Hate when my dog turns into a wolf before I've mastered magic.
Posted on 10/12/2016 10:18:35 AM PDT by Leaning Right
Hate when my dog turns into a wolf before I've mastered magic.
Yes. But few compared to the coy-wolves.
people often mistake them for coyotes.
The critter most often referred to as a coyote in this part of the world is actually a crossbreed. It is bigger than the true coyote of out-west fame and is a mix of coyote, wolf, and dog. The coloration of the coy-wolves varies from reddish to the grayish of the timberwolf. Some have made a distinction between the two general colorations by naming the more reddish version an Eastern Coyote and the grayish version a Coy-wolf although that is not universal. I have seen both colorations wander through the property. Whether they are from a common pack or not is unknown.
"One of the biggest issues that people have with the Eastern Coyote and Gray Wolves is that a large Eastern Coyote looks almost identical to a Gray Wolf. Many believe that large coyotes are actually Gray Wolves. DNA analysis has now shown that hybridization has occurred between coyotes and gray wolves." (Source)
As to the term 'upstate NY'.. If you are a New Yorker and live up north of Albany then you know what real upstate NY is, and there you could possibly find a real wolf. Down in the southern climates of NY closer to 'The City' the term 'upstate' refers to any part of NY that is not named Manhattan, Queens, The Bronx, Brooklyn, Staten Island, Long Island, or Westchester. To the City version of upstaters, the only critter they have ever seen is the coy-wolf version..
My great-aunt had a nephew who lived in Bronxville which she called “upstate.” Bronxville is in the southern part of Westchester County.
Everything west of the Hudson is Hooterville to some.
Saratoga county, Washington county, Adirondacks - that's where I am
Everything east of Reno is the ‘East Coast’ to some out here. And where I live, “Southern California” starts at San Jose.
The ‘real’ upstate. ;-)
Just like when the DEEP told us we didn’t have any cougars; or fishercats. :)
But in fact, it's an allegory: USA elected their first black president and he turned out someone else.
Everything adapts
It’s mostly the coyote pups that do the high-pitched
howling out here. So far, here on the river, they haven’t
crossbred with the domestic dogs so much so they are very
timid. One night, several years ago, I saw one of them
flying low out of our garage where it had been eating out
of the dog feeder. So, I moved the feeder & haven’t seen
them since stealing food from the dog’s feeder. I don’t
really begrudge them a bit of food; but they don’t need to
get dependent on humans with all the jackrabbits and
squirrels out here they can eat instead of an unnatural
diet. (Ha. They’d laugh if they only knew I was actually
concerned about their diets.)
It’s mostly the coyote pups that do the high-pitched
howling out here. So far, here on the river, they haven’t
crossbred with the domestic dogs so much so they are very
timid. One night, several years ago, I saw one of them
flying low out of our garage where it had been eating out
of the dog feeder. So, I moved the feeder & haven’t seen
them since stealing food from the dog’s feeder. I don’t
really begrudge them a bit of food; but they don’t need to
get dependent on humans with all the jackrabbits and
squirrels out here they can eat instead of an unnatural
diet. (Ha. They’d laugh if they only knew I was actually
concerned about their diets.)
I have never heard th Coyotes howl here around my house in Houston but others have.
I have heard them howl in south Texas during deer hunts. I love it!
Plenty of fat rats in the City.
There was a story/documentary some time back of who-knows-which-station about the ‘coyotes’ in the City. I don’t remember if they ever mentioned that they were really coywolves, not true coyotes. If I remember corectly they managed to trank one and put a radio collar on him/her. They were surprised to find how far it roamed but also how successful it was at remaining out of sight.
I find that when they are roaming through here it is only rarely that I will be able to catch the glow of their eyes in my flashlight beam. They have gotten brazen and come up almost to the back door and howled - that was an interesting night (it was under the cedar tree which is about 30 feet from the back door.) More often they stay out in the fields just out of flashlight range and if one looks my way such that I catch a glimpse of its eyes it is only a fleeting sight - not long enough to get a pelt. If of course I had an implement that could assist in that endeavor. Unfortunately there was this accident.. ;-)
As an aside, NY requires you to have a hunting license to off varmints on your property..
In the wooded area, that borders a large farm, near me, are lots of coyotes. Never see them, not even as roadkill; on clear nights in the spring, you can hear the pups yapping and baying.
When a fire truck goes by with sirens blaring , they *all* join in calling; it's kinda funny actually.
In Connecticut, you need License & Permits Firearms or Archery Hunting License; open season, all year. The problem, where I live the housing is too dense. We noticed that the wild turkey population has dwindled to the point where I don't see them anymore.
It is kind of nice. . and to hear my dogs “speaking” the
same language as the coyotes is really puzzling. I hope
we will still get to see our animals after we leave this
earthly coil. We have had a whole bunch of dogs and cats
who have passed away over time. I miss them; but having to
keep them fed watered and vaccinated would be a daunting
task IF they were ALL still around. We have lived here on
the river 30 yrs. Many generations of deer, bobcats and
coyotes have come and gone out here. No one hunts them on
our place; so they have been spoiled to not being hunted.
Lots of rattlesnakes, water moccasins and copperheads, too;
but they rarely come up to the house unless they are after
water during dry spells. I somehow feel they don’t want
trouble any more than we do. My aunt wanted to move back to
TN from TX before she died; but her daughter had always
lived in TX. Aunt Mildred never liked TX; but a lot of
folks do like it. I felt sorry for her; but couldn’t solve
her problem.
What part of Texas are you living in, what River?
We live in Tennessee. Duck River out in the boonies not all
that far from Nashville.
Great-Great Grandfather lived on Tennessee River in
Perryville. Worked as a lightskeeper on the river and had
to carry his Smith & Wesson in that job. (I don’t know if
they still use the shore lights or not; but I would guess
that river is still a pretty rough place even today.)
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.