Strangest Event

Not really sure where to put this one (it's pretty unusual).

Last night two of our dogs woke me up at about 0230L, anxious about something. As I woke up I heard some coyotes outside. They were close, and it sounded like there were several. The dogs were acting like they wanted to outside so I begrudgingly shuffled to the front door and let them out. When I opened the door there were indeed several coyotes nearby so I told the dogs to stay close, "coyotes" I told them (they understand this command).

We live way out in the country, far from any town or city, and coyotes are common out here. Coyotes are most unwelcome predators here and they will be 'dispatched' at any opportunity (but that's another story). Coyotes in the country are quite a bit different than the coyotes most people see in the suburbs. Out here they run in packs, and they'll easily take down calves, deer, antelope...and dogs. With dogs they'll "bait" them away from their safety zone. One will come in close where the dogs can see it, and then it will run off. Of course many dogs will give chase. The coyote will run off towards the rest of the pack which are silently laying in wait. They will then ambush the dogs from all directions and overwhelm them with numbers, pulling them down and often killing them. Our dogs have been trained not to fall for this trap, but to protect the cattle. But I digress.

I'd heard several coyotes when I let the dogs out (maybe 4-5) and they were probably within 200 yards of the house, but out of sight. The cattle were over the hill too, also out of sight. It was pretty dark. I sat at the kitchen table (ironically glancing at some stuff here on ATS) when all of a sudden I hear another couple coyotes behind the house, even closer. I thought to myself, I should probably go check on the dogs to see what they were up to. On the way I grabbed some of my night-vision gear to see if I could get a better look and possibly check on the calves. When I opened the door I was greeted by possibly the strangest experience I've ever observed in recent memory.

When a single coyote howls and yips they are notorious for sounding like several coyotes at once. In other words, 3-4 coyotes can easily sound like 8-9 coyotes (when it's really only 3-4). Being pretty familiar with these animals and how they operate this is not uncommon. When I opened the door to check on the dogs there were coyotes calling from all directions, 360 degrees around the house (also not completely uncommon as one group will call to another group, etc.). However, as I walked outside and listened, this was far different.

Both of the dogs I'd let out were sitting just off the front deck (good boys). They knew something was up and were staying in real close, this night was different. As I closed the door and stood on the deck in the dark there were literally thousands of coyotes! I've never heard so many coyotes in all my life. They were calling from all directions. The night was perfectly still (the wind can play tricks on your ears with coyote calls too, but not this night), and I could hear coyotes for miles in every direction. Some were in close (1-200 yards), another group further away, and several more groups even further away...and this sort of 'layering' effect of their calls was just stunning!

Now, as I've noted, I grew up with these animals so I know their traits, their habitat, their customs and pecking orders, etc. What I heard last night was extremely unusual for several reasons.

1. The number of coyotes I heard FAR exceeded anything I've ever heard in one area before.
2. The number of coyotes I heard FAR exceeded the amount of available prey per acre that coyotes usually require
3. Coyotes are territorial, and there were WAY too many groups of coyotes too close together to exist without major problems
4. Some years we have a lot more coyotes than other years, but you can usually tell what kind of a year it will be as the pups emerge from the dens. So there's a build up, they don't just all show up at once...like they did last night.

I'm sure the yelping and howling made it sound like there were more coyotes than there were, but based on my history with these animals I'm sure I was hearing several "hundred" coyotes within the two miles or so which bounds our place. I'd heard some bunches of coyotes on Tuesday and Wed night also, but nothing like last night.

Then there was tonight...absolutely nothing. Complete silence.

If I didn't know better I'd think there was some great Woodstock type convention of coyotes from all over who just showed up from some great coyote pilgrimage of the millennium.

Strange indeed.

You know, I wonder if maybe this experience had anything to do with the sun's CME event on Wednesday? We did get some very brief glimpses of Northern Lights (I'd hoped for more). This, coupled with the smoke from the all fires cast the Moon in a very reddish light (we've been getting a lot of smoke and haze from the big forest fires north and west of us). And the Moon itself was pretty bright through all of this also.

Just a really, really, odd event! Not like anything I've ever observed before.

Stranger still...Whatever caused them to act this way, why would they all come to a Human's house?

a reply to: DAVID64

They didn't. The house just happened to be here.

ETA...that's my theory anyway.

Though the CME and bushfire haze could be plausible, do you know if in recent memory something similar happening in your area preceding earth tremors?

Do you have a free online local/state newspaper archive to search for any articles about a mass gathering of coyotes?

Strange indeed! But fascinating!

a reply to: Flyingclaydisk

Ok, truly strange, that is a fact.

Since you have trained dogs and i don't have any pets, and you have night-vision equipment to use when needed, i think you have expertise and you are prepared for stuff more than the urban-hillbilly finspiracy... so...

Perhaps the NSA has noticed that you post to ATS, and NSA has labeled you as a threat to some great conspiracy due to too much info... The NSA sent hologram coyotes in a large quantity and audio too from speakers secretly installed into trees nearby. With a purpose of driving you nuts and eliminate your threat level.

But yes, you explained the events in such a detailed and well-written way, that even a dude who has never seen or heard a coyote with own eyes/ears except of course TV/movies and such, can understand. I will be following the replies to this one, i am interested in a closure and a confirmed explanation.

originally posted by: Finspiracy
a reply to: Flyingclaydisk

...

Perhaps the NSA has noticed that you post to ATS, and NSA has labeled you as a threat to some great conspiracy due to too much info... The NSA sent hologram coyotes in a large quantity and audio too from speakers secretly installed into trees nearby. With a purpose of driving you nuts and eliminate your threat level.

Wow. Well, if you ever make it to Colorado, just know you'll fit right in!! LOL!

But yes, you explained the events in such a detailed and well-written way, that even a dude who has never seen or heard a coyote with own eyes/ears except of course TV/movies and such, can understand. I will be following the replies to this one, i am interested in a closure and a confirmed explanation.

Thanks. Hopefully we'll find out.

a reply to: Flyingclaydisk

If you understand what a "Comanche Moon" is, you experienced a "Coyote Moon."

a reply to: Aliensun

How ironic you would mention this. The area where we live was big Comanche country in the 1800's. We find all sorts of Comanche items around our place (arrowheads, artifacts, etc.)

There's an old stagecoach stop on our property which was overrun by the Comanche in 1865. It was part of the Overland trail line.

a reply to: Flyingclaydisk

Depending on where you are, it might have had something to do with the quake which hit Mexico. Might be that there was a mass exodus of some sort, drove them north, away from the threat. Might also be something to do with the fact that hurricanes are threatening the southern most areas of the continent at the moment, and the animals have shipped out early, to get ahead of it all?

a reply to: Flyingclaydisk

Incredible story. Can I ask what state you live in? We certainly don't have that many coyotes in the badlands of the Catskills. I doubt they have that many anywhere in Vermont, except maybe near the Green Mountains. So far goes my coyote experience.

I'd say this was one heck of a big, just-past-full-moon and post-eclipse kind of scenario. I've noticed coyotes chiming in on or around full moons -- how was the weather last night?

a reply to: TrueBrit

Animals often pick up on things that are outside our human senses.

I would pay close attention to what the animals are saying and doing all across America and the planet.

Things have seemed to have escalated a bit.

Massive wild fires. Massive flooding. Earthquakes, tsunamis, multiple hurricanes. Huge CMEs. Sounds apocalyptic doesn't it.

Shouldn't have read this when I still had skinwalkers on the brain

*shudders*

a reply to: Flyingclaydisk
Do you live anywhere close to the Yellowstone Caldera?

I wouldn't be afraid but I would not ignore it.

Nothing that strange happens for no good reason.

While it seems strange to us, I am sure it makes perfect sense to the animals.

a reply to: NightSkyeB4Dawn

And yet, when compared to the chaos of the birth of this solar system, it is positively tranquil.

Strange to consider such a thing, even as natures fury is being unleashed all around the world.

a reply to: BombDefined

Now there you go.

Now you got me to thinking about "Midnight Texas".

Don't tell me it is more predictive programming.

a reply to: TrueBrit

And yet, when compared to the chaos of the birth of this solar system, it is positively tranquil.

You mean like, "As it was in the Beginning, So shall it be in the End"?

Pics or it didn't happen... Pretty cool story though. I would have loved to see some photos especially through the night goggles.

a reply to: NightSkyeB4Dawn

If it is truly to be as it was in the beginning, then the end shall see the planet fly apart in a rapidly expanding ball of dust and gas, having previously been an orb entirely made of volcanic fire, with no atmosphere we would know to call such a thing, just a dense fog of highly toxic, largely acidic gases, and ash, no surface upon which a human foot could be placed without burning immediately down to the bone, before even the bone itself is consumed.

