# Do coyotes ever attack people? (Not Urgent) **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 7, 2011, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-coyotes-ever-attack-people-not-urgent/577547 "2011-04-07T17:46:23Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![gytalf2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/ac91a4/32.png) [@gytalf2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gytalf2000)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-coyotes-ever-attack-people-not-urgent/577547/1 "2011-04-07T17:46:23Z")
Do coyotes ever attack people? I realize that the average coyote is scrawnier than a wolf, but if a pack happened upon a lone human, and they were hungry, they might have a pretty good chance against the hairless ape. So, does this scenario ever actually happen? ---
**Author:** ![pkbites](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pkbites/32/204_2.png) [@pkbites](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pkbites)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-coyotes-ever-attack-people-not-urgent/577547/2 "2011-04-07T17:57:55Z")
According to [this](http://tchester.org/sgm/lists/coyote_attacks.html) it’s extremely rare. From my own experience the answer is also no. When I was a teen I worked at a golf course doing maintenance at night. There were a ton of them and they never once were aggressive in the least. I will tell you, seeing a pair of their glowing eyes in the pitch dark is eerie, though. Also, there is some wooded areas around where I live in the Milwaukee/West Allis area. Fox and Coyotes routinely show up, walking through the neighborhoods. The foxes can be quite aggressive in going after small pets, pet food, and giving that weird, raspy bark towards humans. But the coyotes run away from people. All bets are off, though, if the animal is rabid. ---
**Author:** ![gregorio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/fbc32d/32.png) [@gregorio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gregorio)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-coyotes-ever-attack-people-not-urgent/577547/3 "2011-04-07T17:58:37Z")
Yes. It happened twice in Calgary a few years ago very close to where I live. In both cases it was a child who was separated from their group and otherwise looked vulnerable or injured. It’s believed that it was the same coyote and the events happened within a short time a few kms apart. The coyote was probably starved and was acting out of desperation, exhibiting behaviour abnormal for an urbanized wild animal. So if you’re walking in Confederation Park, don’t trip and fall. ---
**Author:** ![gytalf2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/ac91a4/32.png) [@gytalf2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gytalf2000)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-coyotes-ever-attack-people-not-urgent/577547/4 "2011-04-07T18:01:41Z")
> [@gregorio](#): > > Yes. It happened twice in Calgary a few years ago very close to where I live. In both cases it was a child who was separated from their group and otherwise looked vulnerable or injured. It’s believed that it was the same coyote and the events happened within a short time a few kms apart. The coyote was probably starved and was acting out of desperation, exhibiting behaviour abnormal for an urbanized wild animal. > > So if you’re walking in Confederation Park, don’t trip and fall. Did the children survive the attacks, or were they killed and eaten? ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-coyotes-ever-attack-people-not-urgent/577547/5 "2011-04-07T18:14:16Z")
Keep in mind that eastern Coyotes are much bigger then their western counterparts. They can reach almost wolf size where there is prey and no bigger carnivores. Even so, attacks on humans are extremely rare unless the animal is starving or sick. With increased contact between humans and coyotes, I’m not sure that will always be the case. ---
**Author:** ![gonzomax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e8c25b/32.png) [@gonzomax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzomax)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-coyotes-ever-attack-people-not-urgent/577547/6 "2011-04-07T18:18:24Z")
We have not had any people attacks in Dearborn ,Michigan but they have cleaned Hines Drive out of small prey. Groundhogs, squirrels, gophers and rabbits are now rare. The supply of geese are down too. ---
**Author:** ![gregorio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/fbc32d/32.png) [@gregorio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gregorio)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-coyotes-ever-attack-people-not-urgent/577547/7 "2011-04-07T18:20:25Z")
> [@gytalf2000](#): > > Did the children survive the attacks, or were they killed and eaten? I’m looking for a news source for the story, but yes, both children survived. One was separated from his pre-school group and the other was playing on a slide in a school or community playground. Both times the animal was chased off. Here is a news link from the CBC: [Coyote shot after 2 Calgary toddlers attacked | CBC News](http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/story/2005/04/20/coyote-attacks050420.html) It is noted that this is very unusual behaviour for a coyote. EMS said: > [@](#): > > It’s more common for paramedics to respond to a call where a child had been bitten by a family dog than to respond to a call twice in the same day where a suspected coyote is involved. I think I’ve seen a coyote in the city once. The same number of times I’ve seed a raccoon and a porcupine ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-coyotes-ever-attack-people-not-urgent/577547/8 "2011-04-07T18:32:15Z")
