Coyotes with little fear of humans a dangerous menace to dog walkers

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Another coyote attack?

Dog walker Kristin Freeland and Derek — out with his dog, Henry — were at Stanley Park in the King-Wellington Sts. area  talking about “the latest attack” by a coyote; this one apparently Tuesday morning near a condo building in the Tecumseth-Wellington Sts. area.

Freeland showed grainy images on her mobile phone of a mangy looking coyote at the back doors of The Summit, at 735 King St. W., which quickly approached one of her clients and his 55-pound dog.

“They tried to go out to the back of their building and there was a coyote waiting for them in the bushes,” said Freeland. “And it charged at them the second they went outside.”

“Luckily they got back inside quickly. This is something coming at a 55-pound dog, this isn’t little dogs anymore.”

“And now it’s so close to human population, it’s pretty scary.”

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The city has put up new signs in the area after reports of several dogs being killed since late last last fall.

The black and yellow signs, similar to road traffic signs, depict a caricature of coyote and the words: “COYOTE HOTSPOT.”

There is additional City of Toronto signage showing stick-figure characters telling onlookers the dos and don’ts of dealing with coyotes.

“We’ve kind of known the coyotes have been in the area for a long time,” said Freeland. “But they are at the point where they are so habituated to humans.”

“It clear they are not trying to get away from us. They are, in fact, seeking us out,” said Freeland.“The signs really aren’t enough, sadly.”

James Anok, also a resident at the location of Tuesday’s coyote encounter, was out for an afternoon walk with his golden sheep doodle, Chester, along Wellington St. when he showed an alert on his cellphone which was issued to all owners and tenants by the condo building’s staff.

“Dear Residents, This morning at approximately 5:20 a.m.,” said the message, “a resident was entering/exiting the back door of 725 King and a coyote was hanging out around the back door and lunged at the dog/resident.”

It explained the incident was reported to the city and added, “If possible, please refrain from taking your pet out while it is still dark outside (this is not to say that coyotes are not around during daylight hours).”

Gabriel, a construction worker on a site beside Fort York where crews are building the Ontario Line subway, said he had heard of coyotes but never saw one until recently. He initially thought it was a husky.