RESTON, VA: A Reston woman contacted Patch.com that let us know that she saw a coyote in the backyard of her apartment building, located on Becontree Lake Drive, Reston.

“I saw your Patch article on coyotes in Manassas, and wanted to let you know I saw one in our backyard in Reston,” said Gisele Cloutier. ”Our apartment building backs onto a wooded area. At first I thought it was a fox because we’ve seen those, but no bushy tail and the face and coloring were different. Seeing the coyote photo on your article, I now know it was a coyote!”

Cloutier said she saw the coyote in the mid afternoon yesterday.

“It was skinny, looked mangy too. At first I thought it was a sick fox, but it looked a lot more like the animal on your coyote picture in the article,” she said.

Dumb bitch

Coyotes live here. Just like skunks and raccoons. It isn't necessary to "do anything" simply because you think you've spotted a coyote somewhere. They are smart, quiet and primarily nocturnal, and they don't want to have anything to do with you. What they want is to eat rats and Canada goose eggs. Good on them!

Big deal Wrote:
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> Coyotes live here. Just like skunks and raccoons.
> It isn't necessary to "do anything" simply
> because you think you've spotted a coyote
> somewhere. They are smart, quiet and primarily
> nocturnal, and they don't want to have anything to
> do with you. What they want is to eat rats and
> Canada goose eggs. Good on them!

They will eat your cats!

Coyotes are all over the east coast. They aren't near as aggressive as wolves can be. You have a much higher chance of getting bit by your neighbors dog than you would getting bit by a coyote that has a den near your home.

Nom Nom Wrote:
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> They will eat your cats!

Alligators will eat your cats. Retire to Florida and see. Coyotes are unlikely to eat anything even as large as a decent-sized kitten, but neither cats nor kittens should be left out at night, nor should they be out during the day except in fenced enclosures while under human supervision.

http://www.cnn.com/2009/SHOWBIZ/Music/10/29/canada.singer.killed/

Don't get western coyotes mixed with eastern. Eastern coyotes are larger and are thought to be a hybrid with Wolves. They will attack a pet, mostly live off bunnies and scavenge. However, there is very little you actually need to be concerned about since they are shy and generally don't travel in packs in suburban and urban areas.

Western coyotes are just like elephants. There aren't any of them around here. There are foxes around here though, and they and the eastern coyotes compete on an unfriendly basis for space and prey, with the coyotes usually prevailing.

How to care for a cat Wrote:
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> Nom Nom Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > They will eat your cats!
>
> Alligators will eat your cats. Retire to Florida
> and see. Coyotes are unlikely to eat anything
> even as large as a decent-sized kitten, but
> neither cats nor kittens should be left out at
> night, nor should they be out during the day
> except in fenced enclosures while under human
> supervision.


Cats can fend for themselves very well. They aren't dogs. They are solitary and need to roam free. Its a rare cat that will grow up to adore humans. They often tolerate us because we feed them.

cat scratch fever Wrote:
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> Cats can fend for themselves very well. They aren't dogs.
> They are solitary and need to roam free. Its a rare cat that
> will grow up to adore humans. They often tolerate us because
> we feed them.

The life expectancy of a feral cat living on its own is about two years.

Sofiugks Wrote:
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> http://www.cnn.com/2009/SHOWBIZ/Music/10/29/canada
> .singer.killed/
>
> Don't get western coyotes mixed with eastern.
> Eastern coyotes are larger and are thought to be a
> hybrid with Wolves. They will attack a pet, mostly
> live off bunnies and scavenge. However, there is
> very little you actually need to be concerned
> about since they are shy and generally don't
> travel in packs in suburban and urban areas.

There's no difference. The increase in the coyote population we've seen in
the last 20 years or so is the result of a drought that lowered the water
levels of the upper Mississippi and "Western" coyotes made it across to
proliferate. The eastern coyotes may be a little better fed though.
I love it when a coyote eats a yuppies prize poodle and then they bitch
about hunters and trappers harvesting them.

TrapperJohn Wrote:
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> There's no difference. The increase in the coyote
> population we've seen in the last 20 years or so
> is the result of a drought that lowered the water
> levels of the upper Mississippi and "Western"
> coyotes made it across to proliferate.

The eastern coyote has been established in this area for at least 50 years. Records are sparse (and somewhat unreliable) before that. The DNA of local coyotes has meanwhile established that they migrated first across the Great Lakes and into Canada, then eastward (interbreeding with wolves along the way) and later back south again along the Appalachians through New York state and beyond. The fact that wolves, bears, and large predator cats had been driven out of areas around here left them wide open to coyote colonization.

> I love it when a coyote eats a yuppies prize poodle...

This would be quite a rare occurrence. Coyotes are omnivores and opportunists and would be apt to come across something much easier to munch down before coming upon a poodle. And of course "prized" poodles sleep in Mommy's bed and are never left out overnight.

