I live in what is considered the northwest suburbs of Chicago, but my hometown is a city all by itself, with a population of about 100,000, busy streets, city buses, even a Section 8 housing project. But my house is on a corner lot at the back end of a subdivision that backs up to a creek, and the street I live on dead ends into forest preserve property. So we get tons of wildlife here, and lately, we’ve been hearing a lot of reports of coyotes. I know they got a deer not too long ago (my husband stumbled upon the remains while he was out walking the dog) and people have mentioned seeing them around here more recently. I haven’t seen one, but I’ve sure heard them a lot lately!
They sound really cool, but I’m a little askeered I might encounter one. Am I likely to, in the ordinary course of a suburban life? And would it be more scared of me than I would be of it, or should I practice some coyote avoidance skills? Do they like rawhides? (Cuz we have some extras…) My dog is a Mastiff, so I’m not TOO worried about her encountering one, but should I be?
I suppose you’re “askeered” of skunks and opossums too? Coyotes are quite common in the hilly area of East Hollywood (or Los Feliz, for those of you trying to sell a house), where people like Madonna and Leonardo DiCaprio once lived. They go around as a family, usually three or four. I once saw a group trot along next to the nunnery there. How they got across Los Feliz Blvd. I’ll never know. They live in Griffith Park, but like to roam around the neighboring residential areas in the twilight hours. Ironically, as I’ve pointed out here on the SDMB,the LA zoo is within Griffith Park, and it has a coyote in a cage there.
The coyotes aren’t going to eat your dog, unless they get really desperate for food. They find far easier vittles in the preserve.
Speaking of deer, early one morning I was jogging up to the Observatory (you know, the one in the final scene of “Rebel Without a Cause”), and turned a bend, and ran face to face into a huge buck deer. It looked at me for a second, shrugged its shoulders (so to speak), and walked away.
As far as I know, no coyote has attacked any person in or around the Griffith Park area.
I’m only afraid of pissing a skunk off, and while I try to keep some distance between myself and an opossum, I’m not sure I’m actually afraid of them as much as kinda grossed-out by them. As I said, I’ve come across a surprising quantity of wildlife out here, and for the most part I’m used to them (and vice versa - we have regular visits from the neighborhood ducks and deer and foxes and such.) There is a hawk around here who is on my shit list for swooping down and stealing a chipmunk I WAS SPEAKING TO AT THE TIME, but I’m generally down with that circle of life stuff and not bothered by most of the critters hereabouts.
My understanding is that coyotes are not all that interested in humans, and are kind of timid (as opposed to raccoons, who are bold as brass and have lockpicking tools.) I’m just wondering how likely I am to come face to face with one, which of us would be more startled, and, y’know, is it better to fall down and play dead or run toward it waving my arms and making whooping noises?
All that said, I really am digging the chorus tonight. Ah-woooooooooooooooooo!
I think they are pretty shy around people. A friend of ours keeps a cow dog on her horse ranch and he was attacked a couple of years ago, but he probably started it. The dog survived, possibly through a combination of a sturdy studded collar and having a really fat neck. His owner was trying to put him on a diet, but now she lets him eat what he wants because being a tub of meat probably saved his life.
Your poodle or your cat might be in danger, but I think a coyote would take a look at you and your great big dog and go elsewhere. Do they even really hunt in packs like wolves? The only ones I’ve seen in the wild have always been alone.
We’ve tried to call 'em in close with wounded jackrabbit calls and still couldn’t get 'em anywhere near a person. They’re incredibly aware and cautious, or at least the rural ones are. The state (CO) provides a culling service for the ranchers and they figure the most effective way to hunt them is with a sniper from an airplane. As for urban coyotes, they’re very adaptable to life proximal to us but I still very much doubt their natural shyness towards actual contact will allow them to be any kind of a danger to you or your dog. Cats though…
They’re all over the place here, night and day. Unless rabid, they won’t bother a human. I came up behind one while riding a bike (me, not the coyote). It looked back, shifted into high gear, and so did I. Finally it made a left turn into a dry wash. He must have gone home to tell the family about the strange human with wheels instead of legs.
