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Dawn comes with a surprise

Discussion in 'Sheltie Chat' started by GlennR, Sep 3, 2019.

  1. GlennR

    GlennR Premium Member

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    My wife is back working after the summer off so we've taken up last year's routine with Willow. We get up, feed Willow and then I get her out for a walk while my wife prepares to head to work. The first walk is fairly short as I take her for a longer one after breakfast when all the kids are in school.

    To bring you along on our walk I'll let you know that it was misty and the sodium lamps lit up the path with dim yellow puddles of light that died out in a matter of feet. It was preternaturally silent with the mist blanketing and muting the usual morning noises.

    Willow didn't seem to mind either the semi-darkness or the wet mist. We were heading back home with Willow investigating every little buttercup or clover flower as usual. I think it was a good thing she was engaged in her flower foraging as when we got to a widening of the park on the way home I saw a coywolf ghosting along the fence line just ahead and to the side of us.

    I slowed and stopped hoping it would go on. I had nothing to discourage an attack and reviewed in my mind what to do. You stand tall, make noise if they approach and never, ever run away. The coywolf didn't look back our way, it seemed focused on the fence line, looking for rabbits I think as that's where they tend to be early in the day. Fortunately, Willow didn't notice as I kept her attention on me, facing away from the coywolf. In less than a minute it disappeared into the morning fog.

    We hurried up a bit and got home without incident. I think I'll wait for a brighter time of day going forward and I'll bring a nice loud whistle along.

    If any of you haven't seen a coywolf, here's a link to a picture of one.

    http://i.huffpost.com/gen/980356/original.jpg
     
    jomuir, Ann, Sharon7 and 1 other person like this.
  2. Sandy in CT

    Sandy in CT Forums Sage

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    Love your way with words Glenn!

    We have coyote here, in fact for many years we have had a den off the dead end road off our road and pups used to bathe in the sunlight laying in the drive of the house at the end of that road. Coyote typically do not hunt alone so I wonder if there were others around that you did not see. The whistle sounds like a good idea!
     
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  3. Piper's mom

    Piper's mom Moderator

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    Very scary Glen! Forget the whistle, bring a big stick instead and be very careful...if coywolves are anything like coyotes/wolves they hunt in packs so if you only see one there's more there that you don't see.
    I agree with Sandy, your a true storyteller!
     
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  4. GlennR

    GlennR Premium Member

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    Around here we have the hybrid coywolf, a coyote wolf cross. Some show little to no fear of people and we've had pets and a child attacked in the greater Toronto area. Fortunately, the child wasn't killed. Pets have not all been so lucky.
     
  5. ghggp

    ghggp Moderator

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    Could you carry pepper spray to avoid and confrontation?
     
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  6. GlennR

    GlennR Premium Member

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    That's not legal where I live. You would be risking a ten-year sentence.
     
  7. Piper's mom

    Piper's mom Moderator

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    Isn't bear spray available at Canadian Tire? But I still think a big stick would be best, it would help if they tried to get close to you and I've read that when people used bear/pepper spray they tended to get it in their own eyes. The last thing you want is to be blinded with coywolves stalking you!
     
    Wendy C likes this.
  8. GlennR

    GlennR Premium Member

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    It is available but Bear spray is legal in Canada for use only against attacking bears and is regulated by Health Canada and the Pest Control Products Act. Carrying through a neighborhood down here would be relying on convincing an officer you weren't using it for protection against people attacking.
     
  9. Chris

    Chris Premium Member

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    Scary! You could carry a small can of compressed air. We use them to stop unwanted behavior -- canines hate the hissing sound.
     
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  10. Sharon7

    Sharon7 Moderator

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    Yikes. We have a natural area right behind our house and once came upon a coyote in the afternoon, just strolling around by the creek - scared the heck out of me because the dogs were off leash. It took off pretty quickly when it saw me, and the dogs weren't interested. Haven't seen one again, but for a while, there were NO neighborhood cats left. :cry:

    Glad you guys were safe!
     

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