About how big are Coyote prints. I know I have one in my Neighbor hood because I got one on my Trail Camera but I would like to

[seth trudeau]

About how big are Coyote prints. I know I have one in my Neighbor hood because I got one on my Trail Camera but I would like to find its den, and not follow some large house cat to my neighbors house. Thank you, Seth

[jcarlin]

I've read that it's generally on the order of 2 1/2" inches. In practice from the couple of times I've seen them in the act of being laid down that translated into slightly larger than my beagle's tracks, but significantly smaller than my basset mix.
I have to admit that while I see the tracks coming through the yard on occassion I tend to decide it's coyote based on the size and the trail it lays and what it does and doesn't bother to investigate. I'm sure some people can determine the difference between them and dogs, and I've read of ways, but in practice I can't tell the difference.

[JM]

Like jcarlin said, they are about 2.5" long. Their tracks are also about 2" wide. A domestic dog with a 2.5" track will often be wider than 2". The coyotes foot is extremely symmetrical unlike a domestic dog. If you look at the space between the pads of the toes and hells, a coyote will make an X-shape(on the track this part will be raised up between the pads), while domestic dogs will make more of an upside-down Y shape.

[JM]

If you look at the space between the pads on the toes and the heel* Sorry, dumb auto-correct on phone...

[huntfishtrap]

Size depends on where you are in the country, the farther south you go, the smaller the coyotes, and the smaller the tracks obviously. If I'm remembering correctly, you live in MA, so your coyotes would be pretty big, in which case JM and jcarlin would be right, about 2 1/2" long by 1 3/4" to 2" wide.
I've spent pretty much my whole life in the woods following critters around, and I've never had a problem telling coyote tracks from dog tracks, the dog's will usually be bigger, and are almost always more round in shape than the coyote's.
Cat tracks are usually very easy to tell apart from any kind of canine, the cat's won't have claw marks showing, and will be almost perfectly round.

[Josey]

All good answers. If you still track a cat, at least you still tracked something. Sometimes that wandering cat will attract a coyote, too.