[ducati1974]

I was walking my little dog tonight at 10:30 and encountered two coyotes running down the street near the intersection of O'Dell Circle and Alcove Loop.
One of them stopped across the street from me and I shined my light on him.
The other I lost track of but when I got home on Joiner Place there he was right next to my neighbors house. I've been walking this area at night for almost a year and this was a first for me. Definitely concerns me for the future!

[Mishy]

Large coyote in Virginia Trace yesterday. At pool, in our back yards, walking down the street. Undaunted by loud noises. HERE'S the kicker: I called 911 who gave me the Wild Game Commission's phone number. A representative told me info about coyotes, and said if I wanted to get rid of it I could eithet SHOOT it or hire someone to catch it. They wiped their hands of responsibility. Anyone want to form a group to encourage The Villages to take responsibility? Email me at ussmichele@gmail.com
Just call me Annie Oakley!

[Mishy]

By the way, we do own a small dog. And for the person who asked if we could maybe not walk the dog at night, that's like asking us to hold it all night. Perhaps they make Depends for dogs!

[tomwed]

I did a TOTV search for coyote and only got 3 hits, 3 threads. It doesn't seem like this would be a new problem. Either that of the search function doesn't go back very far.

That must be it. When I searched for alligators I only got 8 hits.

[rubicon]

Originally Posted by ducati1974

I was walking my little dog tonight at 10:30 and encountered two coyotes running down the street near the intersection of O'Dell Circle and Alcove Loop.
One of them stopped across the street from me and I shined my light on him.
The other I lost track of but when I got home on Joiner Place there he was right next to my neighbors house. I've been walking this area at night for almost a year and this was a first for me. Definitely concerns me for the future!

perhaps people should be carrying mace or something similar with them when they walk their dogs early on or late evening? Frankly if it were me i carried that wasp spray that carries some 20 feet

[asianthree]

Originally Posted by rubicon

perhaps people should be carrying mace or something similar with them when they walk their dogs early on or late evening? Frankly if it were me i carried that wasp spray that carries some 20 feet

Never thought about wasp spray.

[PaPaLarry]

Originally Posted by asianthree

Never thought about wasp spray.

Not sure that's going to work, when you have more then one coyote. Do they form packs?

[Taltarzac725]

Originally Posted by tomwed

I did a TOTV search for coyote and only got 3 hits, 3 threads. It doesn't seem like this would be a new problem. Either that of the search function doesn't go back very far.

That must be it. When I searched for alligators I only got 8 hits.

I got ten hits when I did an advanced search on my name and "coyote".

Wasp spray sounds like a very good idea.

It sounds like some coyotes in the Villages are getting a lot braver around people. So, some Villagers may want to carry more defensive objects-- like the wasp spray-- than the whistles and such I should have soon.

Are coyotes protected in this area? If not maybe some trappers should be alerted about the problem by the Villages Community Development Districts?

FAQs: Coyote (Canis latrans)

What should I do if I’m approached by a coyote?
Coyotes are not large animals and rarely pose a threat to people, especially adults. Using common sense around coyotes and other carnivores is the best protection against having problems. If a coyote approaches closely, immediately use a noisemaker or shout at the coyote and wave your arms. A solid walking stick, or a golf club, is a powerful deterrent at close range. Throwing stones, a strong spray from a water hose, pepper spray, or a paintball gun also can be good deterrents. A “coyote shaker” or an air horn can be effective noisemakers. You can make a coyote shaker by placing a few washers, pebbles or pennies in an empty drink container.

[DonH57]

Just don't carry it to the square or we'll have another story to talk about! Then there will be a 7 day waiting period for wasp spray.

[Taltarzac725]

Originally Posted by DonH57

Just don't carry it to the square or we'll have another story to talk about! Then there will be a 7 day waiting period for wasp spray.

The coyote shakers are real easy to make.

I talked to a neighbor with a CWL and he uses snake loads in a .38 pistol. I am very uncomfortable around handguns so this would never be an option for me.

