[Chi-Town]

Originally Posted by golfing eagles

I don't worry too much about the coyotes, eventually they all strap an ACME rocket to their backs and launch themselves into a canyon wall

How about Acme rocket roller skates?

https://youtu.be/S2VXOd3uXh8

[golfing eagles]

Originally Posted by Chi-Town

How about Acme rocket roller skates?

https://youtu.be/S2VXOd3uXh8

They don't roll well thru the preserves

[dbussone]

Originally Posted by golfing eagles

They don't roll well thru the preserves

Too funny!

[Barefoot]

Originally Posted by MDLNB

Guess I am just too ecologically challenged to care about an abundance of wild critters that pose a threat to the community peace.

I don't think it's been clearly documented that there is an abundance of wild creatures in The Villages that pose a threat to community peace.

[MDLNB]

Originally Posted by Barefoot

I don't think it's been clearly documented that there is an abundance of wild creatures in The Villages that pose a threat to community peace.

Right. A coyote steals a pet from a residence yard, but it wasn't "clearly documented." OK.

[Barefoot]

Originally Posted by Barefoot

I don't think it's been clearly documented that there is an abundance of wild creatures in The Villages that pose a threat to community peace.

Originally Posted by MDLNB

Right. A coyote steals a pet from a residence yard, but it wasn't "clearly documented." OK.

I feel terrible for the people who lost their dog.
Hopefully other pet owners will make sure their pets are always on a leash and supervised closely.
But I don't think one dog means "there is an abundance of wild creatures in The Villages that pose a threat to community peace"!

[gerryann]

Originally Posted by MDLNB

I guess I won't have to worry about it. That Villager won't be me. I'd really rather not have a "told ya so" moment. That's not my thing. I have always felt that if one is prepared for the worst, then it usually doesn't happen. It's always worked for me. Of course, it is less stressful to walk through life oblivious to threats and dangers. At least until one of those incidents drops on you like a collapsing concrete wall.

In the long run, is the stress you are creating for yourself really worth it? It's always best to be prepared for the possibilities, but being attacked by a coyote is just not something that you need to be so stressed over. I admit....I just got home from a walk with my pup in the dark. I had a flashlight and a billy club and a whistle....just in case. But I am NOT stressed over it as you apparently are. Take a deep breath and think about it. I feel awful for the one pup and his owner...but it was ONE pup.

[MDLNB]

Originally Posted by gerryann

In the long run, is the stress you are creating for yourself really worth it? It's always best to be prepared for the possibilities, but being attacked by a coyote is just not something that you need to be so stressed over. I admit....I just got home from a walk with my pup in the dark. I had a flashlight and a billy club and a whistle....just in case. But I am NOT stressed over it as you apparently are. Take a deep breath and think about it. I feel awful for the one pup and his owner...but it was ONE pup.

Like I said and reiterate, I'm not stressed at all. I have dealt with coyotes in the past, and I don't fear them. I don't stress muggers either. I'm prepared for either, with no stress. Prepared does not make me worried. This is just a conversation. Like my old daddy used to say, "ignorant people go through life happy". I guess if one doesn't know that there might be a danger out there somewhere, then they have nothing to be worried about. These coyotes will have to be dealt with eventually. You can ignore them until they start becoming a nuisance. Then, it may take drastic measures to eradicate them. Hate to see that happen because I think they are beautiful creatures. The ones that frequently passed through my yard in NC were large and healthy looking. Of course, we had plenty of rabbit, 'possum, mice and racoon for them to feed on. They even left my daughter's chickens alone, although she does own several dogs.

Coyote have been sighted in several areas of the Villages. Whether you ignore that or not, is entirely up to you. Sounds like you are prepared, with a stick and whistle, so apparently you are aware of your surroundings. The conversation was not supposed to be a debate, but rather an informational exchange. Since there are probably no natural predators to cull the coyote population down, I can foresee them reproducing into an eventual problem. They have to eat too, so birds and their eggs will be targeted, as well as mice, rats, 'possum and other rodents. Trash will be broken into and maybe even pets will be targeted. Just the nature of the beast.

I'd like to ignore the weeds in my yard too, but if I leave them be, they will eventually take over my landscape. Just a thought. Not a worry. Worry is when you don't leave your home for fear of being attacked. It's very unlikely you will be attacked by a coyote, but not impossible. Probably more rare than a snake bite.

[fmdjr1950]

I too wonder if the dog was leashed as required ? Maybe this would have not happened.

[bilcon]

I found a woman holding her small dog on my front porch at 9:30pm. She said an animal about the size of a big dog had approached her and she ran to my door for help. She lived about two blocks away, so I drove her home. My question is: What are you doing walking your dog, in the dark, at 9:30 PM. I live on the golf course, and often see lots of wildlife.

