READER REPORT: Coyote comeback continues

Thanks to Kevin Freitas for sending the video and photo. He reports, “Yesterday morning while on a run, my partner recorded this brief video showing the area coyote out and about. This was shot at 36th/Graham about 7 am. Control that bunny population, friend!”

This is the fourth coyote report we’ve received in a month, after a year without any (which of course doesn’t mean they haven’t been around). As we always note, we don’t publish these as a warning, but rather an educational FYI. As Kevin’s comment suggests, they eat a lot of small wildlife, but small domestic animals left alone are susceptible too, so take that into consideration. Advice on how to coexist with coyotes by keeping them at a distance is part of this state-produced Living With Wildlife guide.

25 Replies to "READER REPORT: Coyote comeback continues"

  • valvashon July 26, 2023 (11:55 am)

    Kevin- great video.  Thank you for holding your phone sideways.

  • B.R July 26, 2023 (12:48 pm)

    Unfortunately two families in the Gatewood Hill area have lost their cats to a coyote in the last 5 days that were mentioned on Nextdoor or Facebook. People who let their cats roam around outside might want to keep them inside to protect them from the coyote(s) that are roaming around looking for their next meal. Yes, we do need to share the world with coyotes. This is meant as a word of caution to cat owners since the coyotes have killed at least 2 cats recently, that I have seen reported. The people who’s cats have been killed, now wish they had kept their cats inside. So here’s a heads up to keeping your cats safe inside. 

  • Sillygoose July 26, 2023 (1:05 pm)

    YES!!  Bring back the coyote population, our streets are over run with rats, rabbits and feral cats.   It was wonderful in the early 90’s to hear them at night howling and yipping.   

    • waikikigirl July 26, 2023 (2:16 pm)

      WOW really feral cats…and whose fault is that, but the HUMANS that took a cat in as a pet and then discarded them as if they were trash! 

    • CatLover July 26, 2023 (2:33 pm)

      There’s no need to wish death on the feral kitties It’s not their fault their homeless

      • Jethro Marx July 26, 2023 (10:39 pm)

        Everything born will also die, whether death is wished upon it or not. I know, this is a hard teaching, but we must accept it. I for one welcome our coyotes.

    • WSSpartan July 26, 2023 (4:14 pm)

      Overrun with rats, rabbits and feral cats?? That statement reeks of hyperbole. I agree with your sentiment about coyotes though. Would be nice to have them effectively integrated back into our WS ecosystem. 

    • Junctioneer July 26, 2023 (4:33 pm)

      We used to hear regular howling in Admiral until around 2015 or so.

  • T Rex July 26, 2023 (3:23 pm)

    All cats should be kept inside at night, it is never going to end up well. Something I have never understood. They want out as it is their nature. My cat ALWAYS wanted out at night, but never was allowed. They do get used to it or they get over it.  

  • Marcus July 26, 2023 (4:16 pm)

    Maybe that is what I hear at night, no wait a minute that noise is the speed racers.

  • anonyme July 26, 2023 (6:14 pm)

    I love cats, but: letting them roam is irresponsible for their own health as well as the health and safety of other wildlife, such as birds.  The life of a cat is not inherently more valuable than that of a wild rabbit – or even a rat – just because some human has made a pet of it. That’s speciesism.

    • 937 July 26, 2023 (10:19 pm)

      Wow… I thought I’d heard it all!

      Speciesism – just, wow.

      • anonyme July 27, 2023 (2:18 pm)

        Sorry to use big words you don’t understand.  How about ‘hypocritical’?  Still too big?

        • 937 July 27, 2023 (8:56 pm)

          No no…. I understood it. I said I’d never heard it before.

          But then again, I don’t typically go about making up words to satisfy some’s need to compartmentalize every single, little thing.

          How’s that going for you, by the way? Putting everything into their own little place?

  • Chris July 26, 2023 (7:11 pm)

    Unfortunately, we witnessed this happening to a cat & we were helpless to help it.   It tried to get back in at a house, which we assume was the cat’s.   It meowed at the door & then was chased down by the coyote.   We contacted someone we did know in the neighborhood & told them what we witnessed & they sadly told their neighbor what happened.   It was heartbreaking.   

    • ttt July 27, 2023 (1:20 pm)

      And a part of animal life if your cat goes outside. The coyotes were happy to have a meal. Yes, sad for the cat owner, but happy for the coyotes. I like cats, but i also like the birds they eat and coyotes are pretty cool too for keeping down the rat population.

  • Joe July 26, 2023 (8:06 pm)

    Some cats are easier than others to keep inside at night. We had a young male cat that would literally tear down our house to get let outside at night – serious damage and noise. 

  • Mike July 26, 2023 (9:57 pm)

    I hope they move back into our woods above Harbor Ave.  Rabbits are destroying gardens.  And too many squirrels. 

  • Tony July 26, 2023 (10:47 pm)

    That explains the gutted cat at 38th & willow :(

  • snowskier July 27, 2023 (7:41 am)

    So glad to see the coyote in the Arroyos.  Plenty of space to roam and lots of good rabbit hunting.  If we’re lucky maybe a bobcat will return too.

  • Jessica July 27, 2023 (7:42 am)

    For those with backyard flocks: Burying the enclosure a little way can help discourage predators from digging in, but you probably have already discovered that trick, with all the crafty raccoons out there.

  • Scarlett July 27, 2023 (8:41 am)

    Who’s arguing that coyotes are not a part of the local food chain?  Who’s arguing that they should be extinguished?  No one. Seems callous and cold to lecture those who are grieving a beloved, dear companion to a coyote, in a moment of inattentiveness, with nuggets of “wisdom” about the inevitability of life and death.   Try watching Orca’s butcher a whale calf in a stew of blood and other parts – it ain’t pretty.  

  • Patrick Brick July 29, 2023 (2:29 am)

    Well, just about a half hour ago, about 1:45 a.m., two of our WS Coyotes were trotting northbound on 48th Ave SW, just before Findlay, one on the sidewalk in front of my house, the other a few feet behind, in the middle of 48th……..I’ve heard occasional howling in the neighborhood, and now have finally seen examples of the coyotes that a couple neighbors have told they too have seen. I don’t know if these are purebred or hybrids of some sort — I have read that the Chicago suburbs are full of coyote-dog hybrids………

    • Soup July 30, 2023 (12:24 am)

      Had to have been from the pack I saw at 1:16 am. One was on the sidewalk in front of my house and the other was on the sidewalk across the street. Both headed towards 49th (on Raymond). Then, two more followed on my sidewalk as one roamed through my yard. They probably strolled down 49th to Juneau then back to 48th and headed north when you saw them. On the hunt!

  • GarloughNeighbor July 30, 2023 (9:34 am)

    Last night ~10:30PM, my wife heard a dog barking, then saw a coyote run south on Garlough from Steven’s toward Hanford. 

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