One of my favorite blogs to read is The Daily Coyote. Almost every day the author posts an update or picture of Charlie the Coyote.
Shreve, the author, took in Charlie after his parents were shot for eating sheep. The pictures and stories of Charlie make anyone’s heart melt. My personal favorite is found here (I just love his cute paws).
Despite all the cuteness of Charlie, he is still a wild animal. He may appear domesticated, but he is not. I’ve not read all the posts on her blog, but apparently she had to disable comments. I believe it had something to do with discussions over raising a wild animal.
Although her situation may be unique and no one should judge her because they’ve not walked in her boots, I still think (as I did the first day I found the blog), that the wild side in Charlie will eventually come out at an unexpected time and he will either have to be killed or released to the wild. Shreve seems like a smart person and so I wouldn’t be suprised if she already knows this.
The reason I’m writing about this today is because one of her recent posts talks about how Charlie acts around total strangers. “When other people are here, Charlie either hides or stands right behind me and makes a strange growing noise – it’s not aggressive, because he lets me pet him and rub him to try to calm him, but more like a nervous warning.”
We may never know the true outcome of Charlie if Shreve decides to hide a sad ending. But if I were to place money on it, I would say Charlie will find a sheep or someone’s stray pet or dog. Charlie would win. The owner of the sheep or pet would find out. There would be words between Shreve and the owner and perhaps a lawsuit. The law would force Charlie to be released into the wild where he would be hunted by cocky cowboys. Or even sadder still, the owner or someone would simply shoot Charlie on the spot (if he were found eating a sheep or pet).
If Shreve and Charlie manage to stay together for a lifetime or a considerable amount of years, it would be truly remarkable.
Seven Musings 
April 29, 2008 at 9:08 pm
she had to disable comments because people were being very very very rude and disrespectful. And she does know full well that she is raising a wild animal. Doesn’t mean she won’t or hasn’t gotten attached.
May 13, 2008 at 12:25 pm
Everyone is entitled to her opinion and I too would disable comments if people insisted on forcing their opinion on me.
You say one day Charlies’ wild side will come out? Perhaps it will and if or when it does would it be any different to the “wild side” of a dog coming out?
Do you suppose that because most coyotes live wild that Charlie who was raised from 10 days old will have more suppressed wild instincts than a dog? Have you never heard of a dog on a farm eating chickens or sheep?
For some reason people seem to have a problem with someone raising a coyote. Would anyone care if its was the The daily sheepdog? No, and in my opinion wild animals are only wild because they have not been raised in a domestic environment and have not been trained/learned to behave in the way we want them to. At the end of the day wolves, coyotes, foxes etc are all dogs. Dogs obey their owner because they see us as the leader of the pack and I think Charlie obeys Shreve because she is the leader of his pack which happens to include a cat.
We should be thankful that Shreve has decided to share her unique situation, writing and photography with us all of her own time and effort. And there are still people who try to impose their views on her instead of appreciating what she is doing. I know if I was her and I’d recieved as many negative, rude, ignorant and obnoxious comments as she has I would have said “Screw it!” long ago and deleted the blog.
As the saying goes, if you don’t have anything nice to say rather don’t say anything…
May 30, 2008 at 4:50 pm
I love reading the Daily Coyote and being able to see Shreve’s amazing photographs. I am so happy that she appreciates life and shares the everyday happenings of the wild country. I would trade places with her in a minute. All animals are wild even those domesticated eons ago for our use or enjoyment. Given their freedom and choice, they like us would revert to a joyous life of hunting, gathering, watching the sun rise and set, sleeping under the stars. Charlie has the best of life. It doesn’t matter how his or any life ends if there is such joy for life each day. Shreve and Charlie get that. They understand living in the moment. What a blessing!
