In 1981 I was up in a big drainage,almost in Saskatchewan,hunting big mule deer shed horns.I was walking this deep dry creek wash bank and I saw a coyote den with 3 pups laying outside.They hadn't seen or smelled me yet.I snuck down in the dry wash and approached the den site.It was about 10 feet back from the edge of the creek.There was a "go down" cow trail there.As quickly as I could I came up out of the wash and rushed the pups,screaming.The one closest to the wash bails in and starts running up the wash.I'm in hot pursuit.The coyote pup,about half grown,runs into a wall of sage,greasewood and old dead cedar limbs that make a barrier in the wash.This is probably from the spring run off.The pup puts it's tail between it's legs and tries to hide it's head in the brush.I grabbed it's tail and hoisted it skyward.This is not smart,holding it up the biting part of this coyote are in the same area as parts of my anatomy that are "near and dear to me" if you get my drift.All of a sudden I have a "glove" of fleas,lice and other crawly critters going up my arm.With teeth still clicking I tossed "Jr." up out of the wash.I'm trying to kill all the crawlies on my hand and arm.When I got done hopping around and smashing "crawlies" I came up out of the dry wash.All 3 pups are gone.I checked the den site a week later.They had moved.There has been a den of coyotes by that wash ever year I checked it since then.I did shoot a 6X7 point Muley Buck up in that drainage a few years later.It is really rough country, the closest road is about 3 miles from that wash.
