Cuteness of the Coyote

By Dick Perue

This week, I originally planned to write a follow-up story concerning the predator – mostly wolf and coyote – problems experienced by our ancestors. 

However, after coming across a piece on the cuteness of coyotes, I changed direction and had to pass along part of the story as well as several more about the “cute” coyote to Postcard readers.

Enjoy the following news items, which appeared in Wyoming weekly newspapers between 1890 and 1920.

Forest and Stream tells about a dog that had its principal sport in chasing, and otherwise worrying, coyotes. About 9 p.m. one night, one of the coyotes came to the kitchen door and howled aggressively at the dog, which therefore set after the coyote full tilt.

The coyote fled around the house, down to the corral and around the blacksmith shanty, the dog yelping after. Behind the shanty were other coyotes – six or seven of them – and all of them made for the dog in a way that made it feel lonely. 

The rancher heard the fight and the dog’s howls of pain, and grasping a rifle, started running that way, yelling as he went. The coyote took a farewell nip and fled, leaving a sore dog behind. Since then, the dog has not been as interested in coyotes as on former occasions.

Richards Brothers are building a very substantial and serviceable welded woven wire fence, medium mesh, around 800 acres of grazing land, near Medicine Bow, which they intend to use for a sheep pasture, and the fence is expected to be coyote proof. The main part of the fence is three-feet high, with a few strands of barbed wire for top and bottom.

Dayton Jones and Albert Wilson each bagged a nice coyote this week. A coyote was found in the kitchen at the Dolan ranch last week by Mrs. Ivan Daugherty. Ham Terrill came over and dispatched the animal for her.

Frank Munz and W.M. Turnbull have killed 50 coyotes in the valley this year. Turnbull keeps a good pack of hounds and enjoys the sport.

Thomas Blackburn, a trapper and hunter of Pinedale, is a three-in-one shot. 

While hunting along New Fork Creek recently, Blackburn shot at the only coyote in sight. The animal keeled over dead, and when the hunter came up, he found three dead coyotes, instead of one. 

One bullet from his high-powered rifle had pierced the bodies of three coyotes, he having seen but one at the time of firing the shot.

As Willard Haines was going to work Wednesday morning, he ran over and killed a coyote near the cemetery.

A trial, long and wordy, has grown out of the killing of a pet coyote owned by Charles Downey of Lander. Downey charged Joe Markovich and N. Mattovich with malicious trespass, and alleged they came to his house and killed his coyote. 

The coyote had attacked a young pig belonging to the defendants, when it strayed too near to the coyote, which was chained up at the Downey home.

A coyote drive took place up in North Park a couple of weeks ago and is described in detail in the North Park Union, the editor having participated in the exciting sport. There were 20 riders, and when they came together, there was not a coyote to be seen. The festive coyote was not in the locality or didn’t approve of drives.

According to stock raisers and farmers, especially in Kansas, the coyote seems to be quickly becoming extinct. The fencing up of big pasture districts where practically every acre is stocked with cattle has robbed the coyote of his once free and open range.