> [@gregorio](#): > > I think I’ve seen a coyote in the city once. The same number of times I’ve seed a raccoon and a porcupine I see them not infrequently in suburban Chicago – perhaps once a month or so, almost always at night. It’s interesting that it’s only been in the past 10 years or so that they’ve been noticeable here at all, and now they’re a definite presence. A few months ago, my wife and I had just gotten home from visiting some friends at about 10pm. As we got out of the car, we heard some carrying on off in the distance (we live about 4 blocks from a county forest preserve). At first, it sounded like teenagers yelling at each other, but then we realized it was coyotes – at least three or four of them, yapping and crying at each other. Eerie sounding, but still cool. ---
**Author:** ![nofloyd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nofloyd/32/2870_2.png) [@nofloyd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nofloyd)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-coyotes-ever-attack-people-not-urgent/577547/9 "2011-04-07T19:04:09Z")
There were several attacks on children a few years ago in New Jersey. > **[Coyote attacks Middletown boy](https://blog.nj.com/ledgerupdates/2007/05/coyote_attacks_middletown_boy.html)** > > For the second time in as many months, a child in Middletown has been attacked by a coyote, police said. Unlike the first time, police last night shot at the animal, but they were not sure if they hit it,... ---
**Author:** ![GreasyJack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/df705f/32.png) [@GreasyJack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreasyJack)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-coyotes-ever-attack-people-not-urgent/577547/10 "2011-04-07T19:12:55Z")
A couple years ago coyotes in Nova Scotia attacked and killed a perfectly healthy 19-year old folk singer: [Taylor Mitchell - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taylor_Mitchell) I’m sure her friends and family and fans didn’t think so, but I’ve always thought there was something strangely poetic about the whole situation. ---
**Author:** ![kapri](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/4491bb/32.png) [@kapri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kapri)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-coyotes-ever-attack-people-not-urgent/577547/11 "2011-04-07T19:17:37Z")
I’ve never seen one; I’m not sure any have made it to Central Florida, but I think it’s only a matter of time. This is a serious question: Will they respond if you talk to them like dogs–“Good boy” or something like that? As I write that I realize it’s probably nuts, but they **seem** like dogs to me. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-coyotes-ever-attack-people-not-urgent/577547/12 "2011-04-07T19:29:12Z")
> [@kapri](#): > > This is a serious question: Will they respond if you talk to them like dogs–“Good boy” or something like that? As I write that I realize it’s probably nuts, but they **seem** like dogs to me. They \*\*are \*\*dogs. Wild dogs who don’t know you from Adam. It reminds me of the saying: > [@](#): > > Diplomacy is the art of saying ‘Nice doggie’ until you can find a rock. – Will Rogers If the coyotes are circling you in a pack, saying “Good boy” is unlikely to have the desired effect. ---
**Author:** ![Inigo\_Montoya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inigo_montoya/32/124_2.png) [@Inigo\_Montoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inigo_Montoya)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-coyotes-ever-attack-people-not-urgent/577547/13 "2011-04-07T19:34:54Z")
> [@kapri](#): > > I’ve never seen one; I’m not sure any have made it to Central Florida, but I think it’s only a matter of time. This is a serious question: Will they respond if you talk to them like dogs–“Good boy” or something like that? As I write that I realize it’s probably nuts, but they **seem** like dogs to me. In the book, _Wolfen_, one of the lead characters discovers the relationship between humans and a particular strain of intelligent, man-eating wolf goes back for centuries. He learns that a group of humans actually was able to communicate with the wolves using a sign language, which the character learned from the secret manuscripts. He then approached the wolves hoping to communicate with them but had neglected one little detail: It had been over a hundred years since they’d interacted with humans in any capacity other than the way humans interact with pizzas. As they were eating him they were wondering what was up with those weird little hand gestures. What I’m getting at is, if a critter doesn’t learn the ways of man, we’re just going to be mentally processed as either “food” or “not food.” ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-coyotes-ever-attack-people-not-urgent/577547/14 "2011-04-07T19:40:55Z")
