People that like to shoot animals, and I'm not referring to hunting for food, will always think it's cool. If any wild animal is causing you a problem, is rabid, or is trying to kill your animals, it's time to intervene, but if you are looking for something to shoot at, and a coyote wanders by, is it the same as shooting a rattlesnake, or skeet, or a target?
Here's one for you: The next time your dog growls, or chews up something, or chases something, why not shoot it? Isn't the reason, because you have developed a friendship with it? What is that relationship based on? Is it an understanding that your dog is intelligent, feels pain, wants to be part of your pack, and has an inherent value as a living animal? Sounds like coyote behavior to me. If you think coyotes are far different than dogs, explain how they understand each other perfectly, can live together as friends and can mate to produce beautiful dogs. People get cats sometimes just to keep the rodent population under control. Rabbits and rodents are the coyotes favorite food.
Explain how coyotes are different than dogs. More wild, possibly more vicious, yes. Have you ever seen a pack of "domestic" dogs take down a deer, even though they are all well fed and live comfortable lives?
None of this means I would be careless enough to be out in the wild while unarmed or unready to protect myself and others from any wild animal. It simply means I would never use a coyote for target practice or shoot one because it was fun or because it gave me an excuse to shoot something. Why shoot an animal that is in it's own environment and minding it's own business?
Wild animals can be very dangerous and disruptive, but they can be other than that too:
