Very sorry about your kitty, Charlene. When I had cats in coyote country, they always had trees close by for escape. There is a real trade-off - having trees close to the house with the danger from wildfires or leaving the cats in the open.

We've got a few owls around at this time. Can't hardly believe it but have had many eye-witnesses tell me how an owl, that probably doesn't weigh 5 pounds, has carried off their cat.

Something you should think about with your dog . . . The neighbor had a St. Bernard/collie. Beautiful, BIG guy with a lovely personality. He often came by to visit and, apparently was never restrained at home.

One night the coyotes caught him and darn near killed him. He was a real mess for weeks. It put an end to his night prowling but he came very close to dying from the lesson. And, this was a dog who kept another neighbor's BIG lab on 3 legs until they both went into retirement.

Be careful with your dog.

Steve

You are so right about my dog. I'm glad your neighbor's dog lived.

The day my kitty got it, my dog was barking ferociously like I've never heard her before. I went out there and a coyote was about 30 feet away staring at her. This was in the middle of the day too. It was probably the "scout" they send out before hunting for their dinner.

We have an invisible fence that our dog has never crossed over so when we leave during the day we often leave the back door cracked for her to go in and out. But no longer. I locked her in while I was gone today and that will be the norm from now on. It's too dangerous for her.

She's only about a year old, very smart and sweet. We want to keep it that way.

Thanks,
Charlene

I'm sorry, Charlene. Even though, as you say, it's the food chain, that doesn't make it hurt any less.

We had a pack of coyotes that lived in the canyon to the east, and a few summers ago, they had a regular trap set up. A single coyote would come out in the evening, and wander down the road. All the dogs would go nuts, and if one was loose, it would take off after the coyote, who trotted back into the canyon. The pursuing dog would run right over the canyon rim after the coyote. A minute or so would pass, and then here would come back the dog, with 5 coyotes on his tail. Some, obviously, didn't come back.

Jaliranchr--Thank you. I miss her at night, she was very cuddly.

David52--I actually see a lone coyote cruise around regularly in the early morning and early afternoon across the back of our property and down into the canyon. My neighbor thinks he is a loner, but I believe he/she is the scout because I hear a pack of 'em almost every night just below us.

We also have a pack of coyotes that live in the valley below us. There is a sheep farm about 2 miles south of us that have a lot of problems with the coyotes.

Our cat prefers the inside of the house, thank goodness. Our cocker spaniel usually stays at the front door waiting for us to come out. The border collie does a little more wandering but so far so good. She definitely keeps the deer out of the garden/flowerbeds though.

Quite often I wake up in the middle of the night to the howling of the coyotes near our house. Such an eerie feeling.

Brenda

Our cats have a safe outside enclosure that they enter through cat doors in garden level windows. It's like a big chain link cage on a concrete slab. The cats can enjoy the sunshine and fresh air, watch the birds and squirrels, and still be safe from predators.

Coyotes are very bold animals. They'll walk right up on your front porch in broad daylight and grab your pet. Don't forget that the Great Horned Owl will also take cats. Your pets don't deserve to die like that.

There was a coyote on my front porch this morning when I opened the door to let my daughter out for the school bus, he may have been after the feral cat thats been after the mice in the rose bed. He took off in a hurry.

I heard that Great Horned Owls are a major predator of skunks, since they can't smell 'em. I have no idea if that is true. We used to have several (owls) around here, but West Nile seems to have hammered that population. Which might explain why there are so many skunks. I almost stepped on one last night, going out the back door.

We can't entirely disapprove of these critters - altho' on the porch is certainly beyond the pale and cats and dogs are OUR livestock, not theirs.

The days grow shorter and, as is our inclination, we arrived in the garden the other morning just as the sky was lightening. I noted an owl landing on a power pole in the distance.

We carried our black harvest buckets and my wife headed into the lemon cucumbers - they are pale green when they are at their best and easier to see in the very dim light. I blundered off into the zucchini, trying to harvest mostly by feel.

Within moments, we heard the screeching of an owl. He floated in over our heads - screeched once and disappeared. We looked at each other and went back to our picking. A second later, I heard a commotion from the cucumber patch. My wife was kinda stamping about and clutching at herself.

I decided that there wasn't anything to do but walk over and find out what was wrong - I had a hard time believing that the owl scared her but one never knows (caterpillars are considered terrifying to her!??).

Here's what she told me: After the owl flew over our heads, she bent back to search for the lemon cukes. At that moment she saw her black 3-gallon bucket dancing and thumping. Thinking that she'd set it on a rock and it was tipping over, she reached for it. Out jumped a rabbit! And, off she jumped. She was more than a little twitterpated. And, who can blame her?

We believe that what might have happened was that the rabbit was frightened by the owl and jumped into the first burrow that presented itself. The problem was that the burrow wasn't a burrow at all but a black, 3-gallon bucket.

We have so many mice and rabbits (and no pets other than the pigeons) . . . I'm often hoping that the owls and coyotes will carry some away.

And, yes, I worry about the neighbor's little dogs.

Steve

David-What you heard about the Great Horned Owl and skunks is quite true. I heard it is the skunk's only natural enemy.

We have a proliferation of rabbits this year. The red fox used to keep the rabbits to manageable numbers, but since the coyotes have moved in, the fox are gone. They apparently don't share territory. Coyotes don't seem to kill many rabbits. They're too lazy to chase them. They'd rather pick off some poor cat sunning itself on the front porch. As long as people don't protect their small pets, the coyotes have plenty to eat. They don't have to waste their time with rabbits and prairie dogs.

How sad about your kitty. I love cats too and am involved in both cat and dog rescue. However, it is a lesson for others that domestic cats need to be kept indoors or in protected enclosures such as catladysgarden has. If it wasn't the coyotes, then it certainly would have been something else that led to the death of your pet- depending upon where you live... neighbors dog, neighbors gun, Great horned Owl, Eagle, Hawk, automobile, poison (radiator coolant), accidental entrapment, irrisponsibly set steel jaw trap, disease, etc... One of the many great risks of letting a domestic animal, such as a cat roam freely out of doors.
By the way, Coyotes howl (aka "screech/ whine") to communicate with other coyotes, not when they are making a kill or "celebrating" a kill, or "having their dinner" as people mistakenly think. When they kill something, or just after, trust me, their mouths are too full to howl.
Dogs allowed to roam freely are just as much at risk of being victims of not just coyotes, but neighbors guns , cars, poisons, diseases, traps, snares, etc when allowed to roam freely. During the birthing season especially, a mother coyote will defend her den aggressively from free roaming dogs - and they are entitled to do so.

Here is a link that might be useful: Fox Wood Wildlife Rescue, Inc

I just want to say how very sorry I am for your loss.
Sincerely,
cheryl