I spent a good long day with Dawgma yesterday and while driving home from a big Italian dinner, looking at the full moon and the snow cover, I knew I would likely venture out after she went to bed.

About 11:45 I was really tired and yawning and still feeling full as a tick but I geared up and walked from my house to a field with a hedge row about a mile east of me. It was a crisp 10 degrees. I did not take any lights as I felt the full moon was giving me enough light but about 300 yards into the trip I wish I had one. About 200 yards due north of me I can see a shadowy figure working on the crest of a waterway but could not decide if it was a coyote or a small deer. I dropped to a knee and scoped it out and sure enough it was a nice coyote. I eased off the safety and fired what I thought was a pretty clean shot but the coyote just flinched a little and kept walking!!! A clean miss!!! He had no idea where I was. As coyotes often do he ducked into the waterway and used the terrain to slip away. When he re-appeared he was in the line of sight of the neighbors house and about 500 yards out so I let him go and watched him slip into a stand of timber. Feeling gulty about ever teasing my hunting buddy for his misses... I continued to the hedge row to the west.

When I arrived I set down next to a drain tile stand pipe about 75 yards off of the end of the hedge row. I made a couple of female invitation howls and waited a couple of minutes. Then I did a short burst of rabbit distress and followed with the Ki-Yi canine distress and just set quietly for about 15 minutes. I was about ready to do some more calls when I "Feel" something in the field to the south. I used a couple of lip squeaks and then was able to pick up a coyote moving my way. There was very little breeze but at about 150 yards it started to turn to get into my scent cone and offered me a broadside shot. When I fired the yote flattened and then took off at Mach 3 to the west.

When I paced off the distance to see if I made any contact this is what I found....


Look how clean the under fur and guard hairs are cut - I could not get any better with a pair of scissors!

BTW - We are going to the range today to check Zeros...

Now Dawgdad, that' really cuttin it close. That sure sounds like it would have been fun to be out there last night. I know I have never hunted coyotes by the light of the moon before. Thanks for sharing this story, it was great. I would imagine that fella should be pretty easy to identify for awhile, till he needs his next haircut.

You been filing knife edges on those bullets again?

Miss him by a hair.. literally

Mate....what a classy...or is that arsey...shot. Bet ya couldn't do that again if'n ya tried.

Can you tell what part of his body the fur came from? Ya mighta upset his breeding cycle this year mate.

Cheers, Vince

Well...I guess he could smell it to determine [or eliminate two places] where he shot the fur...from...

Judging bu the guard hair length - right over his shoulders... they were not curly Vince so we know where they did not come from.

Hot Diggedy Dawgdad wrote:

Judging bu the guard hair length - right over his shoulders... they were not curly Vince so we know where they did not come from.

OK...not even remotely familiar with yotes mate...in fact...never seen one. I thought that you might have been able to tell where the fur came from because of the two different types of fur. Cause there were no "dangly bits" with the fur...he lives to breed again.

Cheers, Vince

The long coarse dark tipped hairs are called guard hairs. highly valued by fur buyers, are more abundant on the top and sides of the coyote. The under fur is like a downy fuzz - it is every where -

The curly reference - well mate - if you don't know about the short and curlies, I am not the one to be explaining that one to you...

Good story. You could of saved those hairs and mounted them in a picture frame, makes a good conservation piece.
I know a feller that shot off a coyotes tail and another that knocked out a coyotes tooth.

Are you sure it is not hair off a sasquach or some other exotic animal??

Ya know - the one that got away