Legal/ethical opinion

[boneaddict]

Back in the day we’d hunt coyotes just to shoot them.   Wouldn’t even go pick them up. Just shoot em and move on.  If it was an exceptional specimen or we were in the mood, maybe go out and at least give it a kick, or take a pic.  Rarely did we bring it home.   Is this legal?   I’m thinking waste of game meat, hide or something along those lines.   I thought maybe I should ask before I say openly on the internet …..

Then there is the ethics behind it.  If I am just blasting away, am I taking from other hunters. There might be people out there trying to make money at it.  If I kill ten of them today and just feed the crows, is that going to piss some guy off.   

From a biological standpoint, are we going to be overrun by mice and rabbits now

No flaming please, this is a legit question. 

You’ll note an acute lack of coyote pics from me this year.   

[KFhunter]

This thread is sort of irritating that we even need to discuss this

Shoot them and leave lay for the maggots and don't give it a second thought. 

Save the baby makers!

[NRA4LIFE]

I've left every one I have ever killed for the buzzards.

[buckfvr]

Provided I have a high percentage shot, I never pass on a yote and I always leave them lay, always have always will.  Ive seen so many with baby lambs and goats in their mouths as to warrant an instant death sentence.

[ucwarden]

Here is the Washington law on wastage and coyotes are not classified as big game animals.

RCW 77.15.170
Waste of fish and wildlife—Penalty.
(1) A person is guilty of waste of fish and wildlife if the person:
(a) Takes or possesses wildlife classified as food fish, game fish, shellfish, or game birds having a value of two hundred fifty dollars or more, or wildlife classified as big game; and
(b) Recklessly allows such fish, shellfish, or wildlife to be wasted.

[boneaddict]

Generally when I am filming, I don’t carry a rifle.  Just fewer questions with game wardens.  I kinda got out of the practice of passing death sentences.  There are places I can’t shoot obviously, I guess as stated, those get filmed.   Otherwise.  Night night little buddy.  No interest in the pelt.   

Thank you for that info UC

[Special T]

I don't think most Washington coyotes pay very much.they are a predator and the hide is the only thing worth keeping. From the management side I've heard a lot about reassive reproductive of coyotes and the ability to expand to carrying capacity. For all the shooting done in a year I don't think you can make a big dent in the population unless your Hunting them hard in the spring. We certainly can't make a dent without foothold traps.

As a small game hunter I think it's fine to shoot them and do nothing with them. If I had a chunk of land for bird hunting  I would be agressively thinning all predators including skunks.

Coyotes do predate on fawns but compared to bears and bobcats who knows how much. At least you can eat the bears and bobcats.

I don't buy the  line of being overridden by mice with out them. That said I enjoy shooting coyotes, and I don't think I'm dedicated enough take a dent in the population big enough to make a huge difference. If I chose not to shoot the occasional coyote I wouldn't wrap that decision in ethics. I'd just explain why and call it close.

[Fidelk]

Back in the day we’d hunt coyotes just to shoot them.   Wouldn’t even go pick them up. Just shoot em and move on.  If it was an exceptional specimen or we were in the mood, maybe go out and at least give it a kick, or take a pic.  Rarely did we bring it home.   Is this legal?   I’m thinking waste of game meat, hide or something along those lines.   I thought maybe I should ask before I say openly on the internet …..

Then there is the ethics behind it.  If I am just blasting away, am I taking from other hunters. There might be people out there trying to make money at it.  If I kill ten of them today and just feed the crows, is that going to piss some guy off.   

From a biological standpoint, are we going to be overrun by mice and rabbits now

No flaming please, this is a legit question. 

You’ll note an acute lack of coyote pics from me this year.   

Not waste of meat, since it isn't defined as a "big game" animal. Cougar meat is clearly exempted as are heart/liver of any animal.

"""Game harvest waste requirements
As stated in Washington's Big Game Hunting Seasons and Regulations pamphlet, hunters may not allow game animals or game birds they have taken to recklessly be wasted.

The rules around waste are outlined in RCW 77.08.010, which states that "To waste" or "to be wasted" means to allow any edible portion of any game bird, food fish, game fish, shellfish, or big game animal other than cougar to be rendered unfit for human consumption, or to fail to retrieve edible portions of such a game bird, food fish, game fish, shellfish, or big game animal other than cougar from the field.

Edible portions of game birds must include, at a minimum, the breast meat of those birds. Entrails, including the heart and liver, of any wildlife species are not considered edible."""

Ethics.......depends on your personal beliefs, on one hand shooting an animal that you don't intend to eat or use the pelt could be considered wasteful.......on the other hand, by shooting them you might be saving some fawns and calves.

I'd shoot them and would take the pelt (if it was a good one) if I wasn't hunting for deer/elk. But the only time I've seen them with a rifle in my hand was when hunting for elk and didn't want to spook the elk.

[boneaddict]

This would be a good year to have a derby.   Not sure if WDFW killed those or what happened there. 
This is a banner yote year for those of you wanting to hunt.   The only place I am not seeing many are where wolves are active.   

[Special T]

This would be a good year to have a derby.   Not sure if WDFW killed those or what happened there. 
This is a banner yote year for those of you wanting to hunt.   The only place I am not seeing many are where wolves are active.

All hunting derbies were canceled by vote of the commission.  We can't even have the online  fun Derby on here anymore. I loved seeing everyone's pics and stories.

[boneaddict]

Figures! 

 

[Encore 280]

As far as the mice and rabbits go I think even if the dogs were wiped out that there would be enough birds of prey that would still keep the mice and rabbits in balance. 

[builtfordtough]

Shoot em and leave em.  I won't give location but somewhere in western wa a kid shot 35 coyotes last season in the same 2 farm fields.  Thats insane. 

[jrebel]

You'll never kill them all....they are extremely proficient and adaptive to their environment.  They can spread disease and can devastate all the bunny hugger beloved pigmy rabbits, whistle pigs, deer, elk calves, grouse, etc.....   Shoot everyone you see.  If you let them lay, who cares.  If you want the pelt, good on you.  It's getting to the point that every hunter should value a yote, bear or cougar way more than they do a deer or elk. 

I find it to be more of an ethical problem if you don't shoot them.  If you value a coyote over the health of our pigmy rabbit population you are a sick and twisted person (insert sarcasm emoji here).....just want our environmental nuts to know I care about their pigmy rabbits more than I do a predator.  Much like I care about our deer and elk population more than a other predators (bears, cougars, wolves, yotes).....and I digress.   

[Naches Sportsman]

I will say I see a dozen plus coyotes every trip from clarkston to the tri cities. There’s a coyote problem in WA


For Idaho, It might be my trapping instincts kicking in and saving fur in my area, but I haven’t blasted a single one since I started catching them in footholds and snares.