Coyotes Threaten Shoppers in AZ

[ArmedBear]

Coyote behavior is changing.

 

[jlpskydive]

hey Knoxx great pups!! Both of ours were rescues also and do the exact same thing. As for feeding wild animals all you are doing is signing their death warrants. To bad I hate to see an animal just wasted for no purpose. EXCEPT for those friggin squirrels that like to play on the roof promptly at 4 am every morning!!!!!!

 

[Claude Clay]

squirrles on roof

cut back ur trees & put skate board tape on limbs w/in 6 feet of jumping distance. g-d loves squirrles & than he made school boards...both are incredably annoying & almost impossible to divest one's self of. (sorry about that M T )

 

[revjen45]

"I think that coyotes, much like pigeons or seagulls, are opportunists."
True. At least they don't fly and drop #2. Any predator that has lost its fear of humans is extremely dangerous. There is nothing more dangerous than a pack of feral dogs. I recall an article about school children waiting for the school bus in rural Australia being menaced by dingoes. You know- the place that turned in their guns. Now their children are victuals for wild dogs.

 

[ScottE]

Coyotes and dogs....

A couple weeks ago while at a local dog park (Cherry Creek State Park) in Denver, A guy told me about a lady who had her small dog killed by a coyote early in the morning. Her dog was on a leash at the time of attack. We have also had traps set out along some popular bike paths in town to catch coyotes that are threatening dogs.

 

[McCall911]

One of the biggest reasons for the problem is well-meaning people feeding them, Colvin said.

Just exactly what I was thinking before I even read the article!

People need to understand: Coyotes don't like you! If you like canids, get a dog.

 

[havanatrader]

I give my Great Dane a fresh coyote treat now and again...

 

[Andrewsky]

I used to live in AZ. A coyote sighting in the city is very rare. I saw 3 or 4 in the 4 years I was there. They're usually emaciated, and not a threat to anyone but small animals.

 

[JesseL]

I used to live in AZ. A coyote sighting in the city is very rare. I saw 3 or 4 in the 4 years I was there. They're usually emaciated, and not a threat to anyone but small animals.

True, that's the way it used to be.

These days, with all the urban expansion making what used to be uninviting desert into prime coyote oasis's, coyotes are learning that humans are convenient food suppliers and are rarely threatening.

 

[daniel (australia)]

There is nothing more dangerous than a pack of feral dogs. I recall an article about school children waiting for the school bus in rural Australia being menaced by dingoes. You know- the place that turned in their guns. Now their children are victuals for wild dogs.

We still have lots of guns - more now than before the buyback, despite the .gov.au - and the dingos don't seem to be making much of a dent in the supply of children.

In all seriousness AFAIK the last time a child was taken by a dingo was some years ago, but that case is a good demonstration of how a problem can arise and be addressed. It took place at Fraser Island, just off the Queensland coast, which holds a remnant population of very pure bred dingos. It is a popular holiday spot, and for years people had been feeding dingos to bring them in for photos, leaving fish frames on the beach for them, leaving food out, strewing scraps about etc. As a result the dingos came to associate humans with food and also lost much of their shyness. There had been a couple of near misses but finally a boy was killed, and as a result a programwas put in place involving, among other things, providing secure food storage in campsites (and requiring people to use it), prohibiting feeding of dingos, prohibiting leaving of food scraps/fish frames etc, counselling visitors on the importance of not encouraging dingos etc. The rangers also shot a few dingos identified as a threat, and blokes were engaged to patrol with a slingshot to "sting" any dingos who were overly familiar, hanging around campsites etc, so as to instil a proper fear of humans in them.

It seems to be working - last time I was on Fraser the dingos were noticeably wary, and AFAIK there've been no more near misses let alone attacks.

Wild (feral) dogs are a bit of a separate issue, and a problem in some areas. These are often not far removed from domestic life and have little fear of people. Some are big too, derived from mixed breeding from working dogs, pig dogs and what have you. They breed up in National Parks (where shooting is not allowed) and emerge to attack livestock and (occasionally) menace people. Of course outside the National Parks they are fair game, but there's many farmers and others who'd prefer the National Parks administrators to play more of a part in controlling them.