We have a ways to go yet.

originally posted by: Flyingclaydisk
Not really sure where to put this one (it's pretty unusual).

Last night two of our dogs woke me up at about 0230L, anxious about something. As I woke up I heard some coyotes outside. They were close, and it sounded like there were several. The dogs were acting like they wanted to outside so I begrudgingly shuffled to the front door and let them out. When I opened the door there were indeed several coyotes nearby so I told the dogs to stay close, "coyotes" I told them (they understand this command).

We live way out in the country, far from any town or city, and coyotes are common out here. Coyotes are most unwelcome predators here and they will be 'dispatched' at any opportunity (but that's another story). Coyotes in the country are quite a bit different than the coyotes most people see in the suburbs. Out here they run in packs, and they'll easily take down calves, deer, antelope...and dogs. With dogs they'll "bait" them away from their safety zone. One will come in close where the dogs can see it, and then it will run off. Of course many dogs will give chase. The coyote will run off towards the rest of the pack which are silently laying in wait. They will then ambush the dogs from all directions and overwhelm them with numbers, pulling them down and often killing them. Our dogs have been trained not to fall for this trap, but to protect the cattle. But I digress.

I'd heard several coyotes when I let the dogs out (maybe 4-5) and they were probably within 200 yards of the house, but out of sight. The cattle were over the hill too, also out of sight. It was pretty dark. I sat at the kitchen table (ironically glancing at some stuff here on ATS) when all of a sudden I hear another couple coyotes behind the house, even closer. I thought to myself, I should probably go check on the dogs to see what they were up to. On the way I grabbed some of my night-vision gear to see if I could get a better look and possibly check on the calves. When I opened the door I was greeted by possibly the strangest experience I've ever observed in recent memory.

When a single coyote howls and yips they are notorious for sounding like several coyotes at once. In other words, 3-4 coyotes can easily sound like 8-9 coyotes (when it's really only 3-4). Being pretty familiar with these animals and how they operate this is not uncommon. When I opened the door to check on the dogs there were coyotes calling from all directions, 360 degrees around the house (also not completely uncommon as one group will call to another group, etc.). However, as I walked outside and listened, this was far different.

Both of the dogs I'd let out were sitting just off the front deck (good boys). They knew something was up and were staying in real close, this night was different. As I closed the door and stood on the deck in the dark there were literally thousands of coyotes! I've never heard so many coyotes in all my life. They were calling from all directions. The night was perfectly still (the wind can play tricks on your ears with coyote calls too, but not this night), and I could hear coyotes for miles in every direction. Some were in close (1-200 yards), another group further away, and several more groups even further away...and this sort of 'layering' effect of their calls was just stunning!

Now, as I've noted, I grew up with these animals so I know their traits, their habitat, their customs and pecking orders, etc. What I heard last night was extremely unusual for several reasons.

1. The number of coyotes I heard FAR exceeded anything I've ever heard in one area before.
2. The number of coyotes I heard FAR exceeded the amount of available prey per acre that coyotes usually require
3. Coyotes are territorial, and there were WAY too many groups of coyotes too close together to exist without major problems
4. Some years we have a lot more coyotes than other years, but you can usually tell what kind of a year it will be as the pups emerge from the dens. So there's a build up, they don't just all show up at once...like they did last night.

I'm sure the yelping and howling made it sound like there were more coyotes than there were, but based on my history with these animals I'm sure I was hearing several "hundred" coyotes within the two miles or so which bounds our place. I'd heard some bunches of coyotes on Tuesday and Wed night also, but nothing like last night.

Then there was tonight...absolutely nothing. Complete silence.

If I didn't know better I'd think there was some great Woodstock type convention of coyotes from all over who just showed up from some great coyote pilgrimage of the millennium.

Strange indeed.

I experienced almost the exact same thing a few years ago. I lived in the country and would hear a pack of coyotes yipping and howling periodically at night about a half-mile away, in a big open field behind the house. I had two outdoorsy dogs and had let them out late one night to do some exploring. I went back inside, and almost immediately the house was surrounded by coyote barks, yips, and howls. I went for the door to get the dogs back in and they were just sitting on the deck, listening, not showing any fear. It was just so weird--the coyotes seemed to be everywhere, and close. I know the noise a pack can make, and this was so beyond that it unnerved me. I hustled the dogs back inside, and the yipping/barking/howling stopped.

Can't explain it. Like you said, just really, really odd.