ok guys,
I hunted all weekend with no luck[>:]. On my way out to the hard road yesterday morning I was looking down the pine rows and saw something pretty shocking. There was a dead doe fawn, probably about 40 pounds and just out of spots laying in the middle of the pine row. when i looked a little closer I saw coyotes fleeing the scene. I walked out to the deer and noticed that she was very warm(It was a cold morning) and appeared to have just been killed. she had some minor bite marks on her back legs and one scratch on her neck. From what I can tell by looking at the tracks is that one must have jumped on her back, flipped her and she either broke her back or her neck. my question is do you think she is ok to eat? I skinned her out immediately, but have never taken another animals kill before. The meat is untouched, but I don't know if there are any kinds of disease from coyotes i don't know about.

I have heard of people eating a deer after a yote got it. I wouldn't personally. IN a word "Rabies".

another pic. kind of a tough way to go. makes me want to get more serious on predator control.

I wouldn't take the chance on how long it's been there and I wouldn'tburn a tag on it, but it I guess it depends on how hungry you are.I assume you did tag it?

That is my main concern, but I'm not sure how rabies is transferred...Seems like a good deer going to waste.

Thats life man. We kill deer, are you going to kill hunters because we also shoot deer?

Live and let live. Coyotes are part of nature, and don't deserve to be killed off, just because they kill deer.

yeah it's been tagged, but I'm tellin you it had just happened. I wouldn't even take a chance if i thought that the deer had been there long, I'm talkin a matter of minutes, the yotes didn't even get a chance to have a taste.

Coyotes mostly eat the weak, deadand or injured (except for the spring when the fawns drop but they only take what they need even then). I don't even shoot them when they walk by my stand unless I'm in an area that's got a huge over population problem. The way I see it, they kill for survival, if I'm not successful in the field, I stop by the grocery store and buy a steak, Yotes don't have that option.

Keeping a predator prey balancehelpmaintainsa healthly eco system and improves your herd over time making sure that only the best and strongestsurvive.

Mother nature's way of thinning a herd. I would not eat it. Best of let the scavengers feast tonight.