Packing an equalizer
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From: Datesfat Chicks on 1 Nov 2009 20:02 "MikeWhy" <boat042-nospam(a)yahoo.com> wrote in message news:hcl31h$hhh$1(a)news.eternal-september.org... > > Adult coyotes are about the size of a small german shepherd. If you're not > experienced or comfortable manhandling a dog that size and ferocity, a > close contact weapon isn't a good choice. Wikipedia says this: Coyotes typically grow up to 75�87 centimeters (30�34 inches) in length, not counting a tail of 30-40 cm (12-16 in), stand about 58-66 cm (23-26 in) at the shoulder and, on average, weigh from 7�21 kilograms (15�46 pounds).[5][10] Northern coyotes are typically larger than southern subspecies, with the largest coyotes on record weighing 74� pounds (33.7 kg) and measuring over five feet in total length.[11] I did not know they were that large. I was thinking smaller. A few of those in the 40-lb range could mess up your whole day. Datesfat
From: MikeWhy on 1 Nov 2009 20:31 Datesfat Chicks wrote: > "Sean_Q_" <no.spam(a)no.spam> wrote in message > news:hcktip$ncj$1(a)aioe.org... >> >> Even packing a hunting knife could get me in trouble, legal trouble >> amongst others, especially in town: > > I agree with MikeWhy ... a coyote is likely to be very quick and > might be harder to tag with a knife than you think. No worries on that. They're coming *to* the knife. Rough house with the neighbor's dog before you decide whether or not this is for you. Barehanded, you would catch the lunging canine by the loose skin on either size of the front of the neck, below the ears at the jaw line. With a Mowgli-fang in hand, the open hand does the catching, the other one drives the point home, in roughly the same manner as catching. I carry a 2-1/2" folder as a matter of course. > I'm not sure a flare is such a good option because of the difficulty > of getting it going (I have minor trouble with that sometimes while > I'm NOT being attacked). Striking two parts together might not be > easy when one hand is already chewed to pieces and you're distracted > because a coyote is now shaking you by the genitals. I'm assuming some level of situation awareness. If push comes to shove, I'm on Darwin's side of the argument. Doug mentioned bear spray. Maybe that'll work better for you.
From: J. Clarke on 1 Nov 2009 20:35 Sean_Q_ wrote: > The talk about coyote attacks made me think about what, if any > defensive weapons I could carry. Naturally I can't guard against any > and all threats, otherwise I'd be a walking fortress arsenal > (rotating radar dish on my beanie, body armor, spikes, napalm > dispenser -- like something from alt.binaries.pictures.sci-fi). > > Even packing a hunting knife could get me in trouble, legal trouble > amongst others, especially in town: > > COP: Why are you brandishing that knife, sir? > ME: To fend off the coyotes. > COP: There aren't any coyotes in sight around here. > ME: You see, it works! > > It's too bad the Toronto folksinger didn't carry a walking stick on > that hike in Nova Scotia, or the whole affair might have ended with > CRACK! YIEEEEEEEEEE! YIPE! YIPE! YIPE...! Uh, there were two of them and they didn't back down until one of them was killed. Don't confuse a coyote with a feral dog. Coyotes have been known to persist in attacks on large prey for 8 hours or more until it's brought down and can successfully bring down prey as large as elk. Once they've made the decision that this critter is dinner it takes more than whacking them with a stick to chase them off. > Of course the city has predators other than lions and tigers > and bears (oh no) -- like muggers and hoodlums and thugs. > Pulling a knife on a mugger is pretty well guaranteed to have > some kind of effect, but not necessarily one favorable for me. > > It's worse when I'm traveling because I'd be away from my home turf > on unfamiliar ground. Tourists in Miami have been robbed "because they > took a wrong turn and got into a bad neighborhood by mistake" > according to news reports, and here's me without a clue how to > distinguish the safe turns in Miami (and most other cities) > from the unsafe ones. > > Naturally the whole thing is about risk assessment and management, > based on common sense, and talking to people coming the other way > from wherever it is I'm heading. > > SQ
From: J. Clarke on 1 Nov 2009 20:58 Doug Payne wrote: > MikeWhy wrote: > >> Adult coyotes are about the size of a small german shepherd. If >> you're not experienced or comfortable manhandling a dog that size >> and ferocity, a close contact weapon isn't a good choice. Leave the >> knife at home. Ditto for street bums and muggers. For the >> wilderness, a road flare in a jacket pocket is probably your best >> bet. > > Try pepper spray, the kind designed for bears. Works great on large > dogs. (And bears). Haven't used it on a mugger, but I expect it'd work > just fine for one of those too. Nothing is perfect, but capsaicin is a > pretty effective deterrent. However in many areas you get the same jail time for pepper spray as for a gun, so you may as well carry the gun.
From: Datesfat Chicks on 1 Nov 2009 21:24
"J. Clarke" <jclarke.usenet(a)cox.net> wrote in message news:hclefu01jah(a)news5.newsguy.com... > > Uh, there were two of them and they didn't back down until one of them was > killed. Don't confuse a coyote with a feral dog. Coyotes have been known > to persist in attacks on large prey for 8 hours or more until it's brought > down and can successfully bring down prey as large as elk. Once they've > made the decision that this critter is dinner it takes more than whacking > them with a stick to chase them off. Wikipedia says 21 hours if the attack is going well: Coyotes are persistent hunters, with successful attacks sometimes lasting as much as 21 hours; even unsuccessful ones can continue more than 8 hours before the coyotes give up. Depth of snow can affect the likelihood of a successful kill.[27] Packs of coyotes can bring down prey as large as adult elk, which usually weigh over 250 kg (550 lbs). Doesn't sound like a fun way to die. Datesfat |