How to care for a cat Wrote:
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> TrapperJohn Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > There's no difference. The increase in the
> coyote
> > population we've seen in the last 20 years or
> so
> > is the result of a drought that lowered the
> water
> > levels of the upper Mississippi and "Western"
> > coyotes made it across to proliferate.
>
> The eastern coyote has been established in this
> area for at least 50 years. Records are sparse
> (and somewhat unreliable) before that. The DNA of
> local coyotes has meanwhile established that they
> migrated first across the Great Lakes and into
> Canada, then eastward (interbreeding with wolves
> along the way) and later back south again along
> the Appalachians through New York state and
> beyond. The fact that wolves, bears, and large
> predator cats had been driven out of areas around
> here left them wide open to coyote colonization.
>
>
> > I love it when a coyote eats a yuppies prize
> poodle...
>
> This would be quite a rare occurrence. Coyotes
> are omnivores and opportunists and would be apt to
> come across something much easier to munch down
> before coming upon a poodle. And of course
> "prized" poodles sleep in Mommy's bed and are
> never left out overnight.


http://www.abc22now.com/news/top-stories/stories/Springboro-Family-Fear-a-Coyote-Killed-Family-Dog-224748.shtml

cat scratch fever Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> How to care for a cat Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Nom Nom Wrote:
> >
> --------------------------------------------------
>
> > -----
> > > They will eat your cats!
> >
> > Alligators will eat your cats. Retire to
> Florida
> > and see. Coyotes are unlikely to eat anything
> > even as large as a decent-sized kitten, but
> > neither cats nor kittens should be left out at
> > night, nor should they be out during the day
> > except in fenced enclosures while under human
> > supervision.
>
>
> Cats can fend for themselves very well. They
> aren't dogs. They are solitary and need to roam
> free. Its a rare cat that will grow up to adore
> humans. They often tolerate us because we feed
> them.

Same thing for dogs. Watch how quickly a dog forget the owner when someone else is feeding it.

They are ANIMALS and just want a steady feed source. They don't have "feelings."

mmrt Wrote:
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> Springboro-Family-Fear-a-Coyote-Killed-Family-Dog

LOL! This is the story of a shih tzu (toy dog) who went missing while outside one night last October in the area of Dayton, Ohio. There is exactly nothing to tie the dog's disappearance to a coyote. There is just the babbling no-basis fear of the dog's owners. They might as well have attributed it to ISIS instead with that sort of non-rationale.

Reston has a lot of Cougars too. Usually you can find them in Jackson's in Reston Town Center. They are probably drinking a mojito or red wine. They are much more fun to play with, than coyotes.

Whoooooooo Wrote:
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> Reston has a lot of Cougars too. Usually you can
> find them in Jackson's in Reston Town Center. They
> are probably drinking a mojito or red wine. They
> are much more fun to play with, than coyotes.

The mojitos are good at Jackson's and so are the margaritas. Personally though, I find the sushi and deviled eggs quite a bit more interesting than any of the cougars. All that of course may just be a function of how many times one has been around the block. As for coyotes, I would expect RTC in general to be a pretty poor choice as an area in which to spot any.

How to care for a cat Wrote:
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> mmrt Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> >
> Springboro-Family-Fear-a-Coyote-Killed-Family-Dog
>
> LOL! This is the story of a shih tzu (toy dog)
> who went missing while outside one night last
> October in the area of Dayton, Ohio. There is
> exactly nothing to tie the dog's disappearance to
> a coyote. There is just the babbling no-basis
> fear of the dog's owners. They might as well have
> attributed it to ISIS instead with that sort of
> non-rationale.
f


If you Google coyote kills dog Ohio you will find plenty.


http://www.wlwt.com/news/family-dog-attacked-by-coyote-in-springdale-backyard/33932896


http://www.cleveland.com/metro/index.ssf/2015/02/coyotes_attack_dog_in_clevelan.html


http://kdvr.com/2015/08/07/coyote-attacks-dog-in-backyard-of-westminster-neighborhood/

mmrt Wrote:
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> If you Google coyote kills dog Ohio you will find plenty.

If I Google abducted by aliens in Ohio, I will find plenty. More than 250,000 hits in fact.

In the three cases you cited meanwhile, there were no confirmed deaths of any confirmed dogs caused by any confirmed coyotes. A tiny dog did disappear and an owner blamed that on whatever it was that cast what he took to be a coyote shadow. No information on the owner's experience in identifying coyotes in that manner. Meanwhile, a second dog suffered a cut as it was being chased off-leash through a cemetery by what the owner took to be two other dogs but later decided must have been two coyotes. Vets cleaned out the cut and the dog was fine. In the third case, a security camera showed a dog being bitten by what appeared to be a coyote that quickly let go of the dog and ran off. The dog stayed at the vet overnight but was checked out fine. Close encounters of the coyote kind...?

It of course remains true that cats. kittens, and other family pets should not be left alone outside, and particularly not at night. It also remains true that coyotes are opportunistic omnivores who do not go out chihuahua-stalking. As their droppings in this area confirm, they are quite fond of rats and goose eggs. It would be a rare occurrence indeed that a coyote in these parts would find only poodles to eat in its neck of the woods.

I have a question about these coy-wolfs? What came first the wolf or the coyote?

Western coyotes expanding their range into Canada above the Great Lakes bred there with local wolves to form Eastern coyotes which then spread southward down the Appalachians. They've been in this area since at least the 1950s and are now about as established as raccoons and squirrels as part of our local native wildlife.

But what came first, the wolf of coyote.

They are often seen in 5.0 Liter Mustangs...