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Attacks on Dogs
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Almost 30 different breeds of dog were
reported to have been attacked by coyotes.
Smaller breed dogs were attacked more often
than medium and large sized dogs, with 20
small breeds, 3 medium breeds, and 6 large
breeds attacked. Although smaller breeds are
more commonly attacked, larger breeds such
as Labrador Retrievers and Golden Retrievers
have also been attacked in the Chicago
metropolitan area. Larger breeds of dog were
usually attacked by two or more coyotes at a
time. Attacks on smaller dog breeds were
more often fatal (although some attacks on
larger breeds were fatal as well).
Yorkshire terriers and Shih Tzus were the
breeds most commonly attacked (6 attacks
each), followed by Jack Russell terriers and
Labrador Retrievers (5 attacks each), and
boxers and poodles (4 attacks each).
Dogs were attacked while
outside in their backyard
(both alone and in the
presence of their owner) and
also while being walked by
their owner in a park. If
you are aware of coyotes in
your neighborhood, it is
important to exhibit caution
when leaving your dog
outdoors (especially if it
is a small breed). Fences
can help to keep coyotes out
of your yard, but coyotes
have been known to jump over
fences. (The best fences for
keeping out coyotes are at
least six feet tall and have
a roll bar on top.) Also, if
you are walking your dog in
a park frequented by
coyotes, you should exhibit
caution and perhaps carry a
walking stick or mace to
fend off an attack. Most
importantly, make sure that
no one in your neighborhood
is attracting coyotes by
leaving food outdoors.
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Attacks on
Cats
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 Although
it is likely that some coyotes have attacked
and killed domestic cats in the Chicago
area, cat attacks are often more difficult
to substantiate than dog attacks.
Of
the 10 cat attacks reported in the Chicago
metropolitan area, almost half were lost
cats that the owners assumed were eaten by
coyotes (but attacks were not confirmed).
The best way to ensure that your cat is not
attacked by a coyote is to keep it indoors
at all times! If you must let your cat
outside, it is important not to leave food
outside for your cat (or for other cats in
the neighborhood, for that matter). Food
left outside may attract coyotes, which may
then attack your cat (or dog).
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Attacks on
Humans
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The most extreme form of conflict between
humans and coyotes concerns coyote attacks
on people.
We conducted an analysis of coyote attacks
throughout the United States and Canada to
investigate the frequency and
characteristics of these attacks. Prior to
this, an analysis of coyote attacks on
people had only been completed for
California and other portions of the western
U.S and Canada.
We searched newspaper articles and
scientific journals for attack accounts, and
also contacted representatives from state
wildlife agencies to verify attack details
and receive information on additional
attacks. In our search, we only included
incidents in which humans were bitten by a
coyote (this helped to standardize our
definition of an attack and decrease the
amount of speculation sometimes found in
media articles).
We located accounts of 142 coyote attack
incidents, resulting in 159 human victims.
These attacks took place over a wide
geographic area, including 14 states in the
U.S. and 4 provinces in Canada. Most
attacks, however, occurred in the western
U.S., with almost half of the attacks
occurring in California and another large
portion (14%) occurring in Arizona. We did
not find records of any attacks on humans
within the Chicago metropolitan area (or
even within the state of Illinois).
We
also investigated the demographics of attack
victims. We found that there was no
difference in the frequency of attacks
between women and men or between adults and
children. However, children were the victims
of the most serious attacks.
Attacks generally fell into 5 categories:
Defensive (the coyote felt threatened
and was defending itself, pups, or a den);
Rabid (the coyote was captured,
tested, and diagnosed with rabies);
Pet-related (the coyote attacked a
person that was walking a pet, trying to
save a pet from a coyote attack, or was just
near a domestic pet at the time of attack);
Investigative (the coyote bit a
sleeping or resting person, testing it as a
possible prey source); or Predatory
(the coyote directly and aggressively
pursued and bit the victim). Predatory
attacks resulted in the most serious
injuries. We classified 37% of attacks as
Predatory, 22% as Investigative, 7% as
Rabid, 6% as Pet-related, and 4% as
Defensive (the other 24% could not be
classified due to a lack of details).
To determine patterns in the circumstances
of attacks, we analyzed the activities of
victims prior to attack. Most victims were
doing some sort of recreational activity
(such as camping, walking, or biking) when
they were attacked. Many victims were also
relaxing outside their homes, sitting on
porches, grilling out, or sleeping outside.
Most attacks occurred outside the residence
of the victim or in a park.
We also investigated the timing of attack
incidents. We found that slightly more
attacks occurred during the months of
January through April (the breeding season
for coyotes) than in other months. We did
not find a meaningful difference in the
number of attacks occurring during daytime
versus nighttime hours. Most victims of
coyote attacks were attacked by seemingly
healthy coyotes. Only 15 victims (9%) were
bitten by rabid coyotes.
Most victims did not suffer serious injuries
from the attack. The majority of attack
victims were able to run away or scare off
the coyote and stop the attack by yelling or
throwing objects at it. Those that did
suffer the most serious injuries were
children. Only one fatal coyote attack in
the U.S. and Canada has been recorded in
modern history; a 3-year old female in
California died of injuries sustained from a
coyote attack.
In almost a third of the reported cases, it
was known that coyotes were being fed
(either intentionally or accidentally) near
the attack site. One victim was bitten while
feeding a coyote and another was bitten by a
coyote that was being fed by her parents.
After speaking to wildlife officials in
areas of known coyote attacks on humans, we
strongly suspect that wildlife feeding was
occurring in the locations of many of the
other attacks, even though this was not
documented.
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Preventing Coyote Attacks on
Humans
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Although coyotes have been known to attack
humans and as such are a potential danger to
people, especially children, we feel that
the majority of attack incidents could be
reduced or prevented through modification of
human behavior.
The most effective way to prevent coyote
attacks in your neighborhood is to eliminate
wildlife feeding. It is extremely important
that neighborhoods do not feed coyotes,
either intentionally or accidentally.
Coyotes that are fed in residential
neighborhoods can lose their fear of people,
and may eventually test humans (and pets) as
possible prey. If you see a coyote during
the daytime, you should exhibit caution, as
that coyote may have become habituated to
humans (and may be more likely to attack).
If you are approached by a coyote, you
should yell, wave your arms, and/or throw
something at the coyote (do not run away)!
Free-ranging domestic cats and feral cat
colonies may also serve to attract coyotes;
it is important that domestic cats be kept
indoors and that feral cats be spayed or
neutered when possible. Dogs that are left
outside (especially small dogs) should also
be watched with caution.
Although we were able to gather some useful
insights from our research of coyote attacks
within the United States and Canada, we were
limited by the source of our data. Records
of coyote attacks throughout the U.S. and
Canada are often incomplete, inaccessible,
and/or unreliable. Some of the accounts that
we located contained few details about the
coyote attack. We also suspect that
additional incidents may have gone
unreported or were not reflected in the
media. We feel that a standardized reporting
system of coyote attacks throughout the U.S.
and Canada would be extremely helpful for
further informing the details and
circumstances of coyote attacks on humans,
and for preventing future attacks.
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