Dead horse options

H

Heymartay

Active member
Had a rancher put out a horse around a week ago on a dead pile out on the edge of a hayfield not really close to anything. I’ve sat near a haystack which is 600 yds away to see any comings and goings a couple times and not seen a thing. Prolly 45 minutes each time. Any other suggestions.
 
Several years ago, we dragged a 2000# dead bull about 100 yards from one pasture into the adjacent pasture in which we could hunt w/permission of rancher. Sat on that thing off and on for several weeks and not even the birds would touch it. Never did get a credible explanation.
 
hm1996 said:
Several years ago, we dragged a 2000# dead bull about 100 yards from one pasture into the adjacent pasture in which we could hunt w/permission of rancher. Sat on that thing off and on for several weeks and not even the birds would touch it. Never did get a credible explanation.
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When it comes to cattle for bait it will often depend on what they were given in the way of drugs before they died. At our feedlot we will have a chronic steer that just refuses to stay alive no matter what we give it and when it finally dies it will sit in the dead pile for weeks before coyotes even take a bite. The next steer that dies from bloat or broken leg will get put right next to the untouched animal and cleaned right up no problem.
 
There’s wolves in the area also but I’m heading down to Az in a couple weeks so we’ll see if anything happens in that time. Otherwise back mid to end of January and see if things are active.
 
It can take a long time for coyotes to get comfortable with bait. The trail cam suggestion was a good one. It will show you times and habits, or if they are even interested, then adjust accordingly.
 
Yota runner. Very interesting about the drugs.
Here our coyotes don’t seem interested very often in dead livestock or deer. Sometimes yes but most times not so much. Has always puzzled me.
 
jmeddy said:
Yota runner. Very interesting about the drugs.
Here our coyotes don’t seem interested very often in dead livestock or deer. Sometimes yes but most times not so much. Has always puzzled me.
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Oh weird 🤔 is it fairly warm in your neck of the woods? I know here for whatever reason the coyotes really drop off eating dead things when it gets into the warmer months.
 
Coyotes down here will hit my hog bait (peanuts and corn) but will ignore dead hogs and sometimes dead deer. I have a spot I dump all my dead critters and buzzards clean most up, but sometimes they won’t even touch a hog or deer.
 
Had a rancher kill a cow. Left it over night. Didn’t think anything would eat it. Coyotes are the entire rear in one night. Next day rancher took the cow and moved it into a barn. It sat in there for a month saving it for us to get out here. He then put it out in a bait area where they throw carcasses and deer guts from hunting etc. So far the birds haven’t even touched it. Weird
 
Heymartay said:
Had a rancher put out a horse around a week ago on a dead pile out on the edge of a hayfield not really close to anything. I’ve sat near a haystack which is 600 yds away to see any comings and goings a couple times and not seen a thing. Prolly 45 minutes each time. Any other suggestions.
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Put out a cell cam on it (like a Tactacam Reveal) and you can monitor anything that visits the carcass in real time.
 
Whatever happened? I’ve seen deer and hogs here never get touched by anything, buzzards included. Our coyotes won’t touch a pig and sometimes deer.
 
Got back a few weeks ago and been busy. The rancher put the horse out probably 3/4 mile back fro the farm so his dogs wouldn’t get in to it and we’ve had some snow and with a knee with a Baker cyst haven’t got all the way back there.Did do a daytime call but it was in the high 30’s and nothing showed. Tough to walk right now through the snow, don’t want to really screw up my knee. Another rancher is running 6 Pyrenees in that area so think coyotes are scarce. Saw 3 chasing a coyote couple weeks ago and that coyote was flying low to get away.
 
Funny. Place I used to go to shoot hogs, drag to gut pile and gone very fast - even the bones. Adjacent prop. is commercial deer lease and a pasture with longhorns.
 
Yotarunner said:
When it comes to cattle for bait it will often depend on what they were given in the way of drugs before they died. At our feedlot we will have a chronic steer that just refuses to stay alive no matter what we give it and when it finally dies it will sit in the dead pile for weeks before coyotes even take a bite. The next steer that dies from bloat or broken leg will get put right next to the untouched animal and cleaned right up no problem.
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Had a family emergency on the 31st and lost track of this thread, thanks for the reply. Have had a couple of others suggest drugs. Never did get a chance to talk to the owner to see if the bull had been given any drugs. I don't remember time of year but it very well could have been in the summer and our weather often runs 3 digits that time of year.
Yotarunner said:
Oh weird 🤔 is it fairly warm in your neck of the woods? I know here for whatever reason the coyotes really drop off eating dead things when it gets into the warmer months.
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hm1996 said:
Had a family emergency on the 31st and lost track of this thread, thanks for the reply. Have had a couple of others suggest drugs. Never did get a chance to talk to the owner to see if the bull had been given any drugs. I don't remember time of year but it very well could have been in the summer and our weather often runs 3 digits that time of year.
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Il add to this some findings from this year. It's seeming that possibly extreme stress on the animal can play a part. We had a fat steer set to go to slaughter the next day (no drugs in his system)cast himself and die that night. Coyotes nibbled a little here and there but for the most part it's just birds. Casting is when a fat animal lies down in a way that when they go to get up they slip or wedge themselves in a way that they get stuck on their backs leading to bloat and death.
 
Went to start setting a property I’d shot a pig on a couple weeks ago and that joker looks just the same as when I shot him, except just a little fatter.
Shot one on another property at 9:30pm and it was covered in buzzards when we went by at 10am the next morning.
Some things just ain’t fit to eat no matter what they are.
 
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