Changed my luck a little.

O

OKRattler

Well-known member
You might or might not be aware of the streak of bad luck I've had lately. It got worse on Friday when I left work and my truck wouldn't start. After wasting all day Saturday I finally got it up and running.

Fast forward to today I decided to leave the 22-250 at home since my bad luck started there. Decided to take the .223 out this morning instead. The second stand of the day I had a coyote top a hill 125 yards straight ahead. As it moved forward along the ridge to my left I could tell he was going to come in as close as I would let him. But as luck would have it the wind shifted,I knew it did and the coyote was heading right in the direction it was blowing. I had the safety off and the coyote in the crosshairs. Right as he stopped and I started to apply pressure to the trigger I saw him tilting his head to get a whiff of the air. And as you know he didn't waste any time heading back in the same direction he came from.

As it turned and ran behind the sagebrush I got ahead of him slightly and as he was topping the hill I let one fly. Oddly enough I didn't hear the impact of the bullet so I was doubtful that it had connected. But I hadn't seen him after the shot so I walked out to check. It was laying 5 feet from the top of the hill,and freedom. I almost let that one get away. Luckily it worked out in my favor because that coyote had mange really bad. The first one I have killed with mange this season. Although its fur ain't worth anything I'd just as soon kill a mangy coyote as a healthy one. Had it showed up with one that didn't have mange I'd have still shot it first. I'd rather see a healthy coyote top the hill and disappear over having a sick one get away any day of the week.

On a side note the 55gr. Softpoint is slowly becoming my favorite bullet for the ol' .223,I've hammered several critters with that bullet and not one wounded critter or tore up hide. Knock on wood....
 
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I guess I should have been more specific. I haven't wounded anything or tore anything up since I started shooting those in 2018.

I can't remember what all I've wounded or blown something up with. I've shot too many different weights and types of bullets in .223 to be that specific. But I can't say I've lost one or blown one up with a 55 grain Softpoint out of a .223 with 100% certainty.
 
Originally Posted By: 204 ARNice, it's always good to end a rough streak!
It sure is. Being this late in the season I probably won't get my 22-250 out again until I can get it on paper or blow a prairie dog off of its mound so I have no doubt it's shooting like it needs to be. I know my .223 shoots good. If I know it shoots good I can shoot better.

I know,I know....the .223 is weak sauce compared to the 250. But power don't matter if I'm worried about missing. You gotta hit a coyote to kill it. Having an unproven rifle in my hands messes me up.
 
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I didn't even check to see where I hit that coyote today. It was a male coyote is all I know. I don't really touch them or flip them over or move them at all unless I have to. I have dogs so I don't like the thought of having that on me. It's probably highly unlikely that it would hurt anything but I don't know that for sure.
 
Originally Posted By: OKRattlerOriginally Posted By: 204 ARNice, it's always good to end a rough streak!
It sure is. Being this late in the season I probably won't get my 22-250 out again until I can get it on paper or blow a prairie dog off of its mound so I have no doubt it's shooting like it needs to be. I know my .223 shoots good. If I know it shoots good I can shoot better.

I know,I know....the .223 is weak sauce compared to the 250. But power don't matter if I'm worried about missing. You gotta hit a coyote to kill it. Having an unproven rifle in my hands messes me up.

Congrats on breaking the streak. Sometimes it sure seems like the bad juju infects our gear at some point. For me, it was my trusty .17REM AR-15. I was knocking down bobcats with it left and right. Then I put a new scope on it. I used 10 of my usual hand loads with no problem and got the new scope zeroed. Then I decided to try some hand loads with a new powder..BOOM!!!! The upper and lower are no more. So I set aside the parts with the intent of rebuilding it someday. In the meantime I built a 16in 6.5Grendel and needed a scope. So I grabbed that brand new scope that was on the 17. I haven't shot a single thing with it. I am pretty sure that the scope is possessed with some demon. Might be time to find a shaman, priest, padre, local juju man and help me drive those demons out of that scope....
 
OKRATTLER,
The type of mange is sarcoptic mange (aka scabies) and is very contageous spread through firect contact. The mites could get on your clothes and you or your dogs could get it. You are wise to keep your distance if you suspect the coyote has mange. If I were using decoy dogs I’d lay in a supply of medicine for it.
 
Originally Posted By: Cookie125Glad you broke the rough streak, now if I could just break mine. This was a rough season all the way around.

Might as well change rifles or something. That's all I had to do to break the spell.lol

In all seriousness I haven't had the best season I've ever had either. Just doesn't seem like I've seen as many coyotes even. Some of my best spots ain't good anymore so that hurt my numbers quite a bit.
 
Originally Posted By: SnowmanMoOriginally Posted By: OKRattlerOriginally Posted By: 204 ARNice, it's always good to end a rough streak!
It sure is. Being this late in the season I probably won't get my 22-250 out again until I can get it on paper or blow a prairie dog off of its mound so I have no doubt it's shooting like it needs to be. I know my .223 shoots good. If I know it shoots good I can shoot better.

I know,I know....the .223 is weak sauce compared to the 250. But power don't matter if I'm worried about missing. You gotta hit a coyote to kill it. Having an unproven rifle in my hands messes me up.

