Undecided newbie looking for thoughts, opinions or advice

Just a ironic sidenote... The wife, my 7yr old daughter and I were outside burning marshmallows on the fire listening to all the New Years celebrations in the distance when my kid looks past me and yells "Coyote"! LOL! Sure enough I turn around to see one of these damn coyotes standing head on at the fence watching us less than 10 yards away! His days are numbered!

Happy New Years to all of you and thanks for the help here, appreciate it! 
 
No offense Mr. Mullins, the environment in which you describe (your residence), its close proximity to neighbors and your pest problem is not conducive to the employment of an airgun to resolve your situation. In fact it could very well lead to disastrous consequences. Should you reside out in the country side, that would be an all together polar opposite scenario.

I have used squirrel traps with fantastic success for years; it is all about the bait used I.E. Try oats, grain or feed and keep your scent off the bait and trap. As far as Coyotes - they may very well thin once you have a handle on the squirrels and then again they may not. Get a hunting dog, they are smart, make wonderful companions & protectors for your loved ones as well as alerting all who are near when a Coyote is present.

Now let’s get to the fun part. You want an airgun - if it were my first go around I would be listening very closely to what wisdom Mr. Cannonball so graciously shared with you. The Eastern European Bloc guns he mentioned are an exceptional value; ruggedly built, accurate and dependable.

Sound like an old man who has an opinion “ I know opinions are like a—h——- everybody has one”. Take it for what it is worth I mean No disrespect. Experience is a byproduct of age. Never, at any cost, permit negligence to endanger the lives of others.

Radio
 
Just a worst case scenario thought.

Something to consider is if the neighbor is anti gun who knows you shoot in your yard and a wounded chipmunk crawls back into that next door yard a call in for animal cruelty can land someone with some real jail time and gun gets locked up confiscated for evidence possible forfeiture.

Then become bad neighbors some ones livestock gets some how mysteriously poisoned by the neighbors gung ho friends or relatives but you won't know until after the fact.

Just thinking about killing the neighbor's loved pets shes feeding and the potential retaliation. Oh she's going to squawk her babies are getting killed and she knows whos doing it.

This is based on fact I know some ones neighbors dogs got poisoned after an altercation neighbors pets encroaching to next door property harassing his pets and crapping on his yard daily while hes out at work resulting in both bad neighbors cause and effect. All kinds of crazy retaliatory crap happened back and fourth. The feud ended up getting so bad with mysterious burglaries when the neighbor know he's not at home and always witnessing nothing right next door in plain sight broad day light and so eventually packed up and moved away.

Might be thrilling thinking about sniping that neighbors pets understandable may be some sort of human nature to kill for some people just don't ever get caught. If you choose to do it dispose of the bodies when the neighbor and her family are definately not at home. Be damn sure they don't have cameras pointing any where towards your property or its all over.
 
James, one potentially important issue has not been mentioned. or I missed it. Is it legal to shoot an air rifle on your property? I was surprised when I recently discovered that discharging an air rifle is illegal for me, which is a relatively new change in our local laws. If it's legal, and you do it safely, then your situation with the neighbors may be manageable. But if it is not legal, then having an open discussion about it is obviously not in your interest. 
 
Another important fact is no matter how silent you can try to make the PcP air gun with a massive can at the end of the barrel there will always be the pretty loud TWACK or POW similar to a fire cracker or ariel artillery shell noise upon impact hitting your critter. That sound some times has a very noticeable echo especially when you try to be discreet.

Nothing can make that smack hit quiet and a 177 caliber is the quietest I know of when impacting flesh. There is still some noticeable noise which is louder than the quietest silenced air gun firing.

This is why I suggest shoot when no one next door is home and of course be sure they don't have cameras.

Try watching Air Hunters South Africa channels listen to the pop sounds when they hit the long distance birds you talking 200 yards away hearing that pop through their scope recorder cams did I say 200 yards away the hits still seem pretty damn loud on camera.

They are only using 22 caliber.
 
You will need a reliable source of air to fill a PcP.

Going to use a lot of air.

Bigger the caliber the better. May have a chance that the squirrel runs off to the neighbor's yard with a less than perfect shot from a 22. A 30 caliber is likely to make them deader in one shot. 

Coyote need some power to humanely dispatch again 30 caliber.

Bigger the hole more traumatic the shock.

Probably going to run a bit after the hit.

If you need it quiet get a rather big can at the end of a high power 30 caliber.

