Do coyotes kill piglets ?

[Revolting Peasant]

Coyotes come readily to a screaming pig playing on an electronic caller. One of my best calls for multiples. Best part is they run in watching out everywhere for the sow or other grown hogs. It diverts/dilutes their attention so you can move if needed when their head turns away. Compared to rats, mice, and rabbits, a pig must be a tasty substantial meal.
Grown sows are pretty protective, efficient mothers. I doubt coyotes have much effect on the pig population. We have a super abundance of both.
On another note, fellow hog hunters further north told me years ago, when it snowed every set of sow/piglet tracks would have a set of bobcat tracks shadowing them.

 

[Revolting Peasant]

Off on a tangent, there was a story in the local newspaper a few years back saying that feral hogs have been spotted just South of the Montana-Canada border. Our FWP department prohibited the shooting of them. Uh...

Some fish and game departments have taken the position that the main cause of feral hog spread has been hunters trapping and moving them so they can hunt them later. Outlaw hunting hogs and it removes that temptation, or so they believe. Time will tell if they are correct.

 

[david g ranes]

Wonder why they don't here I've watched them melt down and never see a coyote around them I've drove to work and back past several they have killed out of a helicopter they have never been touched other than a eagle I could show you two laying 20 yds apart right now that look the same as day they were shot. David

 

[Revolting Peasant]

I'm frum the gubmint and I'm here to help……
Comes to mind

Kinda like outlawing hunting bear with dogs. Then when the bear start damaging commercial property and costing money they bring in a paid government hunter to kill bear……with dogs. And we, the taxpayer ends up paying for it all. But that is another thread lol. Sorry. Too much coffee.

 

[Lee Deming]

Kinda like outlawing hunting bear with dogs. Then when the bear start damaging commercial property and costing money they bring in a paid government hunter to kill bear……with dogs. And we, the taxpayer ends up paying for it all. But that is another thread lol. Sorry. Too much coffee.

Me too.

 

[Revolting Peasant]

Wonder why they don't here I've watched them melt down and never see a coyote around them I've drove to work and back past several they have killed out of a helicopter they have never been touched other than a eagle I could show you two laying 20 yds apart right now that look the same as day they were shot. David

I have seen some dead hog eaten up and then a bunch never touched by coyotes or buzzards. It's strange. Maybe the tough hide? But if you stick a knife in them and open them up, they more generally get hit by both coyotes and buzzards pretty quick. Same with roadkill hogs. Busted up they get eaten pretty quick. Not busted open may sit there and melt, untouched.

 

[Pat Byrne]

I've seen the same.. Times I see a fresh killed 100-150 sow get eaten overnight, like 90% eaten.. Other times dead pigs remain untouched.
Hard to figure..

I know lots of grain farmers that suffer damage, lots of damage, from pigs. So the thought just crossed my mind. Around my area I see very few calves killed by coyotes.. Have no data but wouldn't be surprised if no more than 1 in 2,000 calves gets nabbed.. Maybe less, it seems to be pretty rare OR folks just don't see the evidence.

 

[John Klingenberg]

I'm in agreement with david g ranes. I've never seen a coyote on a hog carcass in W. Texas. Even piglets rot to mush before a few birds get the soft parts. Even buzzards wait a long time after you open them up. If they wouldn't eat a dead one I doubt they mess with a live one. It's always confounded me why they dont eat the heck out of them. Seems like easy pickings for a quick dog.

 

[skipglo]

Around here do see pig hair in coyote scat often, doesn't mean they killed the pigs though.. almost everyone I know will shoot a pig on sight. So lots of dead pigs..

And little BELLS in Grizzly scat??????

 

[John Klingenberg]

Thought it was a tapeworm in the bear scat but it was just a New Balance shoe lace.

 

[jfolanddvm]

Watched 3 coyotes cross a field one evening headed for a large bunch of pigs with a lot of very small piglets in it. Got my phone out to video, thinking I was going to have a Mutual of Omaha moment, but when the yotes got to within about 50-100 yards of the small pigs, a bore (yes, I'm sure it wasn't their mom got sight of them and ran them off. Never even got close enough to worry the young ones. I suppose if a young piglet got separated from the sounder, it might make a tasty meal, but I doubt coyotes kill enough pigs to even make a miniscule difference in population control....

 

[Ohlongarm]

Wondering how often coyotes will snag a little pig? I'm sure a couple could separate the sow from the litter long enough for a 2nd or 3rd coyote to grab a piglet.. So really the question is will a healthy coyote population help control pig numbers in and around crops..

Are we talking feral pigs? feral sows are downright dangerous when protecting young, once that piglet squeals the sow goes in for the kill.Ferals are tough, coyotes may take a few but not enough to significantly control populations.

 

[Ohlongarm]

We have pigs where I live you shoot one and let lay in the winter and I've watched them day in day out never seen a coyote touch them only eagles and crows found piglets that the sow laid on they dried up nothing even moved them out of the bed may be different else where. David

I've had a different experience, over several years , most farms in my area know if a calf, lamb or pig die I'll usually take it for bait shooting, coyotes here will devour a pig in days, the fatter the pig the more it gets visited, especially when pups are being fed.

 

[John Klingenberg]

I also dont think feral sows are very concerned with piglets unless they're right there with the piglets. I've shot a lot of them and the sows run off leaving the piglets behind. We caught the little ones by hand and put them in a pen at the barn and fed them out. Not once did I ever have a sow return to protect the squealing piglets. Ive also driven up on lost piglets more times than I can count. Domestic pigs are pretty protective but it's not been my experience with ferals unless the sows and piglets are in close proximity when danger comes up.