June 3, 2008 at 5:53 pm
[…] the daily Coyote. Almost every day the author posts an update or picture of Charlie the Coyote. …https://sevenmusings.wordpress.com/2008/03/04/prediction-the-daily-coyote-will-not-have-a-happy-endin…The Daily Coyote: December 2007Charlie came into my life when he was just ten days old, orphaned […]
August 4, 2008 at 3:50 am
Just found this post today (August 08)Your words are true but Charilie will never be releasable. Once an animal has been habituated to humans that usually ruins them for a fair chance of a release. Shreve is an intellegent woman and is working well within the law. She keeps Charlie away from people and thier livestock for this very reason. Thank you for your consern.
November 8, 2008 at 5:08 pm
The description you described that bothered you also describes my border collie. The sheep killing trait describes my neighbors Rottweiler. The dog attacking habit sounds like my other neighbor’s Rhodesian Ridgeback. Now the coyotes do some killing – granted – we have them everywhere – but it’s the dogs that have attacked my dogs and the dogs that have killed my chickens and the dogs that have stalked my horses, not the coyotes. Isn’t that interesting?
Just thought I would add my two cents. We all have too many opinions for one person to live however they want to live. And blogging about it just invites opinions. I love the photos of Charlie too!
November 9, 2008 at 8:22 pm
I have read every word on the Daily Coyote website. I am fascinated with both Charlie and Shreve and Eli and Chloe too. And curious about MC.
Shreve is an impressive woman. I am sure that she fully understands she has a tame wild animal not a domesticated animal. She seems to be very intelligent with lots of common sense. I don’t think most people would be up to raising a coyote, but I think Shreve is. I do not think she is naive or unrealistic about Charlie. I think she is person willing to make a commitment that few others would be up to. Thank you Shreve for sharing Charlie with all of us. First thing in the morning or my very busy days I go to Daily Coyote to see what’s new.
November 29, 2008 at 9:28 am
Спасибо за сайт!)
December 3, 2008 at 3:31 pm
While I absolutely love the Daily Coyote, but as a dog trainer I have mixed feelings about the outcome.
Do I think Charlie is a wild animal? Yes. Even if coyotes and dogs exhibit the same characteristics and tendencies, coyotes are not dogs. Dogs have been domesticated for centuries, coyotes have not. While Charlie can learn to exist in a domestic setting, being wild or tame is more than a behavior that’s learned; it’s deep in the blood. For example: I wouldn’t expect an African Wild Dog to learn to herd sheep just because it’s raised with a pack of Border Collies.
However, Coyotes are also extremely adaptable — much more so than, say, wolves — so it could learn JUST ENOUGH domestication to get by, especially witch such space and little need to make contact with strangers.
Also, I think it’s a misconception when people say Charlie “obeys” Shreve because she is the “leader of his pack”. Coyotes are not pack animals. They only live in pairs during the breeding season but, in the wild, coyotes are solitary and don’t have a leader to obey. It’s much more likely that Charlie “obeys” because, A) he trusts Shreve and she hasn’t steered him wrong, B) he’s unsure about what to do himself, because these situations are new and different, and so he’s more willing to take any suggestion he can get and, C) the result works out. Coyotes are very smart and they stick with what works for them.
Now, with all this said, I don’t necessarily think Charlie and Shreve are headed for a heartbreaking end. Shreve is very intelligent and resourceful, and if she can manage to manage Charlie, they might have a full and happy life together. At least, I really hope they do; they deserve it. And, were I in her shoes, I’m confident I’d have done the exact same thing.
I only hope that it doesn’t inspire a trend of pet coyotes or cy-dogs.
December 4, 2008 at 8:30 pm
I love seeing Charlie everyday and commend Shreve for taking on this huge responsibility. She has to protect Charlie from people not people or livestock from Charlie. If he is fed properly, loved, and feels secure in his surroundings he will not attack to kill anything larger than he. Mind you alot of domestic breeds of dog have high prey drives, if it runs chase it. Like the comment from Chere on Nov. 8th I too have heard of more dogs attacking friends horses or other livestock then wild predators. Charlie will not turn on Shreve, he will challenge her but not in a dangerous way, she has shown from day one that she is willing to do everything that it will take to understand Charlie and make sure it will most definately have a happy ending. I live with a high content wolfdog who outweights Charlie by 60lbs or more. Do I recommend them for anyone no way, To much responsibility for the average person.
