Coyote Warning In Illinois Area
Janice just barked this important information to me for Dogster readers in the Wheaton, Illinois area.
A warning has been issued by the Wheaton Chief of Police, Mark Field.
Coyote Alert
WHEATON, Ill. – The highly adaptable coyote continues to flourish in the western suburbs within populated areas, mostly because of the interesting menu available in the form of dog and cat food, or easy-to-open garbage cans.
Coyotes can survive on whatever food is available, from rodents to rubbish, from insects to fruit to carrion. They can be a threat to family pets. Although no attacks have been reported within the City of Wheaton, in isolated but tragic cases elsewhere, coyotes have attacked small children.
Essentially unimpeded by control measures, abundant food has encouraged coyotes to become accustomed to the sight and sounds of humans. Consequently, coyote populations and range have expanded in recent years in the western suburbs.
While coyotes are valuable in decreasing the rodent population, their presence in populated areas can be minimized.
DO feed pets indoors or promptly remove dishes when pets complete their meal outside. Store bags of pet food indoors.
DO clear brush and dense weeds from around property. This deprives rodents of shelter and reduces protective cover for coyotes.
DON’T leave domestic pet food outside. Wildlife will soon depend upon it.
DO use trash barrels equipped with tight clamping devices on the lids, which will prevent spills should they be tipped over by large animals.
DO try to educate your friends and neighbors about the problems associated with feeding coyotes. If you belong to a homeowner’s association or neighborhood watch, bring up the subject during one of the meetings.
DON’T feed or provide water for coyotes or other wildlife. This practice abnormally attracts coyotes and promotes increased numbers of rodents, birds, snakes, and other creatures that can provide major portions of the coyote’s natural diet.
TO PROTECT PETS
Keep small pets (cats, rabbits, small dogs) indoors. Don’t allow them to run free at any time. They are easy, favored prey. Some coyotes hunt cats in residential areas.
Large dogs should be brought inside after dark and never allowed to run loose.
DON’T leave domestic pet food outside. Wildlife will soon depend upon it.
Definitely some great advice for those that live in the area. Please be sure to pass this important information on to your friends and neighbors so they can keep their pets safe too.
* The beauty above, Yoat, actually lives on the property of a Dogster member.
Thats scary! Where I live in the country, we have coyotes and Mountain Lions! I always keep my pup indoors!
That’s skeery!
We have tons of racoons, squirrels, and “pawsomes” here, but I never saw a coyote.
I’m glad that the coyotes aren’t close to us.
at night, having outside lights on seems to deture them.
Holy wow! Coyotes there, how scary is that for the furry ones! Here in parts of Orange County, Florida (The Orlando area) there are Bears, and lets not forget the Gators! My Binx is never outside alone, nope! Oh, we even saw a Fox one day here in Orlando!
Here is a link to a story of a bear swimming in the pool at the Hard Rock Hotel in Orlando this year!
http://www.cfnews13.com/News/Local/2008/5/28/bear_spotted_near_hard_rock_hotel.html
SCARY!!!!!!!!!! We are by Chi-Town(Chicago, IL), so we are OK fur now!
Mommy says we have themhere too but hasn’t seen one in town in several years. There was a night back before our time that they saw one just a block from our house as they were leaving the neighborhood and mom said the first year they lived in our house she heard them in the wooded area behind our house. Of course that was ten years ago and we didn’t have A/C yet so the windows were open and she heard the babies calling to the parents. Also we havehad a lot of houses and stuff built since then and that has scared thenm away from our area but they are still here just further from town where we live.
To Bella Duke’s Mommy – I could swear in the news (now) last year, there was a story of a coyote that walked into a downtown Chicago Subway sandwich shop. They had video of the coyote walking in, and for some reason hopped into the refrig chest that held drinks. This was during the day during business hours! Urban coyotes – they are survivors!