You could trap the squirrels and do the deed a way from the neighbor. Spring gun at close range shot in to the trap no problem.

Coyote trap may be worth considering too.

Fish and game or animal control may be of use via phone call. Your tax dollars paying for them.


I can't agree with batman2 on this , larger caliber does not correct poor placement. If the placement is good 25 is just as dead as 30. The 30 will retain a bit more energy at target but placement is still vital. So the 30 would be better on coyote for the extra energy at target.
 
If it is legal and you have safe shooting lanes, setup an area for the squirrels. Get a quiet gun and make sure it is dead on accurate for your setting. A few good examples of this on Youtube. As the sheriff says, don't be mean, kill them clean.

https://youtu.be/wfof3cgV8N0

Agree with others that you need a different solution for Coyotes. I have no experience here but can't imagine taking a shot at one with anything less than 100 fpe. 
 
I’d take pictures of the damage the squirrels do and keep them for the time it might come to a conflict. That way you can tell them that you hate to kill the little furry buddies, but you can’t afford the damage anymore.

l have a neighbor lady that loves all birds and absolutely freaked out when she saw me shooting starlings. She screamed at me and swore at me like I’ve never seen a 80 year old grandma do! It took time, but I finally explained to her about the invasive species and why I shoot them. She still disagrees completely, but I think she appreciated my explanation. I don’t shoot when she’s out in her yard.

In my opinion it’s a good idea to use a repeater incase you need a quick follow up shot on a wounded pest. You don’t have to take your eyes off of the target to reload. 
Maybe try setting up bait stations for both pests in the least visible area for the neighbors. The bait station is also good because it’s at a known distance for perfect shot placement, and the pest is busy with the bait. 
I’m needing a very quiet gun because of the neighbors and I’m waiting on a custom rifle that Allen Zasadney is building me. It’s going to have the quietest shroud he can make, but it’s still a long way off because he’s so busy. 
Good luck with your pesting!


 
You need to have some informal conversations with your neighbors. Just ask them if they have seen the animals and if the are troubled by them. Don't say you want to get rid of the pests mention you have thought about humane traps. then let them expose their thought on these animals. find out who feeds what and what they think is "cute". Never expose your thoughts and ideas on animals till you know your neighbors and never tell anyone you may shoot the animals. Everybody blabs. my neighbor was using a slingshot and paint balls. Someone called the cops. most municipalities have a general law against catapults, slingshots, bows and arrows, air guns and throwing rocks. Like poker play your cards close to your vest.
 
No offense Mr. Mullins, the environment in which you describe (your residence), its close proximity to neighbors and your pest problem is not conducive to the employment of an airgun to resolve your situation. In fact it could very well lead to disastrous consequences. Should you reside out in the country side, that would be an all together polar opposite scenario.

I have used squirrel traps with fantastic success for years; it is all about the bait used I.E. Try oats, grain or feed and keep your scent off the bait and trap. As far as Coyotes - they may very well thin once you have a handle on the squirrels and then again they may not. Get a hunting dog, they are smart, make wonderful companions & protectors for your loved ones as well as alerting all who are near when a Coyote is present.

Now let’s get to the fun part. You want an airgun - if it were my first go around I would be listening very closely to what wisdom Mr. Cannonball so graciously shared with you. The Eastern European Bloc guns he mentioned are an exceptional value; ruggedly built, accurate and dependable.

Sound like an old man who has an opinion “ I know opinions are like a—h——- everybody has one”. Take it for what it is worth I mean No disrespect. Experience is a byproduct of age. Never, at any cost, permit negligence to endanger the lives of others.

Radio

Thank you Radio for the reply! I live on the outskirts of town on acreage that is backed up to a large mountain range on the west and north side of the property with no visible houses. The neighbor I'm concerned about is the closest residence to me and they share my eastern fence with about 200 yards between our houses. I can legally shoot airguns but to hunt with a firearm here I'd have to get permission from any residence within 1/4 mile of me and there are a handful of houses to the south in that range so that would be a pain. 

I've tried the live traps without success, those damn squirrels are way smarter than me! I have 2 bird dogs and have some serious money invested in training but unfortunately the've learned squirrels are funner to chase than quail and I'm pretty sure the squirrels like the excitement of the chase because they keep coming back!