> [@Telemark](#): > > They \*\*are \*\*dogs. Wild dogs who don’t know you from Adam. No. Dogs are domesticated wolves. Coyotes are not wolves. They are all in the genus _Canis_, and can all interbreed, but they are not the same species. Dogs, even apart from wolves, have evolved behaviors that their non-domesticated relatives cannot acquire through training. They are particularly atuned to communication with humans. You might be able to train a wolf or a coyote to “fetch”, but they don’t get what you mean when you point at something. ---
**Author:** ![Contrapuntal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e274bd/32.png) [@Contrapuntal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Contrapuntal)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-coyotes-ever-attack-people-not-urgent/577547/15 "2011-04-07T19:42:02Z")
> [@GreasyJack](#): > > A couple years ago coyotes in Nova Scotia attacked and killed a perfectly healthy 19-year old folk singer: [Taylor Mitchell - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taylor_Mitchell) > > I’m sure her friends and family and fans didn’t think so, but I’ve always thought there was something strangely poetic about the whole situation. I know fuck all about her save your cite, and I find nothing poetic about it at all. ---
**Author:** ![Inigo\_Montoya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inigo_montoya/32/124_2.png) [@Inigo\_Montoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inigo_Montoya)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-coyotes-ever-attack-people-not-urgent/577547/16 "2011-04-07T19:51:10Z")
> [@Contrapuntal](#): > > I know fuck all about her save your cite, and I find nothing poetic about it at all. “Poetic”, possibly ironic; he didn’t say, “nice.” ---
**Author:** ![GreasyJack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/df705f/32.png) [@GreasyJack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreasyJack)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-coyotes-ever-attack-people-not-urgent/577547/17 "2011-04-07T19:58:29Z")
> [@Contrapuntal](#): > > I know fuck all about her save your cite, and I find nothing poetic about it at all. Not “poetic” as in she deserved it or it wasn’t tragic. It just sounds like something that would happen in a quirky bittersweet folk song. ---
**Author:** ![gregorio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/fbc32d/32.png) [@gregorio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gregorio)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-coyotes-ever-attack-people-not-urgent/577547/18 "2011-04-07T20:05:18Z")
> [@GreasyJack](#): > > Not “poetic” as in she deserved it or it wasn’t tragic. It just sounds like something that would happen in a quirky bittersweet folk song. Not to mention that other singer Mitchell who’s connected to Coyote. > **[Coyote (song)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coyote_(song))** > > "Coyote" is a song by Canadian singer-songwriter Joni Mitchell from her eighth album Hejira (1976). It was released as the album's lead single on the Asylum label. > "Coyote" was inspired by Sam Shepard, with whom Mitchell was briefly linked during Bob Dylan's 1975–76 Rolling Thunder Revue tour. Martin Scorsese's 2019 documentary film about the tour includes footage of Mitchell performing the song at Gordon Lightfoot's house, with Dylan and Roger McGuinn accompanying her on acoustic guitar. Prior ... ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-coyotes-ever-attack-people-not-urgent/577547/19 "2011-04-07T20:16:57Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > No. Dogs are domesticated wolves. Coyotes are not wolves. They are all in the genus _Canis_, and can all interbreed, but they are not the same species. You are correct. I was using inappropriate shorthand. ---
**Author:** ![gytalf2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/ac91a4/32.png) [@gytalf2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gytalf2000)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-coyotes-ever-attack-people-not-urgent/577547/20 "2011-04-07T20:53:51Z")
> [@Inigo\_Montoya](#): > > In the book, _Wolfen_, one of the lead characters discovers the relationship between humans and a particular strain of intelligent, man-eating wolf goes back for centuries. He learns that a group of humans actually was able to communicate with the wolves using a sign language, which the character learned from the secret manuscripts. > > He then approached the wolves hoping to communicate with them but had neglected one little detail: It had been over a hundred years since they’d interacted with humans in any capacity other than the way humans interact with pizzas. As they were eating him they were wondering what was up with those weird little hand gestures. > > What I’m getting at is, if a critter doesn’t learn the ways of man, we’re just going to be mentally processed as either “food” or “not food.” Hey, I remember that fun old horror novel! The movie was okay, if I’m remembering correctly, but I liked the book better. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-coyotes-ever-attack-people-not-urgent/577547.md?page=2)