It’s not just the west suburbs. I’m in deerfield (north). I’ve been here 14 years. We’ve had them in the neighborhood as long as I’ve been here and they’ve NEVER been a problem. They’re very shy and will hunt wild rabbit,etc, they most certainly prefer to stay away from yards. Incidents are unusual, rare and that’s why you hear of it across the country when something happens. It’s their space too. It’s how it should be. and yes, I am a responsible pet lover
and to Lyn- The shop was empty. the animal had been chased from waukegan over 3 days, through Wilmette and into the city. It didn’t belong there and should have been left alone in waukegan. It was looking for food in a city enviroment, which it shouldn’t have been in. It would have been fine in Waukegan.
they don’t hunt or harm people or medium to large dogs. If you’re concerned about a small dog or cat- well I suppose there at less risk from coyotes than they are from cars, so I would maybe keep them inside- like a responsible pet owner. Stop all the scare stories. They dont’ deserve it.
tina,
I don’t understand your post. You seem to be implying that a posse or a mob of vigilantes was hot on the trail of the coyote all the way from Waukegan to the heart of downtown Chicago.
But coyotes are old news in Chicago.Far more amazing
was the mountain lion that was found(and killed by the police) in a densely populated residential area of Chicago’s near north side in April 2008.. And no, it wasn’t someone’s escaped pet.
The crazy weather patterns are starting to make them a little nutty as well.
I live about an hour south west of wheaton,il in a residential neighborhood with a small wooded lot behind our house…. We hear coyotes howling almost everynight! We have seen tracks in our yard and some neighbors have actually seen them in the neighborhood late at night! Very scary! Our pets are never outside w/out me or my husband! Don’t think just because you dont see them they aren’t there either! Coyotes are everywhere!!!!!
OMD!Those thing are dangerous!Last year,here in CT,a lady with a german shep and a lab let her dog outside and then the german shep came in without the lab so fo a week,she try to find the lab.after that she found the lab dead.She also found out that it was coyotes.so be careful.
This is weird this that I saw this article. On Christmas Day my husband saw a coyote walking down the street in front of his mom’s house in Glendale Heights Il. Not far at all from Wheaton.
Shouldn’t this also be posted on Catster?? We want to keep our kitties safe too.
No one is trying to scare anyone, Just sharing warnings from the police department.
Better safe than sorry!
The Amigos Mom
We have coyotes in our area too. They run around loose, and when we are on walks, sometimes they zoom right past us. It’s scary. :0
We live in Freeport, IL which is 60+ miles west from Chicago & the ‘berbs & surrounded by farmland. We are used to seeing whole packs of coyotes & other wild dogs. They are usually skittish around people, but they don’t hesitate to come around houses & populated areas for the chance of food. Many farmers employ large dogs such as mastiffs to watch herd animals such as cows and (especially) sheep in our area. But, it’s important to listen to your pets when they are trying to warn you of an intruder in the flock. Quickly! Don’t let them become a victim to coyote attacks!
I live in Central Maine, so Coyotes are not alien to me or my neighbors. We have had black bears in the center of town before (and Moose), and there are stories of cats dissappearing etc. a little further out from town. I have had the privelidge of seeing a Coyote cross my path (on a road while I was walking on foot), but normally they are just as scared of me as I first am when I see them. Same with the bears. On camping trips and climbing trips, we have heard them yipping and howling off in the distance (Acadia National Park). They aren’t scary. They aren’t even that big. (maybe smaller than my border collie). They are normally shy and avoid humans. Humans are the ones closing in on their habitat. I am more nervous about moving to Oregon where the REAL carnivores hang out!
Calabasas is known for Coyotes. I just saw one running across the street in broad daylight this morning!
Some years ago my daughter and I lived in a small town in Central Illinois. We lived right in the center of town. My daughter walked our lab/golden mix dog every evening. One evening she came barreling in very excited saying that a coyote had been following them for a couple of blocks. I laughed and told her it was probably a dog. She asked me to go look. I stepped out onto my porch and there standing in the middle of the driveway staring me down and howling was a coyote! Needless to say I couldn’t get back into the house fast enough. I was afraid to take the garbage out after dark from then on.
Me and my husband spotted a coyote on Grand Avenue and Butrick on 01/11/09! It was aroung 1:30am in the morning. It was just walking down the street, roaming I suppose for food. We followed for a few blocks in the car, but then it ran off.
Garnd Avenue and Butrick is in Waukegan, Illinois.
Tina in Deerfield
Well, you are sadly mistaken. Coyotes WILL attack a large/medium dog. At this time of year, males are aggressive, protecting their territory and feeding females. They are helpful in the ‘large circle of life’, but don’t be fooled. I am sure that a few neighborhood cats have become a meal for a roaming Coyote. In Deerfield, with limited Animal Control, you need have have good information and what was posted by the Wheaton Chief of Police is valuable advice to follow and live by.
