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Do you support a proposal to limit the unrestricted hunting of coyotes?

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Current regulation in New Hampshire allows the year-round hunting of coyotes. An advocacy group, Voices of Wildlife in New Hampshire, is petitioning the state Fish and Game Department to limit the coyote hunting season to Oct. 15 through March 31.

A similar effort by the group last year was denied by the Fish and Game commission.

Coyotes in NH

The eastern coyote, according to Fish and Game, first came to the state in Grafton County in the mid-1940s. Today, coyotes are common in every county throughout the state.

Current coyote hunting rules

In New Hampshire, there is no closed hunting season on coyotes and there is a five-month trapping season. Coyotes may be taken by trapping or shooting, but it is illegal to use poison as a control method.

Fish and Game reports that “Most coyote management attempts have been designed to reduce their population numbers, however, due to their fecundity, behavior and adaptability, those attempts have failed.”

Arguments for and against a limited hunting season

Supporters of a limited season say the unrestricted hunting of coyote is bad for the ecosystem. Coyote are necessary, they say, because they prey largely on rodents and other pests while keeping the deer herd healthy by culling the weakest animals.

Opponents of a limited hunt say coyotes are varmints and a potential threat to livestock and domestic pets.They say landowners and farmers need maximum flexibility in dealing with possible conflicts associated with coyotes.

What do you think? Should there be a restricted season on hunting coyotes? Tell us why in the comment section below.

Comments

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Maureen

Restrict the killing. Maybe they will reduce the deer population.

Alan

wait until one attacks your kid or your dog or cat they should be hunted all year I had 5 come at me when I lived in Hill NH but they couldn't get behind me so they left

Dennis

I have no problem with unlimited Coyote hunting under the current laws. Not only do they do they cull the sick or injured Deer but in heavy snow times they will pen up Deer and kill far more than they need for good.

Helen

John Harrigan, a lifelong hunter, sheep farmer and outdoor writer for NH Sunday news for 37 years told me that he never lost a sheep to the coyotes that live around his farm, and tells the hunters who hunt in his property not to molest the coyotes because he doesn't want to have to train new coyotes who move in to keep their boundaries.

Coyote expert and sheep farmer Chris Schadler said similar thing during her testimony to Fish and Game supporting limiting the coyote season. She elaborated that when alpha females are killed, the order of the pack is disrupted, with other females now reproducing. Therefore hunting and killing coyotes could in fact increase the coyote population, with some scientific research to back up.

Others said that killing adult coyotes often leave juvenile coyotes untrained in how to hunt for traditional food, and so they have no choice but to go through your garbage or even go after your pets and become nuisance coyotes.

Very young orphaned coyotes would die a slow agonizing death without food. This is not something ethical hunters generally support. My husband used to be a hunter and came from a long line of hunters. Coyotes are like dogs - smart, playful and extremely loyal, despite how badly they have been painted as 'vermin'. Would we ever consider doing something like this to dogs?

Richard

No , kill the coyotes numbers are growing and there's a abundance across the country . Save the deer ,pets ,and farm animals . Something needs to keep them in check, their not native to the area

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