Congrats on breaking the streak. Sometimes it sure seems like the bad juju infects our gear at some point. For me, it was my trusty .17REM AR-15. I was knocking down bobcats with it left and right. Then I put a new scope on it. I used 10 of my usual hand loads with no problem and got the new scope zeroed. Then I decided to try some hand loads with a new powder..BOOM!!!! The upper and lower are no more. So I set aside the parts with the intent of rebuilding it someday. In the meantime I built a 16in 6.5Grendel and needed a scope. So I grabbed that brand new scope that was on the 17. I haven't shot a single thing with it. I am pretty sure that the scope is possessed with some demon. Might be time to find a shaman, priest, padre, local juju man and help me drive those demons out of that scope....

Could very well be time to sell that one off and get a new one. It seems like once a piece of equipment starts breaking down on me or something happens it just snow balls into a bigger problem. It never fails.
 
Originally Posted By: HellgateOKRATTLER,
The type of mange is sarcoptic mange (aka scabies) and is very contageous spread through firect contact. The mites could get on your clothes and you or your dogs could get it. You are wise to keep your distance if you suspect the coyote has mange. If I were using decoy dogs I’d lay in a supply of medicine for it.
Yeah I knew it was really contagious I just never knew just how contagious it is so I don't chance it. This one had mange no doubt. It almost had a lion haircut going on. About the only fur he had was on his head and around his neck like he had a mane.
 
Originally Posted By: OKRattlerOriginally Posted By: SnowmanMoOriginally Posted By: OKRattlerOriginally Posted By: 204 ARNice, it's always good to end a rough streak!
It sure is. Being this late in the season I probably won't get my 22-250 out again until I can get it on paper or blow a prairie dog off of its mound so I have no doubt it's shooting like it needs to be. I know my .223 shoots good. If I know it shoots good I can shoot better.

I know,I know....the .223 is weak sauce compared to the 250. But power don't matter if I'm worried about missing. You gotta hit a coyote to kill it. Having an unproven rifle in my hands messes me up.

Congrats on breaking the streak. Sometimes it sure seems like the bad juju infects our gear at some point. For me, it was my trusty .17REM AR-15. I was knocking down bobcats with it left and right. Then I put a new scope on it. I used 10 of my usual hand loads with no problem and got the new scope zeroed. Then I decided to try some hand loads with a new powder..BOOM!!!! The upper and lower are no more. So I set aside the parts with the intent of rebuilding it someday. In the meantime I built a 16in 6.5Grendel and needed a scope. So I grabbed that brand new scope that was on the 17. I haven't shot a single thing with it. I am pretty sure that the scope is possessed with some demon. Might be time to find a shaman, priest, padre, local juju man and help me drive those demons out of that scope....

Could very well be time to sell that one off and get a new one. It seems like once a piece of equipment starts breaking down on me or something happens it just snow balls into a bigger problem. It never fails.

Sometimes you need powerful good juju to ward off the bad juju. Try taking out a new hunter and giving them your rifle. New guy juju is powerful...
 
Originally Posted By: OKRattlerOriginally Posted By: HellgateOKRATTLER,
The type of mange is sarcoptic mange (aka scabies) and is very contageous spread through firect contact. The mites could get on your clothes and you or your dogs could get it. You are wise to keep your distance if you suspect the coyote has mange. If I were using decoy dogs I’d lay in a supply of medicine for it.
Yeah I knew it was really contagious I just never knew just how contagious it is so I don't chance it. This one had mange no doubt. It almost had a lion haircut going on. About the only fur he had was on his head and around his neck like he had a mane.

Mange is a generic term for a host of different species of mites. The sarcoptic mite that causes scabies on a k9 can not complete a full life cycle and reproduce on human skin. Likewise, the mite that causes scabies on a human can not complete a full life cycle and reproduce on k9s.

Coyotes are susceptible to 2 different types of mange; sarcoptic and demodectic. The other strain of mange you find on coyote is due to a weakness in their immune system. All K9s have mites, when the immune system on a K9 weakens it is no longer able to keep the already existing mites under control. With this strain, the mites overpopulate and cause demodectic mange. Demodectic mange is not contagious and the sarcoptic mite that infects coyote can only survive on human skin for a few days.



Double curse with cherry eye

 
Originally Posted By: Infidel 762Originally Posted By: OKRattlerOriginally Posted By: HellgateOKRATTLER,
The type of mange is sarcoptic mange (aka scabies) and is very contageous spread through firect contact. The mites could get on your clothes and you or your dogs could get it. You are wise to keep your distance if you suspect the coyote has mange. If I were using decoy dogs I’d lay in a supply of medicine for it.
Yeah I knew it was really contagious I just never knew just how contagious it is so I don't chance it. This one had mange no doubt. It almost had a lion haircut going on. About the only fur he had was on his head and around his neck like he had a mane.

Mange is a generic term for a host of different species of mites. The sarcoptic mite that causes scabies on a k9 can not complete a full life cycle and reproduce on human skin. Likewise, the mite that causes scabies on a human can not complete a full life cycle and reproduce on k9s.

Coyotes are susceptible to 2 different types of mange; sarcoptic and demodectic. The other strain of mange you find on coyote is due to a weakness in their immune system. All K9s have mites, when the immune system on a K9 weakens it is no longer able to keep the already existing mites under control. With this strain, the mites overpopulate and cause demodectic mange. Demodectic mange is not contagious and the sarcoptic mite that infects coyote can only survive on human skin for a few days.



Double curse with cherry eye


I remember seeing that blind one you shot. I've never shot one that got to that point but I've killed some that were pretty bad off.

What amazes me is the coyotes that make it clear through the Winter like that.
 
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