T Inman;
Good afternoon my cyber friend, I trust you had a good Christmas wherever you spent it and that you're well.
While I'm loath and somewhat ashamed to admit it T, I would have been in the camp of folks shooting too far at coyotes, simply because they were coyotes and I wanted them gone.
In the late '80's when we started hunting coyotes to sell the hides to a local trapper, I amended my ways because I wanted to retrieve it and emphatically didn't want to educate them.
As you mention, we could have another discussion on educating coyotes for sure.
Nowadays I might stretch my shots a wee bit further with a coyote, but part of the rationale there is that a peripheral hit with a .223" varmint bullet - 60gr HP in a .223 and 55gr Ballistic Tip in an old school 1:14 .22-.250AI - will be fatal, usually instantly fatal from what we've seen.
We can sometimes give away coyote hides here, depending on condition, but both because I've changed my perspective as I've aged and no, I do not want to educate them, personally I don't shoot at a dog unless I'm sure I can kill it.
Happy New Year to you, I hope that next year is better and all ways for you and as always, the coffee is on for you if you ever wander past.
Dwayne
