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Tuesday, July 22, 2008
Coyotes in the cul-de-sac.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
A coworker here has been regaling me with tales of mangy, sinister-eyed dog-beasts that lurk in his neighborhood and prey on poor defenseless housecats while their owners brew the morning coffee.
Talk of the town, he swears. He even wrote the imaginary headline: “Coyotes in the cul-de-sac.”
I see a lot of strays roaming around, and given the number of bears and other wily creatures that’ve shown up in the area, I shouldn’t have raised my eyebrow so high.
Indeed, the Georgia Department of Natural Resources spokeswoman Melissa Cummings told me, there are coyotes in all 159 Georgia counties. It’s almost cliched, she says, but it stands true: “As we’ve expanded, we expand further into wildlife territory.”
So yes, newcomers, that may well be Canis latrans peering at you from your backyard. They’re particularly active in the spring and summer because it’s baby time, so they’re feeding for more than one.
The DNR got more than 2,000 complaints last year, and the number seems to rise every year.
“Coyotes are those animals that are very adaptable and can make due in whatever sitaution they’re put in,” Cummings says.
Sure enough, the AJC has written coyote-sighting stories pretty often. This guy was spotted in Buckhead in 2004:
So here are the coyote basics, for those who might’ve wondered which neighbor has the weird-looking dog. Also, here’s a DNR’s coyote fact sheet from the DNR.
Coyotes wouldn’t normally eat Fluffy or Fido. In the wild, they hunt alone, and they eat fruit and small animals. (They’re excellent rodent control.) When they’re living outside your subdivision, they’re happy to eat your garbage, your pet food and sometimes, your pet. Remember, though, that coyotes shouldn’t get all the blame. There are plenty of free-roaming dogs, owls and some domestic animals that will be happy to do the same.
They’re shy and not very big, just about 20-45 pounds as adults. They might get more brazen if they’re hungry and your yard appears to have some low-hanging fruit, literally or figuratively. They get a bad rep, maybe because of cartoons and that poor bird that’s forever and always in danger? Wile E. Coyote was unusually focused, though.
The DNR doesn’t have the manpower needed to trap and haul away coyotes. But it will provide you with a list of approved trappers in your area who will catch and remove the animal for a fee. To contact the DNR’s Wildlife Resources Division, call 770-918-6400.
Before trapping, consider other options. Removing one coyote will not necessarily remove the problem. There can be many more coyotes that will move into your area. Usually, trapped coyotes are euthanized.
Here are a few tips from the DNR to help you live around coyotes.
- Take pets indoors during primary hunting times, from dusk till dawn.
- If pets must remain outside, install fencing and flood lights to keep predators away.
- Small livestock and poultry should be kept enclosed or sheltered. Coyotes aren’t known for messing with large livestock, but free-roaming dogs are.
- Don’t feed coyotes! Ever!
- Keep grills, pet food and bird feeders off limits and cleaned up.
- Make trash cans inaccessible, with tight lids and indoor storage, if possible.
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