Five Easy Steps to Avoid Conflicts With Coyotes

Conflicts with coyotes can be avoided by taking simple precautions or by altering behaviors to avoid confrontation.

Alpha male from Arlington Heights pack in 2007

1. Do not feed the coyotes.

Intentional feeding, such as bait stations in yards or parks, should be avoided. However, many people unintentionally feed coyotes by leaving pet food or garbage out at night or having large bird feeders. Coyotes are usually not interested in bird food, but bird feeders often attract rodents, especially squirrels, which then attract coyotes. Although coyotes seem to have a natural inclination to avoid human-related food, this can change when prey populations are low, or if the coyotes are young and haven’t yet learned to hunt effectively.

2. Do not let pets run loose.

If coyotes live nearby, do not let pets run loose, especially domestic cats. When hiking in urban parks, keep dogs on leashes.

3. Do not run from a coyote.

When you encounter a coyote, shout or throw something in its direction.

4. Repellents or fencing may help.

Some repellents may work in keeping coyotes out of small areas such as yards, although these have not been tested thoroughly for coyotes. Repellents may involve remotely activated lights or sound-making devices. Fencing may keep coyotes out of a yard, particularly if it is more than 4 feet in height with a roll bar across the top.

5. Report aggressive, fearless coyotes immediately.

When a coyote fails to exhibit fear of humans or acts aggressively by barking or growling in the yard or playground, the animal must be reported as soon as possible to the appropriate officials — usually an animal control officer or police officer.

	Management

Management programs for urban coyotes should begin with public education
and untangling facts from myths. People should become aware of coyote sign and understand the differences between true threats and coexistence. It is important to stress that our relationship with coyotes is directly affected by our behavior —
coyotes react to us, and we can foster mutual respect or a lack of respect through
cues we send to coyotes. Some people are enamored with coyotes. They like seeing them near their yards and attempt to entice them by baiting them, or they want
to try to “tame” them. Intentional feeding such as this should be prohibited,
otherwise other management solutions will be temporary at best.
People should be discouraged from inadvertent feeding where coyotes are present.
This includes leaving pet food outside at night and maintaining large bird feeders
that attract multiple species of wildlife.

	When Should I Be Concerned?

A list of signs indicating an increase in threats from coyotes is presented here. However, it is important to note that coyotes are highly variable in their behavior, and this sequence may not always be predictive:

1. Coyotes are rarely or occasionally seen at night, more rarely during dusk
and dawn. Occasional howling.Response: Education; prohibit/limit feeding of wildlife.

2. Coyotes are occasionally seen during the day, frequently seen at night, an
occasional house cat disappears.Response: Education; prohibit/limit feeding of wildlife; free ranging pets are at risk; use negative stimuli for coyotes — shouting, chasing, throwing objects.

3. Coyotes are frequently seen during the day, appearing in yards on an increasing basis, but they flee when approached by people. Pets in yards are attacked. Response: Education; prohibit/limit feeding of wildlife; supervise pets; consider a removal program; use negative stimuli for coyotes — shouting, chasing, throwing objects.

4. Coyotes taking pets from yards, approaching people without fear, acting aggressive (growling, barking) when subjected to negative stimuli, following children. Response: Initiate removal program in conjunction with education; prohibit/limit feeding of wildlife; supervise pets; use negative stimuli.

Negative Stimuli

People should be encouraged to act aggressively toward coyotes during encounters, to re-instill a fear of humans in coyotes. In many cases, this involves shouting, waving, or clapping hands, and looking as tall as possible. Residents in some communities will chase coyotes by banging pots and pans, or throwing balls or rocks at them. However, this should be done within reason so as not to create conflicts that might not otherwise occur by injuring or cornering a coyote that
simply wants to escape. Relatively small properties that have coyote visitors may be able to use scare devices for coyotes, such as electronic sirens and lights, although these have not yet been tested thoroughly. We have successfully used game cameras with flashes to repel
coyotes from yards, but these may not work in every circumstance.

Removal

There are instances where coyote habituation is so severe that the coyotes can be considered an immediate threat to people, especially children and pets. This is when removal is often warranted. Lethal removal is accomplished either through trapping/euthanasia or shooting. Coyotes are difficult to trap or shoot, and these actions should be undertaken by professionals, especially in urban areas. Removal efforts should observe state and municipal codes. Fortunately, because of habituation, nuisance coyotes are often easier to capture than non-habituated individuals. Removal programs designed to target specific nuisance coyotes will be more successful than broad removal programs that have a goal of removing a complete
population of coyotes. It is difficult to capture all coyotes residing in an area, and as
coyotes are removed, they are replaced by solitary ones.

Removal, especially lethal removal, is often controversial within communities. This
is especially true when the perceived threat by coyotes is somewhat ambiguous
to residents. Removal programs can also be expensive, either for residents or
municipalities, and traps can occasionally capture pets. For these reasons, as well
as ethical reasons, coyote removal is best employed only after education has been
attempted or if there is an immediate, and obvious, threat to human safety.