That reminds me of the time I awoke in my tent to the sight of a large grizzly bear charging me in my knapsack! It was terrifying, and a close call, but I managed to stave off the attack.
Ok, sure, it turned out just to be just a well-fed raccoon, but he sure looked huge and menacing!
By the same token, many people underestimate the danger of many wild animals by their seemingly innocuous appearance. I believe coyotes fall into this category. They don’t look mean and they don’t look strong. They just look like skinny, friendly house dogs. The kind of dog you may see in the park and unleash your little Fifi to go frolic with in the woods. Unfortunately, Fifi isn’t coming back out of the woods.
I think it was in the 80s, somewhere in Westchester County, NY, a young woman saw a weak, sickly German Shepherd on the streets. The dog appeared tame and she took it to a local vet for treatment. Turns out it was a coyote. The vet was surprised that it was docile but had to turn it over to animal control because if it recovered it was certain to regain it’s untamed behavior.
I could not find a cite for this, it was written up in the local papers at the time. While looking I ran across a copy of this old NY Times article on coydogs. It affirms the info posted already, that coydogs are rare but reports that were at one time confirmed to exist but would have survival problems. The sick dog/coyote I think happened around that time although as it notes coyote sightings were still rare in the area. Although my 4 year old says he spotted a moose in our yard and we all laughed but there was a moose in the area at the time, it’s cross-county journey was followed in the papers. I’m pretty sure the dinosaur he spotted was something else though.
Thanks to Gary_Robson for his informed posts. This is SD at its best. I used to spend some time in central Pennsylvania near Penn State. A few years ago and for the first time, I heard coyotes howling at night. I was surprised at the number of different individuals that were chiming in. I was at the base of and facing a ridge. It was easy discern the general locations of different animals. I never did see one, though.
I live on a barrier island in NJ and we used to have enough foxes (maybe a few?) to keep the rabbit population down. Things have changed in that regard for some reason but its probably only a matter of time before coyotes cross over from the mainland. The bay rarely freezes anymore and there are only a few narrow roads leading out here, so maybe not
I live on Absecon Island, a bit south of LBI and haven’t seen or heard of any. Yet They are pretty common inland. Meanwhile, they are trapping foxes on Brigantine Island in order to protect Piping Plovers, an endangered bird species that nests there. The last I heard, Ocean City was claiming problems with the foxes being fed by residents and vacationers. I’d see them occasionally on early morning bike rides but not lately.
Just came in to say that we’ve had one or more coyotes starting to venture into our suburban neighborhood. My daughter was out walking our 60 lb. dog when they encountered a coyote that was somewhat smaller - probably 40-45 lbs. The dog barked, howled, screamed and strained at its leash. The coyote was not only undeterred, it tried to creep closer. My daughter wisely backed herself and the dog away until the coyote lost interest and continued its prowling.
We have no doubt that if the dog and the coyote had actually gone at each other, the coyote would have made short work of the dog.
One of the things I miss most about running a wildlife sanctuary was the wolves and coyotes. When I’d arrive in the morning, my first stop was to say hi to the wolves. The coyotes would immediately get jealous and start singing. That would start the wolves howling. On a good day, the sandhill cranes would join in, which would set off the red-tailed hawk. That morning symphony made my whole day.