Oh, I like that movie...
Posted on 03/03/2009 4:36:31 PM PST by SJackson
Two incidents on Madison’s West Side in which small dogs were killed by coyotes in the last three weeks have prompted city officials to schedule a public meeting with wildlife experts who will talk about living safely alongside the wild animal.
Madison Ald. Mark Clear, 19th District, said one of the dogs was killed in early February in the Highlands neighborhood just north of Old Sauk Road while the other was killed in Parkwood Hills, south of Old Sauk Road. Both neighborhoods are adjacent to Owen Conservation Park, a 120-acre wooded park on Old Sauk that is home to five or six coyotes. One dog was a poodle, the other was a lhasa apso; both were found with bite marks typical of a coyote attack.
Enough residents have expressed concern, Clear said, that a public meeting will be held at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, March 26 at the Alicia Ashman Branch of the Madison Public Library, 733 N. High Point Rd. In attendance will be wildlife experts from the state Department of Natural Resources, the city of Madison and the UW-Madison.
“It’s a chance to educate people about living with urban wildlife,” Clear said.
Clear is no stranger to such issues. Last spring he had to quell an uprising of wild turkeys. The birds, jittery because it was the height of mating season, were attacking mail carriers in Parkwood Hills.
“It’s one wildlife issue after another,” Clear said.
While they say they feel badly for the families that lost their dogs, wildlife experts say coyotes are likely here to stay and that removing the animals is not an option because more coyotes would simply move in. Instead, said Doug Fendry, a wildlife specialist with the DNR, residents can take a number of steps that will reduce run-ins with coyotes. The most important of those measures, he said, is not letting small dogs or cats outside unattended, especially in neighborhoods known to be home to coyotes.
“So often with people with wild animal problems, all they want to hear from us is that we’re going to come in and take care of the problem for them,” Fendry said. “The reality is that coyotes have been here for a very long time. Really, the key is learning to live with them.”
Russ Hefty, a conservationist with the Madison Park District, also said coyotes are a beneficial part of the urban ecosystem because they help keep populations of everything from feral cats to rabbits and even those pesky wild turkeys in check.
Charlene Drumm, who lives in Parkwood Hills and edits the neighborhood newsletter, said residents there are very aware of the coyotes. She said when she walks her dog on snowy mornings she often sees the paw prints of the coyotes coming out of the woods and looping through backyards.
Some have expressed concern about the danger to people, especially children, but Fendry said attacks on people are extremely rare and added that he knows of none on record in Wisconsin.
Tips for dealing with coyotes
Wildlife experts suggest the following steps for dealing with urban coyotes:
• Do not feed coyotes. It is especially important not to feed the animals intentionally because they become more habituated to humans. Nor should you feed them unintentionally by leaving pet food or garbage outside.
• Do not let pets run loose. Experts say to be especially careful with small dogs and cats.
• Do not run from a coyote. If coyotes come into your yard, the best thing to do to discourage them from showing up again is to shout or to throw something such as a tennis ball in their direction.
Coyotes in Wisconsin, who would have thought?
Get bigger dogs, toughen them up. Or shoot the coyotes when you see them.
Global Warming is obviously forcing them towards the cities.
Oh, I like that movie...
Believe it or not, we’ve actually had a few coyotes in Central Park (Manhattan, NY) over the past several years.
http://search.yahoo.com/search?p=%22coyote%22%22central+park%22&ei=UTF-8&fr=moz2
“Do not feed coyotes.”
Or how about stuffing hot dogs with rat poison?
As long as it’s only dog on dog crime, let Peta worry about it... Peta and the environmentalists.
BUSH’S FAULT.
“...shout or to throw something such as a tennis ball in their direction.”
Yep. That’ll work, LOL! How about I “throw” a bullet at them? ;)
We have a TON of coyote out here by us (10 miles south of Madistan) but since we have big dogs, they don’t come near the house. The closest scat I’ve seen is about 1/4 mile away, though I have seen coyotes twice in the wee hours of the morning when out walking the dogs, but they were heading in the other direction and were at least 2 miles away.
For close in work, a 12 ga. with a tight choke and 00 buckshot. Farther out, try a .223 hollow point. If you don't want the pelt, there are folks that tie their own fishing lures that will pay real money for a 'yote tail.
Hot Dog’s ? Here in the west they live on cats , rabbits , small dogs . Why kill them ? Unlike what they feast on , they are real dogs.
My dog got bitten twice by coyotes in a suburb of Sacramento. The coyotes are pretty brazen coming up to her right on a concrete walking path. I wish I had a gun with me although I am sure I would be the one in trouble.
We have coyote and wild turkey and since the wild turkey are not good for the quail, we’re rooting for the coyotes.
Urban coyotes are easily dispatched with a .22. They don’t recover from a gut shot - they just run off and die in their den.
Fixed it for the Madison libs.
We live way out in the country where there are coyotes, bobcats, wild turkeys, rattlers, copperheads, deer and everything one can think of. In some areas near here, the coyotes mixed with dogs and came out with a new breed that was more brazen than regular coyotes; killed pets, even sheep, goats. I think the people in those subdivisions were scared for their small children, and those of them who weren’t vegetarian fatuous liberals did the “Three S” (shot, shoveled and shut up). We haven’t heard about them any more on the news in a long time.
Diana,
I live in Verona - just bought a house here in September. If you are still a mgr at a garden center, freepmail me which one.. I’d rather spend my money at your store for my upcoming landscaping needs.
On topic:
I hear coyotes all the time during the summer, saw one running across the road(brand new division) last summer with a cat or rabbit in its mouth. No big surprise when you live on the edge of town, Madison goes from city to country in a snap.
“Both neighborhoods are adjacent to Owen Conservation Park, a 120-acre wooded park on Old Sauk that is home to five or six coyotes.”
Only 5 or 6? Yeah, right.
I had to laugh at that one. Typical liberal touchy-feely crap. A tennis ball? Well, I suppose "Todd and Margo" would have tennis balls lying around their manicured yards or stashed in the trunk of their Volvo. But what really sticks in my mind is the image of of your typical effeminate yuppie girly-man trying to "shout down" and reason with those mean and dirty coyotes!
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