[golfing eagles]

Originally Posted by bilcon

I found a woman holding her small dog on my front porch at 9:30pm. She said an animal about the size of a big dog had approached her and she ran to my door for help. She lived about two blocks away, so I drove her home. My question is: What are you doing walking your dog, in the dark, at 9:30 PM. I live on the golf course, and often see lots of wildlife.

Maybe the dog had to go "potty"?

[LSTOWELL]

I live on Cane Gardens golf course and at the end of Allamanda there is a wild life preserve and it is full of coyotes. you can hear them all yelling when they hear the fire sirens going off at the corner. We saw one at 7 a.m walking in back on the tee box. big. I too walk my dogs in the evening and carry a flashlight and have been scared by strange sounds. I spoke with Ocala Regional Wildlife today and she told me they need people to call them when they see one so they can keep a record. She also stated they do not walk into traps. They feed on small animals and birds and are not after humans so we need to do something to "scare" them if we see them. throw rocks, have a noise maker (tin can with pennies will do). I take a broom out with me at night when I have to let me pets out. She also said if they were killed, they have a way of reproducing quickly and will be back in full force in a year or so. Calif. had problems like this and they are back like before so there's really nothing we can do to get rid of them, however, they are not a protected species. and it is ILLEGAL to feed them which she said some people do. watch your garbage to make sure nothing is getting it it at night , if so, then take out in the a.m. instead. her number is 352-732-1225

[Jima64]

Originally Posted by golfing eagles

Maybe the dog had to go "potty"?

Maybe she should think about staying in front of her own house and not walk the dog at. Night. I too have two small dogs and the only time they are out at night is to do the business in the front yard.

[su2009]

My Siamese cat was taken from my lanai on January 15, 2015 sometime between 9:30 p.m., when I saw him in his cat bed, and 4:30 a.m when I got up. We have a cat door from the inside to the lanai and this cat usually went out onto the lanai once or twice during the night just to watch the golf course.

Although I did not realize it at the time, that night the screen door to the outside was not loose and not latched (ours has to be pulled tight to latch). I had not remembered to check the outside screen door before going to bed. The night was cold and raining, and my cat hated the rain and would not have gone out in it. He also would not have gotten lost; he liked people and walked up and down the block when he was young, and all the neighbors knew him. When I got up at 4:30 a.m. the next morning, my Siamese cat was gone, there was a dog-sized muddy footprint on the lanai, and the other cat then refused to go out through the cat door onto the lanai for three months after that, even if I was with him. Of course, now I am very careful to make sure the screen door is pulled tightly and latched when I go in or out.

On August 3, 2015, a neighbor three doors up called me at 1 p.m. in the afternoon to let me know that a coyote was making her way down the backyards of the houses on the Kenya golf course side of our street, Bramble Terrace. As we spoke on the phone, the coyote arrived in our backyard. It was a young female, and she came up onto our patio in the daylight and stared into our lanai. She then sniffed carefully around the lanai and through the bushes in the back and on the side of our house before moving down to the next neighbors' house. It was raining that day, but coyotes have a very oily coat and she did not look even slightly wet – her ears were up and her bushy tail was full and not bedraggled at all.

She was clearly alert and hunting for prey, and she searched carefully through the bushes behind the other houses on the golf course. I have no idea whether she was the coyote who took our cat, but she certainly found our lanai a place of interest, and coyotes are unquestionably smart enough to work open a poorly latched screen door.

[gerryann]

Originally Posted by LSTOWELL

I live on Cane Gardens golf course and at the end of Allamanda there is a wild life preserve and it is full of coyotes. you can hear them all yelling when they hear the fire sirens going off at the corner. We saw one at 7 a.m walking in back on the tee box. big. I too walk my dogs in the evening and carry a flashlight and have been scared by strange sounds. I spoke with Ocala Regional Wildlife today and she told me they need people to call them when they see one so they can keep a record. She also stated they do not walk into traps. They feed on small animals and birds and are not after humans so we need to do something to "scare" them if we see them. throw rocks, have a noise maker (tin can with pennies will do). I take a broom out with me at night when I have to let me pets out. She also said if they were killed, they have a way of reproducing quickly and will be back in full force in a year or so. Calif. had problems like this and they are back like before so there's really nothing we can do to get rid of them, however, they are not a protected species. and it is ILLEGAL to feed them which she said some people do. watch your garbage to make sure nothing is getting it it at night , if so, then take out in the a.m. instead. her number is 352-732-1225

Great information. This is all just a part of living where we do. We can't build and over populate an area, then expect the wildlife to go away. We have to take precautions and learn to accept their existence. Leashing our dogs is being done to protect them.