tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7481785061696705243.post1784786888101077164..comments2024-03-12T01:41:35.370-07:00Comments on Predator Friendly Ranching : Life and death at the sheep corralLouise Liebenberghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05474938590034065595noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7481785061696705243.post-5174146512128745432014-03-16T15:11:58.894-07:002014-03-16T15:11:58.894-07:00Just a partbof life on a ranch. One day a birth, a...Just a partbof life on a ranch. One day a birth, another day a death.<br />I am very thankful for your dogs.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07684068155523387097noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7481785061696705243.post-79098701325522977922014-03-10T12:16:07.421-07:002014-03-10T12:16:07.421-07:00Kudos to your wonderful dogs, Louise, they did exa...Kudos to your wonderful dogs, Louise, they did exactly what they were supposed to do, with no unnecessary bloodshed. As I read through your blog I was getting more and more nervous about the outcome, and was very relieved to hear that your sheep escaped unscathed. As for guns, we own several, but getting a perfect shot into a herd of animals and killing only the intended target is no easy task. I wouldn't be brave enough to attempt such a move, for fear of killing or injuring one of my goats. Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01147233638897294267noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7481785061696705243.post-68636498685518455682013-11-17T08:34:25.297-08:002013-11-17T08:34:25.297-08:00we had someone saying we should have shot the coyo...we had someone saying we should have shot the coyote. I am sorry I have no gun and would probably kill a sheep in the process, that is how bad a shot I am. also do I think guns have a huge impact on the people looking at all the disasters we are having in the schools in the states. I just wished the coyote would have escaped. It would probably have gone vegetarian after this experience.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09392369679928107944noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7481785061696705243.post-84391361459739596382013-11-17T07:34:20.130-08:002013-11-17T07:34:20.130-08:00Thank you for all your comments. I would just like...Thank you for all your comments. I would just like to add this expereince did touch us on so many levels. This type of event does not normally play out right in front of your eyes We do know that using guardian dogs that this could be the end result, however mostly the predators chose to go elsewhere. For people interetsed in the details, the coyote was dead within about 20 seconds once it jumped the fence. The coyote had some escape opportunities, it could have jumped the page wire fence away from the dogs, it could have run through the opening in the gate once we opened it up. It stood up and was threatening the dogs, it was standing, posturing on the fence. I know a post like this will offend some people, however it is what it is and this is what played out in front of us. Sure, we can pretend that it did not happen and make it "prettier" ending, but living with the amount of wildlife we have, the outcome for the sheep or the dogs or the wildlfe does not always have a happy ever after. What I do know is that we enjoy the wildlife, we value their importance to our ranch and we our best to co-exist, however somethimes things do not have a fairytale ending and that is what I wanted to share.Louise Liebenberghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05474938590034065595noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7481785061696705243.post-47108475419985988452013-11-17T07:25:15.185-08:002013-11-17T07:25:15.185-08:00Thank you Jim for your comment. We do not own a gu...Thank you Jim for your comment. We do not own a gun, so that was not an option for us. The night corral is more than a half mile away from our house. We did not instigate this in any way or form. We opened up the fence to give the coyote a chance to get out, it chose to jump over then fence. The coyote was dead within about 20 seconds from the moment it jumped. I do find it objectable that you say we instigated this, no we did not, the coyote jumped into the night corral, it made the wrong choice We did not sic the dog onto it. It is not a glorius dog fight at all, it was traumatic and if we could have changed the outcome we would have.Louise Liebenberghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05474938590034065595noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7481785061696705243.post-88910078273026734492013-11-17T06:34:35.289-08:002013-11-17T06:34:35.289-08:00Jim, if a coyote is that determined to go into a c...Jim, if a coyote is that determined to go into a corral with sheep, its pretty much signed its own death warrant. Not all LGD conflicts with predators end in death. Many do not. We can't always be there with a gun. The only thing I would have done differently would have been running dogs inside the corral with these sheep, not just on the outside, that is why, I am a proponent of running different breeds together in a pack for complete coverage. I would have had some dogs in the corral (in my case, Spanish Mastiffs). And Jim, there's many a time its the other way around: the predators kill the LGD. It's life. This was not a 'glorified dog fight'. It was simply life, going on here on a ranch where things are born and die all the time. Brenda M. Negrihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01286290075169347984noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7481785061696705243.post-5381153397480314362013-11-16T20:21:19.889-08:002013-11-16T20:21:19.889-08:00Predator "Friendly"? Actually, that is n...Predator "Friendly"? Actually, that is nothing more than a glorified dog fight that the rancher instigated. The story said that one dog had the coyote by the throat, and another had it by the stomach. I would venture to say that in the time it took the coyote to die from such a traumatic mauling from two large dogs, it suffered some serious pain. If the coyote had to die, and I have no problem with that, I would suggest shooting it with a .22-250 or other high velocity caliber rifle. the coyote will die almost instantly, and most likely never feel a thing. The end result is the same. The sheep are safe and the coyote is dead. It's just that my way is more humane.Jim Searshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01682376491026673775noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7481785061696705243.post-18601867680640408812013-11-16T18:42:50.405-08:002013-11-16T18:42:50.405-08:00What a sad thing to have to experience, and so muc...What a sad thing to have to experience, and so much inner conflict for us farmer and lovers of all life. I know on one hand you must be very proud of your dogs, and on the other, quite sad to carry this memory, and for the fate of the coyote.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7481785061696705243.post-85463240363063691022013-11-16T18:22:38.859-08:002013-11-16T18:22:38.859-08:00What a hard thing to see Louise. I know how you fe...What a hard thing to see Louise. I know how you feel, its a sad day when anything has to die. I am thankful that your dogs dispatched the coyote with speed and efficiency and she didnt have to suffer. Sometimes these things happen and it never gets easier to see. Since getting our LGD's many years ago, we have not had to shoot any predator, and I am thankful. Occasionally they do have to engage and they take care of the intruder with accuracy. Thank you for sharing this with us. Cindy Cindy Wilberhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01476257512371913499noreply@blogger.com