DEAR PET TALK: A couple of weeks ago, I saw a coyote in the morning in my backyard. We live near woods, but I was unnerved to see it. Why are they there?
— CITY DWELLER
DEAR CITY DWELLER: A single coyote is either a juvenile on its own, or one that has left the pack to forage. In our region, these are Eastern Coyotes (Canis latrans), and can be mistaken for dogs. The adults are more than double the size of gray foxes and stand 23 to 26 inches tall. Males and females are similar in size (34 to 37 pounds).
According to Mass Audubon, “Coyotes are opportunistic feeders and will eat just about anything. Deer carrion is a favored food source, but they also prey on small animals, insects, fruits, and berries. They also eat ground-nesting birds and their eggs as well as reptiles and amphibians.”
However, they would be happy to eat from an open rubbish bin, or cat or dog food left outside. If they’re in your yard, chances are good that they’ve visited your neighborhood previously. A coyote territory can range from 2 to 30 square miles, which could include hundreds of houses in a suburban area.
What do you do if your coyote sightings are regular?
“Hazing” is the recommended form of deterrence according to the Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife. These methods include: “moving toward the coyote while waving your arms or clapping; making loud noises by yelling, using an air horn, or whistle; or spraying a hose or throwing small objects, like tennis balls, in the coyote’s direction.”
When you see coyotes in late autumn, chances are that they are young animals, just pupped earlier in the spring. And if you hear coyotes (which we do, living in thick woods on a ridge), they are communicating with one another. Sometimes they howl to tell intruders to back off out of their territory, and sometimes they howl to locate family members. During breeding season, they howls to attract a mate (so much more interesting than a Personals ad!).
And in late summer, when you hear “yip-yip- yips” from a distances, those are probably pups practicing the sounds their parents make. No coyote howls to announce a kill, but if the pups are threatened, coyotes will scatter and howl to create a distraction.
Most important — keep your pets inside, especially at night, if you hear about coyote activity near your home. They are opportunistic hunters, and we humans have taken far too much of their land.
Sally Cragin is the founder of Be PAWSitive: Therapy Pets and and Community Education. Send questions to [email protected].
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