, at home in the evening, I would talk to him and occasionally, we'd hear coyotes howling in the woods at night. I would say, "Mysty, hear that? Coyotes!" Mysty, who seemed to be unphased by my pronouncement, would just turn his head and look at me. Mysty's been missing for about 5 months now. There are so many dangers for cats.

Oh Caterpillar, I'm so sorry about your Mysty. I visited your webpage - the kittens (of course!) are so cute!!! Are they indoor only cats? I'm so thankful coyotes aren't a problem around here, although they're working on a wolf reintroduction program not too far from here.

We just found out there are several families of foxes that moved in very near here. We see them at night a lot. I think perhaps they are what scared off a number of the ferals that were part of the colony we care for here.

What happened to Dolly?

Yes, they're indoor only cats. After what happened to Mysty, I don't want to lose one or both of these kittens.

When we adopted the two kittens, Dolly, their Mom, was on hold for adoption, but as we checked the shelter, we discovered that she was still available. Here's how the local shelter functions: You can fill out papers to hold a cat or dog, but you can always change your mind.

We were thinking of adopting Dolly, but I don't know if my husband would approve. He thinks two cats are plenty, so we're going to wait and see if Dolly's still available in a few months' time. Fortunately, this shelter is a humane one, unlike the larger shelter that's farther away from us. Not only was I in tears over Mysty not being at the larger shelter, but I was crying for the other cats and kittens without homes.

It can be emotionally draining, that's for sure. Just try not to think about all those cats that aren't even in a shelter!

I think that'd be wonderful if hubby would let you adopt Dolly! (We have four cats ).

Coyotes are very adaptable animals. A lone coyote will eat anything that it can find, whether it be vegetable or animal. I had one peaceably coexist with my feral colony for about 3 years - she lived in the open field next door and my colony kept a safe distance from her. "Wiley" would mostly hunt field mice, our neighbor's dog bowls, and clean up the yard after the bailers came to do our hay. Being a lone coyote (mom), she didn't attack anything that could cause her harm (like an adult cat). I never lost a cat to her in the 3 years she lived here.

Coyotes become a significant problem when they hang out in packs. You will know they are packing when you hear the "yip-yip-yips" and howling at night. They sound distinctly different than dogs, who tend to bark and howl, rather than yip and howl. They have attacked the neighborhood dogs as well as the cats in the neighborhood. They put our neighbor's dog thru major surgery after an attack in his pen at night (they used hay bails to climb over the fence to the pen).

I have mixed emotions - they are part of nature and deserve their niche in the world. I have a lot of coyotes in my area and there is no way to drive them off. I give my ferals plenty of space that only they can get to and not the coyotes.

YES!!! they will eat cats. We have this problem in AZ. Here's an informative link on them:

http://www.naturepark.com/coyinfo.htm

About 10 years ago when I lived on the outskirts of another city a coyote attacked my cat Callie. She had two very deep puncture wounds on either side of her body, where they coyote had her in his mouth. It is amazing that she survived. After that, I stopped letting my cats go outside.

I now live in a very small town, and see coyotes on the road every now and then. I haven't seen them in town, though I am sure they come in to scavange. So far, none of the ferals in my colony have been bothered and they all seem to get along with the racoons in the neighborhood. Hopefully, the coyotes get enough food from easier sources, so that they will avoid my little colony of kitties.