My whole life is altered by pet and that is fine by me. She comes first and that is how Shreve treats Charlie, there is no other way. Thank you Shreve and Bless you and Charlie.
December 11, 2008 at 7:04 pm
Shreve turned off comments because of too many rude, obnoxious, and overbearing people. everyone has an opinion, but nobody should be forced to deal with everyone ELSES opinions. Tragic ending.. lets hope not. I rather like them all too.
December 29, 2008 at 6:35 pm
No one has mentioned that it was Mike who gave Shreve the coyote. Based on his experience, I trust his judgment. Just finished Shreve’s book and recommend that anyone interested in the blog site definitly read it. You’ll come away with a fresh prespective.
January 3, 2009 at 6:49 pm
I just finished reading “The Daily Coyote”. What a delightful experience! I guess none of us knows how the story will end but to open one’s self up to a responsible risk, as Shreve has done, is life enhancing. Alternatively, Charlie would have died with the rest of his litter without a chance of survival and we would all have missed this wonderful experience.
I look forward to Shreve’s next book and am very curious to know if she adopted one of Mike’s pups to incorporate into her pack.
January 14, 2009 at 3:51 pm
Of course the end won’t be happy because it will be the end and the sad fact is Shreve will out live Charlie. But she opened her heart to this coyote and it has changed her life in a way that I don’t think anyone could regret. We had a Doberman who did not like children or other dogs, but we are responsible owners and he never had the opportunity to get in trouble over this. Of course it took extra work and consideration just like raising Charlie in ranch country does. There is still a big hole in my heart even though he’s been gone over 20 years. I cherish that dog having been a part of my life for the time he had.
February 19, 2009 at 3:56 am
I have read Shreve’s book, and I believe that Charlie will do fine as long as she has him.
It is not true to believe that a dog is just a domesticated wolf. Generations of domestication has led to major changes in the physiology and mental abilities of dogs from those of their wolf ancestors. For one thing, their brains are about 1/3 smaller than a wolf’s (or a coyote’s), and the parts of their brains which have atrophied are those which would make them more independent and aggressive. No matter how long Charlie has been kept as a pet, he will never be a dog, and he will be more challenging to raise than a dog.
Having said that, I think Shreve is well aware of those challenges and has taken all the correct steps to ensure that Charlie will be safe and happy. Plus, she is unmarried and has no kids, so she can spend many hours every day taking care of Charlie and seeing to his welfare.
Anyway, setting Charlie free is certainly not an option. He would never survive. He would walk up to the first coyote-hunter he saw and be shot. He never learned to hunt either by himself or as part of a pack, which coyotes sometimes form, so he would probably starve to death. Plus he has been neutered. So he’s never going to live wild and free and Shreve is stuck with him unless she decides to give him to a zoo.
March 27, 2009 at 11:55 pm
I admire and respect Shreve for her love and dedication to Charlie. There aren’t many people that would put as much love and devotion into a wild animal as Shreve has. Even though Charlie faced her with many difficult situations, she is a woman who demonstrates strength and love for what she believes in. Being the person Shreve is I believe she and Charlie will be together forever. The story and photos in my opinion are priceless.
November 22, 2009 at 2:06 pm
I believe that modern life has challenged our wild connections with nature. Specially in the last decade I have observed how many children in the industrialized world are choosing to explore the world through computer and video games rather than run and explore the woods. Deep down, many of us would like to go to the wild and live simply. The beauty of the Wyoming landscape as well as many other regions in the world escapes humans with their busy lives. There is something beautiful about the connection between this young woman,the coyote and the setting they share. The circumstances in this case are unique and I think that the author is brave to share her story as our nature tends to be based more on judgement than on empathy. I agree that we may be underestimating the wild nature of the coyote’s agressiveness but we may be also undertimating the wild nature of nurture, belonging and maybe even love.
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June 1, 2016 at 3:24 am
It’s the year 2016 and Charlie the coyote still lives happily and healthily with Shreve. Let us hope he and she will continue to abide peacefully until his end. 🙂