One of my dogs is a small English pointer that the coyotes have always seemed interested in and she's the dog I'm worried about the coyotes getting because of her size. Last night we heard her yelp and I made it outside just in time to see the coyote jump the fence as she came running inside! She wasn't hurt and I'm not sure if the coyote actually got ahold of her but she definitely yelped like it. That coyote stayed at the fence long enough for me to hit it pretty solid with my .22 springer broadside but if I had any of my powder burners handy I would have used them instead!

Last nights episode solidified my need for a coyote gun. I'm still getting a PCP for the squirrels but would downsize the caliber and those are some great ideas Cannonball shared!
 
Just a worst case scenario thought.

Something to consider is if the neighbor is anti gun who knows you shoot in your yard and a wounded chipmunk crawls back into that next door yard a call in for animal cruelty can land someone with some real jail time and gun gets locked up confiscated for evidence possible forfeiture.

Then become bad neighbors some ones livestock gets some how mysteriously poisoned by the neighbors gung ho friends or relatives but you won't know until after the fact.

Just thinking about killing the neighbor's loved pets shes feeding and the potential retaliation. Oh she's going to squawk her babies are getting killed and she knows whos doing it.

This is based on fact I know some ones neighbors dogs got poisoned after an altercation neighbors pets encroaching to next door property harassing his pets and crapping on his yard daily while hes out at work resulting in both bad neighbors cause and effect. All kinds of crazy retaliatory crap happened back and fourth. The feud ended up getting so bad with mysterious burglaries when the neighbor know he's not at home and always witnessing nothing right next door in plain sight broad day light and so eventually packed up and moved away.

Might be thrilling thinking about sniping that neighbors pets understandable may be some sort of human nature to kill for some people just don't ever get caught. If you choose to do it dispose of the bodies when the neighbor and her family are definately not at home. Be damn sure they don't have cameras pointing any where towards your property or its all over.

Thanks Batman2, Totally valid points! I know the neighbors well enough and know that they aren't anti-hunters, some of their family members hunt and have talked to me about it and the dad over there swears he seen a Mt. Lion several times (probably just a bobcat) and told me if I hear gunshots it's just him shooting at the lion! They've also had a goat and chickens killed by the coyotes in the past so I know they don't care about me killing those. They do love the squirrels tho and I'm not sure how upset they would be if they knew I was trying to subdue the population growth. I don't shoot the squirrels in plain sight, typically I crack the window open and shoot from inside my office and it's a clear shot to a broadside 40' storage container that blocks anyones view and most of the squirrels live under it or hang out on equipment I have along the container so it's safe and the squirrels are usually concentrated there... unless they are up inside one of my trucks chewing on wires! 
 
I'm hoping my last two replies maybe helps describe my situation better. I'm comfortable with discretely managing the squirrel population and it's legal and safe to do in the location that I do it. I don't think it would help anything by talking with my neighbors about the squirrels, and I don't think it would be a huge problem if they found out but it's just something I'd rather them not know. Accuracy is the main thing I'm needing for those so they don't make it out of my property. I've been using a Gamo .22 springer with a crappy scope. It's not consistent at all and I definitely feel bad when I wound a critter, so that's my main reason for getting a PCP. I know I don't need the expensive ones but that is where the "Want" is overriding the "Need" and I like nice stuff even if I don't need it! Ha! But now I'm thinking I need to just get a .177 or .22 cal

The coyotes became a bigger issue just in the past few days, especially now that the wife and kid just witnessed one jump the fence and come after our dog. I'm not messing around with them anymore just going to set up a suppressed .22LR with sub-sonics and keep it by the door. 

Thank you all for your reply's and for reading thru mine, definitely appreciate all the feedback! 
 
Conibear 110/120 tree sets for the squirrels. The open nature of these type of traps doesn't spook them and they line up to jump in them. 

I got 10 Eastern Greys in one day using 6 traps. My buddy had a whole family of them chewing up his nice gazebo. I baited the wires with mini wheats smeared with peanut butter.

Then a 200+ Ft/lb gun for the coyotes in .30/.357
 
Conibear 110/120 tree sets for the squirrels. The open nature of these type of traps doesn't spook them and they line up to jump in them. 

I got 10 Eastern Greys in one day using 6 traps. My buddy had a whole family of them chewing up his nice gazebo. I baited the wires with mini wheats smeared with peanut butter.

Then a 200+ Ft/lb gun for the coyotes in .30/.357

Thanks for the reply, I'm pretty sure we aren't allowed to use those in AZ but I could be wrong, I do know it is illegal to use leg hold traps here.