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Community Corner

Twin Cities Coyote Attacks Raise Concerns

Animal control authorities say their population is increasing in the metro area.

Linda Davis had let her dog Ruby out the back door and started brushing her teeth late last week. As soon as she turned the water off, the Edina resident heard screeching.

She ran out screaming and saw a coyote bolting after attacking her miniature dachshund.

“It just happened so fast,” Davis, who lives near , said of the attack. “You can’t think just because your yard is fenced you have some protection.”

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The Minnesota DNR says coyote populations are establishing and increasing in the Twin Cities metro area. And they've attacked small dogs. In St. Louis Park, a a man’s 16-year-old maltese, Cici, who had to be put down two days later.

“They’ve just become more common,” said Dan Stark, a wolf specialist with the Minnesota DNR’s Division of Fish and Wildlife. He also noted that no hard data exits on their numbers in the metro, but based on observation, coyote sightings here are more common now than a decade ago.

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Tim Hunter, animal control officer with the , said Ruby’s run-in was the first time he’s heard of a coyote attacking a pet in more than seven years on the job.

He said the city gets involved with coyotes only when there’s a health or safety risk for humans. The coyote that attacked Ruby responded normally, he said, because it ran when it noticed Davis.

“I don’t recommend that people get involved simply because they themselves might get injured,” Hunter said. “The easiest and simplest thing is to supervise the pet that’s outside.”

Hunter said coyotes—wild members of the dog family—are highly adaptable and often scavenge. Generally, they shy away from humans, although Minnesota’s DNR says there have been a few reports across the country of coyotes attacking children.

That hasn’t happened in Minnesota, according to animal control authorities, who also say they’re not about to set traps.

Hunter, though, said resident property owners may consult with private animal control organizations. Coyotes are not a protected species.

Ruby thankfully didn’t face the same fate as Cici. Davis said she rushed her to the vet and she’s recovering from seven puncture wounds along with two cracked ribs.

“The people I talked to who are either trappers or know a lot about coyote habits say that they’re difficult to trap,” Davis said. “I don’t want a coyote in our neighborhood, but I don’t know how to get rid of it other than to kill it. It’s very hard to say I wish the coyote was dead.”

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