Final totals

Saskatchewan killed 71,000 coyotes between November and April.

“There was a need to take action to control the coyote population and I’m pleased with the uptake of this program,” Agriculture Minister Bob Bjornerud said in a press release announcing the final totals. “I hope this program has helped to reduce both the predation issues facing livestock producers and the potential danger posed to farm and ranch families.”

Speciesism 101

Michael Valpy on the coyote’s problem.

Image of God, or imago dei, is the theological doctrine that humans are created in God’s image and therefore have inherent value independent of their utility or function, something not awarded to coyotes but underscoring how we think of them.

Thus in the competition between humans and coyotes for space and goods, coyotes get trumped because they look like evil dogs and don’t have souls (or guns) despite ranking high in the hierarchy of sentience, the capacity to feel pain. Their moral weight is further reduced on government websites, where they are labelled predators, pests and nuisances.

 Cross-province sport

 Forty-one coyotes found dead in Elkwater farmer’s front yard.

And although it’s legal to kill coyotes for a cross-province bounty, the Alberta government doesn’t support it.

“We would not condone that kind activity of course,” said Knight.

But some, like animal advocate R.J. Bailot, say bounties need to be outlawed.

“It’s no longer a protection of their livestock, it becomes a sport of how many animals can be slaughtered and then these people are getting paid to do it,” said Bailot.

If caught, the only penalty the hunters could face is for littering, which carries a fine of up to $500.

No impact

Nova Scotia introduces coyote bounty six months after Taylor Mitchell’s death.

But Ms. Mitchell’s mother says her daughter, who lived in Toronto, would not have supported such a program.

“Taylor would not have wanted this to happen, and for them to be using her as the reason for it. And neither do I,” Emily Mitchell said in an interview. “There is a problem with wildlife and human contact, and we need to find a solution to it. But I don’t think that this is the solution.”

The announcement was a reversal for the Department of Natural Resources, which said on its website this month that such an approach would have “no impact” on the coyote population.

Under pressure

Nova Scotia to offer coyote bounty to trappers.

Critic Leo Glavine pointed out that the minister’s own website includes submissions from biologists who cite scientific studies that prove bounties don’t work.

“They’re telling us that it’s not the way to go,” he said, adding that live-trapping of individual nuisance animals is the best way to deal with the problem.

As well, he said the minister has already conceded that the province suspended offering a bounty for coyotes in the 1990s when it became clear it simply didn’t work.

Glavine said the province has been under pressure to act since the mauling death last fall of a Toronto woman who was hiking in Cape Breton.

Only bounce back

Head of Nova Scotia Federation of Anglers and Hunters says coyote bounty would be waste of money.

Mr. Rodgers, whose group represents more than 6,000 hunters and recreational fishermen, says it’s a mistake to think the province’s 8,000 coyotes are getting more aggressive.

He says the real problem is that one of the coyote’s main sources of food, the snowshoe hare, is at the bottom of a seven-year population cycle and hungry coyotes are simply looking for food.

Mr. Rodgers says a cull is a waste of time because the population will only bounce back.

Extraordinarily disturbing

Cape Breton coyote defender gets bloody message.

Earlene Busch, who runs the Chanterelle Inn in St. Anns, believes the gruesome act could be in response to her letter that appeared in the Cape Breton Post last November.

In it, she defended the right of the coyotes to exist in the face of increasing calls for their cull.

Busch said she was horrified that someone would kill an animal and leave it at the entrance to her property.

“It seems so senseless, such an act of animal cruelty,” she said Tuesday. “This type of act certainly isn’t Cape Breton at its finest and is extraordinarily disturbing from a whole lot of angles.

No cull

Nova Scotia to respect, rather than cull, coyotes this year.

“Education is most important,” said Mike O’Brien, Natural Resources wildlife biologist. “We must encourage our children and neighbours to follow these guidelines and keep in mind, coyotes are wild animals and deserve our respect.”

Flip flop

Saskatchewan ends coyote bounty.

An estimated 23,000 coyotes were killed as a result of the bounty program. But there are still plenty of coyotes in the province, Bjornerud said, adding that he sees them almost every weekend when he returns home to his constituency in rural east-central Saskatchewan.

While he defended the old program, Bjornerud said it will be discontinued effective March 31. It could be re-introduced in the future, following a final evaluation of its success and a continuing evaluation of the number of coyotes in the province and the problems they are causing.

The initiative announced Thursday will pay farmers 100 per cent of the market value of livestock killed by coyotes or other predator animals.

Expensive ears

Grey County hunters can continue to present coyote ears as evidence of kills.

“I’m happy to see the entire coyote carcass will not be required,” said Southgate Mayor Don Lewis.

With the ear issue resolved, county councillors still had plenty of coyote topics to talk about. The coyote population has been growing exponentially in recent years and with fewer hunters active, controlling the population has become a significant concern.

Bruce County recently increased its county bounty from $50 to $100. Grey County’s bounty is currently $50.

West Grey Mayor Kevin Eccles said Saskatchewan recently introduced a successful province-wide bounty on coyotes. Eccles said the coyote issue is one for all municipalities to be concerned about. Eccles said on a recent trip home from Mississauga he spotted a coyote while he was driving on the 410 Highway.