A Coyote's Nose

[KySongDog]

I saw this posted by the moderator on another forum I visit (not THAT forum  ) and it just seemed to emphasize the power of the nose we are up against.  The post is about dogs but I think it applies to coyotes as well.

I've watched the Ky Search Dog Assoc. work on several occasions. They use a variety of dogs from shepherds to GSPs and Wiems and Labs and mongrels. Truthfully, just about any dog will have a suitable nose to find stuff, and if it is a smart dog that is socialized from day one, it can probably be trained to find people or drugs or antlers.

Here's what I saw them do: They took some frozen extracted human teeth kindly donated by a local dentist, and submerged them at varying depths in a lake. Some were 20 feet deep, some were 10 feet, 5 feet, etc. All the teeth were in plastic tubes with holes in them which were suspended on a string between a sinker at the bottom and a float on top. All floats were submerged and out of sight. The teeth soaked overnight, and then the dogs were placed in a boat and slowly passed over the area. Each dog had to correctly signal each location. They did it. A bare tooth, with no blood, just a little human tissue in the pulp area, and those dogs of all breeds would nail each one. The power of a dog's nose is absolutely amazing.

Semp

[possumal]

No doubt about it, they can do some amazing things.  Keep in mind that those dogs are trained for specific purposes until they have it down pat.  Old Wylie Coyote learns it all without a trainer.  Combine his nose with his acute hearing ability, and way above average eyesight, especially on anything that moves, and he is surely a tough adversary.  Domestic dogs can show us a lot if we pay attention, like hearing you sneaking in before daylight while they are 1,000 yds away or more, and raising hell about it.