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Post by jcriswell on Sept 28, 2012 19:18:06 GMT -6
Was fixing a gate along the gravel road just before dark this evening. Headed to town to grab some barley pops, and came back by not 30 minutes later. Here comes Mr. Coyote right through the gate I had just put up and took his sweet time to cross the road. Makes me wonder why Im so cautious with the traps  just curious! |
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Post by bradphillips on Sept 28, 2012 20:18:26 GMT -6
If a coyote ran from every human it smelled they would never stop running. Just need to try and not leave more scent than you need to. Heck that dog probably watched you and thought....... look at that silly human  |
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Post by jcriswell on Sept 29, 2012 19:23:44 GMT -6
Ya it definately didn't mind me watching it. It was a good looking coyote thats for sure. Seasons getting closer! This is my first year going after coyotes so I took it as a good sign.
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Post by k9 on Sept 30, 2012 6:54:13 GMT -6
Human scent is not a concern in my opinion. The coyote will know you have been there, but he also knows you are no longer there. While human scent can be a threat to coyotes it also can be a feeding opportunity. They encounter human scent every day and I think it means more to us than it does to them.
Guys who claim coyotes are avoiding them or digging them out because they smell human scent are likely failing to observe the real problems at thier set such as poorly bedded traps etc. Most guys do not have the tracking conditions to see that they are being avoided and are just speculating as to why they are checking empty traps.
I have seen too many coyotes feed where a group of men have gutted deer or cleaned pheasants to buy that coyotes are afraid of human scent.
Watch a police dog work. A police dog can tell the difference between where a person has been and where they now are. My point is proven by police dogs who will trail a person for long periods of time, but as soon as they encounter the scent of a hidden person who is still present, but the dog cannot see them, the dogs whole demeanor changes. A police dog alerts and gets aggressive to the scent of a hidden person, while just a few minutes ago that same dog was in trailing mode.
Why would a coyote be any different? A coyote will react quite fearfully to the scent of a person who is down on the ground and in that coyote's vicinity. However if a guy is up in a tree stand and his scent going up and away, it is not uncommon for coyote's to walk along the same trail the hunter brought in and pay no attention.
There are exceptions to all rules with coyotes but I would suggest that very few coyotes are human scent shy, and if one is you will never know he was anywhere near your trap to claim he avoided you. The last thing such a coyote would do would be to dig you up or poop on your set which some claim is evidence that the scent shy coyote is "messing" with them.
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Post by LLLTrapper on Sept 30, 2012 7:26:37 GMT -6
Good reply K9. I could not agree with you more. Yotes don't fear petroleum smells either. They live with those smells all the time. LLL
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Post by Griz on Sept 30, 2012 15:25:22 GMT -6
Good reply K9. I could not agree with you more. Yotes don't fear petroleum smells either. They live with those smells all the time. LLL X2 |
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Post by theoleman on Sept 30, 2012 18:16:07 GMT -6
Gentlemen:
Good comments by all for sure. I attended a demo by Blackie at a national once and he said something I never forgot. Trapper says to Blackie. The coyotes are circling my sets, I saw it in the snow! Blackie says "they were circling your sets long before it snowed". Point being, they know you are there, is the power of the attraction (your set) good enough to bring them in to work it?
Theoleman
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Post by Griz on Oct 1, 2012 15:25:58 GMT -6
Coyotes could be circling a set for many reasons, only one of which is human scent. For example, the set may include something that looks different from the way it looked yesterday or the last time the coyote was passed. Coyotes know their territory like we know our living rooms. How many of you notice when the wife moves a piece of furniture or adds a new lamp or flower arrangement? The set may be a focus of interest and curiosity instead of the purpose in the mind of the trapper. That is why the annual catch is primarily YOY and dispersal animals. That could well be because it is hard to know if the furniture in a house you have never been in has been moved.
You don't have to wear a full body condom to hold human scent to a minimal level that does not affect the performance of a set. As said before, the coyote knows you were there and that you are gone. Many other factors of the set and the mental attitude of the coyote are important in whether and how a coyote works a set.
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Post by k9 on Oct 1, 2012 15:30:28 GMT -6
I will never forget a guy that I know, shoveling fresh dirt onto the floorboards of his truck so that his shoes would smell like the earth. Hilarious
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Post by justwannano on Oct 1, 2012 16:43:12 GMT -6
It would at least got a grin out of you guys had you heard Steve Beckmans story about the hard to catch coyote.
He finally used urine --his-- and caught the critter.
just
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Post by TRapper on Oct 2, 2012 8:16:18 GMT -6
k9 x3
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