We have created our own problem by feeding them. We not only need to be responsible pet owners, but also informed pet owners.
P.S. The Coyote in Chicago DID enter a local sandwich shop – during lunch time – and was in a cooler. He was removed by Chicago Animal Control and set free in another area.
IF a coyote needs removed, i can do it. Quietly if need be. But FYI i do it the old fashioned way, it doesnt end good for mr Wiley coyote. 18 so far this year. 24 including my partners coyotes. And yes yotes can take down a larger dog if they deem necessary. B big male may weigh only 40 lbs but he is strong and built for speed and grew up in a much harsher enviornment. Most of the time one coyote will get in front of the dog the other will grab him from behind, when the dog turns the coyote or coyotes in front will go after the neck.
My dog Tippy was killed last night by 3 coyotes. They were by our house last night at 11:00 pm and ripped Tippy’s throat out. I would like to see them all killed. They were 20 feet from my house. I don’t think anyone would want this done to there dog. My dog was out side for 2 minutes. It dones not take a dog to be tied out, or left out for any length of time….. MINUTES!!!!!!
Tippy lived in Beecher IL. Sorry forgot location
i am so sorry for your loss,we use to live in glenview,now live up in wisco,but i was told by our vet that coyates r very brazen animals,they will come rite up to your door,obviouslly there habitate has been destroyed in illinios,where they could be hunting mice rabbits etc in the fields,unfortunatelly this is what happens and will continue to happen down there with all that building,now we live way out in the country,i see and hear,the coyates every nite,they hunt our alfafa feild for rabbits,knock on wood,not even our barn cats have ever been killed,there den was no more them 1000 feet from our barn,but again they have enough room and food to run free up here,but this doesnt help u with your loss,our sincere condelesces for the loss of your freind,others take note they will do it again,mary wille
Yes they are still at it. I have not lost 4 of my barn cats and tippy. At night we are woke up by streaming animals at least 3 to 4 nights a week. I can’t stand it. We find the remains of animals in our yard. We are finding it hard to find help with this matter. My husband and I both don’t shoot guns. I’m at a loss. We are taking extra care of the remaining animals we own and not letting anything go out after 9:00. We also don’t stay out after dark. I just want to thank you ( Mary Wille) for your kind words. If you see the coyotes they say that they are stalking you so please take extra care of all of you and your animals.
I live in Glenview, IL and was at the end of my driveway waiting for someone to pick me up around 11pm when I saw what I thought to be a lost dog, perhaps a german shepard. It was trotting in the street about fifteen feet away from me and I realized by the bark that it made that it was no dog. It darted after and caught the neighbors cat right in front of me. It was so fast and so aggressive and I cant get the sound of the cat screaming out of my head. I have been crying and terrified all night because I have a wonderful black lab that is the sweetest thing and the aggression I saw out of that animal tonight has me in a panic. My mom had seen a coyote around 5:30am the other day on our street and I am worried that it is settling in on my street and planning to eat all the neighborhood pets. I contacted the glenview police and they said animal control would not do anything about it because they are very hard to catch and are common in this area. Does anybody have any other additional advice for me? I am scared to leave my dog alone out of the fear of someone letting her outside when i am not home….. Tippy I am so sorry I could not imagine what has happened to you and your poor dog. I hope that you are okay.
we still have a problem with the coyotes. They have killed all the neighbors cats.
tina- you are total wrong about the coyotes. How would you like your dog and cat killed by having there throat ripped out. You need to get your fax right before you defend such a wild animal. And yes they have attacked people on occasion. You need to do alittle more research. Information goes a long way.
I live in the country and this past spring at 8:30 a.m. on a bright sunshiney day we had an encounter with a coyote. My two small maltese and large border collie aussie mix were standing in the front yard with me only about 10 feet away. I had my eyes on the dogs the entire time and a coyote appeared a couple of feet away from the little dogs. They are sleek and quiet. Even the border collie didn’t see it at first. I screamed at the coyote and chased it back out into the pasture.
I was sitting in my apartment tonight watching monday night football when I heard something howeling outside of my apartment complex. At first I thought it was a dog but after about 5 min I realized that it was no dog. I went outside to my balcony and someone had their flashlight pointed on two dog like animals that were trotting off away from the light. I live in Evanston. And I can tell you that these where no dogs. I guess they are starting to get closer to the city now.