I am wondering if I need to be aware and do anything special with my pup(5months old) when I walk him. The reason for the concern is my niece and I seen a coyote nearby our yard the other day. It did look like a healthy coyote, my niece said, and she would know as she has a forestry background and also has made herself knowledgeable about things like that. I do tend to worry about things a lot (due to my depression) so I am unsure if I am being a worry wart.

Any and all advice would be appreciated. I am liking our long walks and it does help with my depression too and would hate to have to stop them.

Susan

Coyotes are shy creatures (although they are becoming braver as they move back into the territory that we took from them). As long as you are with your dog, the coyote should leave you alone, but your dog wandering by himself, say, in your back yard might look like a tasty snack to a coyote. Coyotes feed on rodents, stray/feral cats and kittens (we lost three feral kittens probably to a coyote or raccoon).

I've heard of coyotes that befriend dogs and play with them especially when humans aren't around.

For the interesting story of a young woman in Wyoming who took in and raised an orphan coyote pup, please look at this site --

The Daily Coyote (http://www.dailycoyote.net/)

The coyote is neutered and is friends with her cat Eli (the boss) and dog Cleo. Only one other human is among Charlie the Coyote's circle of friends.

Susan, I enjoy my long walks too. I live in an area where there are coyote, coydogs, and bears. I walk my dogs on leashes at ALL times. The largest dog is 65 pounds but the smallest is a 10 pounder. I make sure I am watchful of everything. I also carry red pepper spray which I have attached to my waist. It is the best defense for those predators. The other day, I saw Jack Hanna (wild animal expert) on television talking about how he recently chased off a bear with his red pepper spray and mentioned that it was the best defense for anyone when confronted with a wild animal. I guess I can add,. best defense, short of carrying a gun! LOL!

Is it common to have coyotes around the homes in your area? Do you have preserves or conservation areas near by? I'd maybe check with animal services to find out if there have been any concerns reported.
In my area... which is surprisingly quite populated, we had some problems with coyotes, pet owners, and pets awhile ago. It was unusual, but it reminded people that they are wild. Taking some pepper-spray, or something like a golf club along with you may not be a bad idea.

As Wondergirl pointed out, coyotes are shy and they rarely usually bother anyone unless they are really hungry. I have never had to use the spray. It is just a precaution. Oh, and BTW, the mention of the gun was a joke. I only use those on people.:p

Lol I am terrified of guns so no guns near me :P I am going to see where I can get some of the red pepper spray. I live in Calgary and yes the coyotes are common they even have a hotline to report where you see them.
We have not seen any today but yesterday( first day we seen them) my niece chased her away 2. I am sure my dog could handle his own if he had to BUT I don't want him to get injured or sick. I would rather be able to chase them away and not have to worry about his health.

Hi Susan,
It's unlikely the coyote will be any trouble to you or the dog. I would recommend keeping the dog leashed, but there is no reason not to walk freely along public trails. I have been hiking all my life, seen many coyotes and never been bothered. Actually, they come right up to my house where I live. I would not leave your pup outside alone if there are coyotes around your house.

By the way, my neighbor was worried about coyotes bothering his dogs and actually shot and killed a coyote near his house. He was so upset that he got rid of his gun and his two dogs are still there, still fine, and the coyotes are still here too. The good news for me is he doesn't leave them outside all night anymore. They used to bark for hours. Now it's quiet. :)

I hope your depression lifts soon. Regular sleep, regular exercise, daily structure, and taking action on things (rather than letting yourself feel helpless) are all helpful.

Good luck!

If they are coming into yards or neighborhoods where people have to chase them away, they are becoming less wary of people. Most often just making a good deal of noise will be enough for them to take off. Usually you would never even know they were around.

What sort of dog do you have? Where would you be walking... paved sidewalk... trail?
Just be observant. Even on a leash, avoid letting your pup wander away near bushes.

I am mainly on main streets due to me wanting to be safe in the city. I have an Alapaha Blue Blooded Bulldog. He is always in leash outside of the yard, as he has decided he wants to chase cars. I am slowly working on that with him too.
Once we have the money I am going to need to get a professionals help with training as I really don't want to do things wrong and mess him up. I have to wait until I get my EI though.

Thank you all for your responses

DoulaLC


Susans my aunt. We own Alapaha Blue Blooded Bulldogs, Big dogs once they are full grown.
The coyotes here in this city are much more braver than rural coyotes due to the influx of people and loss of habitat.
The trails around here run along the river, are paved at times and dirt at others. Never far from roads really that I've seen so far.
Yelling at the coyote did absolutely nothing. It just stood there looking at us.
I'm used to coyotes down home where I come from that shy away from humans, that run at the sight of you. I'm not used to city dwelling coyotes.

The hotline says they will fixate on dogs, if your out walking, that bear spray is good, or an air horn.. Though pepper spray I think would be better as it is not oil based. *i'm assuming it can be bought at sporting good stores and hunting stores.*

They ask that you report sightings in the city, but they do not do anything unless the coyote does a problem. I got a good look at her, from quite close, its female, no signs of mange, well fed by the looks of it, No outward abnormalities in behavior except for the lack of fear of humans. At the time the pups did not notice the coyote, though she was like four feet away from them and about 5 feet above them overlooking the yard.

JUst had to come in and talk a little..

Like I said earlier very knowledgeable woman she is (proud auntie). Thank you Michelle for going into more detail too.

Not a problem auntie, I just wanted to help :D

I had an encounter with a coyote like this, where it just stared us down. I was out with my kids, who were little then. It made me uneasy at the time, but nothing happened.

I would be very concerned about groups of coyotes...
I think it really depends on where you are and how the coyotes in that area behave. If they are hunting in packs (http://www.rockymountainnews.com/news/2009/feb/23/coyotes-attack-denver-woman-dog/) and are not shy of humans, I'd say that's a problem.