People walking smaller dogs should keep them close by, as they have been taken by coyotes. Even big dogs have been taken down the same way they get a deer or elk: one or two will feint in front while others sneak up behind, sever the leg tendons and then they all attack.
Among the smartest animals around. Wiley they are. Lots of fun to watch and to listen to at night.
A factoid am not sure is true, but have heard many times: when they are a-yippin’ away at night, it often sounds like a huge bunch, but often it is only one or two. They make so many different sounds it sounds like a gathering of the clan.
Huh.
Just saw on the Detroit News ( which I rarely watch) how two coyotes are running around Grosse Point ( very very wealthy area) and getting family pets for dinner.
Maybe there is something supernatural going on.
I live SE of the OP, just inside Chicago city limits, and I often walk through a Forest Preserve on the Des Plaines River. Last year I saw a coyote on two occasions during the day. No trouble either time. However, one time there was a group of deer nearby and they were nervous.
I back up to a golf course and am 1/2 a block from Deer Grove - you ought to hear the two packs howling at each other! It’s cool!! Freaked my new doggy out when I first brought him home from the shelter, though - he just stood on the deck with a “what the fuck is that” look on his cute face. And he’s over 100 lbs.!
Life, don’t worry about it - my last dog was 1/2 coyote and a very gentle soul. They ARE more afraid of you than you are of them. Listen to KlondikeGeoff - he’s a smart dude.
I live down the street from Busse Woods (which means something only to the other Chicagolanders), and once or twice while, um, doing some “potentially incorrect” night fishing along Salt Creek I’ve heard plenty of howls going on and even caught a few eye glints off in the dark. I think it’s pretty cool being that I also live down the street from one of the largest malls in the country.
As an aside; when I lived in Oregon coyotes were considered pests of the highest order to the local ranchers and there was a varmint bounty on their heads. The locals used to run them down on snowmobiles and collect $25 per backstrip from the DNR. That’s never been my style, but it was something to see.
Yeeesh, now I am REALLY glad my kitties are indoor kitties. I did a little reading today online and learned that coyotes are opportunists, and that they learn things very quickly. Thus, “urbanized” coyotes can become very quickly desenstiized to humans, especially if they connect human habitation with an easy source of food (whether it’s squirrel chow, an uncovered trash can or an outside cat.) So I promise, no trying to tame them. I’ll just enjoy their music from in here.
No howl tonight though, not that I have heard so far, anyway.
I too have a mastiff, and used to see (and–yip, yip–hear) coyotes all the time when we lived in central Denver. They lived on the nearby golf course, across a very busy street.
We used to see one who was obviously very curious about us. For some reason, I always thought of her as a female–didn’t see anything that led me to think otherwise.
She was on the tall side but nowhere near as big as Elwood. He was curious about her, too. She would companionably follow us at a safe distance, maybe 8-10 feet. We’d amble along, the canines stopping and sniffing here and there. One day she had a piece of pizza in her mouth. She tried to bring it along, but ended up gulping it down, presumably so she could follow us. She’d always leave us at the same street.
Now would I have been this casual if I was walking a Westie rather than a Mastiff?
Perhaps not.
I used to live in Naperville, also near a forest preserve. I doubt that you would have any problems walking your dog, or any trouble walking alone. As others have said, they tend to be a little on the shy side.
I wouldn’t let your dog run free, and anyone with small dogs or cats should be especially careful in that regard. I think the only significant “danger” to most pets would be rabies, but if your pets aren’t running free where they might get into a tussle with a coyote, then I wouldn’t worry about it too much.
A couple of years ago, there was a coyote running around on the rocks in Olive Park, right there near Navy Pier. Unusual enough that it made the evening news, but they have definitely moved within the Chicago city limits. Adaptable little bastards.
