Song Dogs
by Schuyler Vander Wilt on Apr 08, 2026
Out in the country, all kinds of creatures band together to fill the night with song: bullfrogs croak, crickets chirp, owls hoot—and the occasional coyote howls.
Coyotes have earned the nickname “song dogs” because of their range of sounds. They’re one of the most vocal wild mammals in North America and Central America.
In addition to howls, coyotes make over a dozen sounds, including growls, huffs, woofs, barks, whines, yelps, and snarls. Communicating with other coyotes, establishing territory, or conveying a warning—each has a different purpose. When their many voices fill the night sky, a few coyotes can sound like a full pack of singers.
Psalm 150:6 says, “Let everything that has breath praise the Lord!” The next time you hear a song dog yip and howl in the night, remember that his song brings glory to his Creator!
Fun Facts
- Coyotes are part of the canine kind created on day six of creation week.
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Coyotes are 3–4 feet long, 2 feet tall at the shoulder, and weigh 20–40 pounds. One coyote’s tracks are pictured below.
“Coyote Tracks” by Bryant Olsen, CC BY-NC 2.0, via Flickr
- According to the fossil record, ice age–era coyotes were significantly larger than present-day coyotes, with some estimates suggesting they weighed 39–46 pounds.
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Coyotes mate for life, and a litter of coyotes is usually 5–7 pups.
“Coyote Pups” by Jean Beaufort, CC0 Public Domain, via PublicDomainPictures
- A group of coyotes is called a pack.
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Coyotes live all over—forests, grasslands, deserts, and even sometimes in cities and suburbs. They are native to North America, as indicated on the map below.
“Canis latrans range map” by Udo Schröter, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
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Coyotes sometimes team up with American badgers to hunt food. Before the fall, their diet was vegetarian, but now they are omnivores, often eating mice, rabbits, lizards, insects, and even garbage.
“Hunting Pals” by USFWS Mountain-Prairie, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