[Jima64]

My knees would be shaking enough if I were walking and saw a coyote during the day. Not a evening walker anymore. They are probably adjusting to people and the available free food being presented to,them in feral cats and dogs.

[Laurie2]

Originally Posted by Taltarzac725

I got ten hits when I did an advanced search on my name and "coyote".

Wasp spray sounds like a very good idea.

It sounds like some coyotes in the Villages are getting a lot braver around people. So, some Villagers may want to carry more defensive objects-- like the wasp spray-- than the whistles and such I should have soon.

Are coyotes protected in this area? If not maybe some trappers should be alerted about the problem by the Villages Community Development Districts?

FAQs: Coyote (Canis latrans)

Tal, your link here to the Florida Wildlife Commission information on coyotes is excellent. I hope a lot of people read it.

I really hope Villagers will educate themselves about coyotes. I think coyotes are here to stay. Food and places to hide. And I can't think of any natural predators they would have to worry about. When war was waged on wolves years ago, coyotes thrived. Coyotes are smart and adapt easily. They can breed with wolves and dogs. (Coydogs) Breeding with dogs is relatively rare but it happens. I have heard coydogs are nuts. But that is just a rumor. I don't think TV dogs are in danger of being courted -- that is the least of their coyote worries.

Maybe there is a club in TV that can contact a speaker for a program to educate about coyotes. Meanwhile, I really do think that Villagers need to be careful about taking their pets for a walk at night or early in the morning. Coyotes can show up at any time, but they are opportunists. The number of sightings recently speaks clearly that they are out there among us. We have to be smart, too.

[tomwed]

My last home was in the Pine Barrens of south jersey, no coyotes that anyone talked about but many racoons. So it surprised me when I got down here that people put out their garbage in plastic bags the night before. Why isn't that a problem? Aren't there scavengers around here tearing into the bags?

[Taltarzac725]

Originally Posted by Laurie2

Tal, your link here to the Florida Wildlife Commission information on coyotes is excellent. I hope a lot of people read it.

I really hope Villagers will educate themselves about coyotes. I think coyotes are here to stay. Food and places to hide. And I can't think of any natural predators they would have to worry about. When war was waged on wolves years ago, coyotes thrived. Coyotes are smart and adapt easily. They can breed with wolves and dogs. (Coydogs) Breeding with dogs is relatively rare but it happens. I have heard coydogs are nuts. But that is just a rumor. I don't thing TV dogs are in danger of being courted -- that is the least of their coyote worries.

Maybe there is a club in TV that can contact a speaker for a program to educate about coyotes. Meanwhile, I really do think that Villagers need to be careful about taking their pets for a walk at night or early in the morning. Coyotes can show up at any time, but they are opportunists. The number of sightings recently speaks clearly that they are out there among us. We have to be smart, too.

I do think coyotes will adapt with whatever we throw at them like noisemakers and the like. Not so much with any lethal force being involved. I have not used lethal force against anything since giving up hunting in 1974 or so. This was when I was 15 and used to hang around with rural area youth who had a lot of guns and loved to hunt.

I talked to a lady yesterday who had a friend who fought off a coyote attack in her immediate neighborhood by kicking it. It got the neighbor of my friend's dog in its mouth by the neck. She managed to rescue the dog but its neck had been mangled too much for it to ever recover. She had to put the pooch down.

Trapping nuisance coyotes-- those that have lost their fear of people-- might be a really good solution with traps set in areas near homes but away from where a loose dog might get snagged.

[Taltarzac725]

Originally Posted by tomwed

My last home was in the Pine Barrens of south jersey, no coyotes that anyone talked about but many racoons. So it surprised me when I got down here that people put out their garbage in plastic bags the night before. Why isn't that a problem? Aren't there scavengers around here tearing into the bags?

Not many racoons in this area of Florida. Feral cats but the coyotes seem to have gotten a lot of those.