Coyotes encroaching on residential areas

Some City of Hamilton residents are reporting seeing more coyotes coming closer to their homes and even approaching them and their pets on popular hiking trails this winter. And they say these wild animals are getting a little too close for comfort.

Playful puppy Windsor loves nature hikes with his owner Amy King White. They go out every morning at 7am at Felkers Falls. King, a lover of nature has noticed the coyotes that used to watch them warily from afar are inching closer and getting bolder: “It looked like for a while there he was going to fight over flight and that was pretty scary. this particular coyote was bigger than ones ive seen in the past and alone and def not afraid.”

Brian Mills lives near a wooded area in Hamilton. From his kitchen window, he snapped a picture of what he believes to be a large coyote wolf mix in his backyard in early January: “It was quite large as well larger than most of the coyotes that we have seen around here and weve seen a number.”

Whether in the woods or the outskirts of cities, coyotes are highly adaptable animals. Wildlife Biologist Art Timmerman believes the increased sightings are due to perception and the wintry conditions: “With snow on the ground and leaves off the tree coyotes are going to be more visible.”

Timmerman says this extremely cold and icy winter has made the coyotes natural food source of small rodents and animals harder to find, thus driving them closer to our homes: “Because their natural food is getting harder to get at, they are maybe losing their fear of humans a bit and being a bit more bold to try to access other food sources in the city.”

White has warned others about her encounters with coyotes and she says she and Windor love their morning routine too much to ever stop: “Im not going to change anything of how i run my hikes im just gonna be a little more aware around me.”

Timmerman says weather is a major factor here. But he warns that even in summer months, coyotes are known to attack cats and dogs. So he cautions owners to keep their pets on a leash or make sure that, if they are outside on their own, your backyard is fenced in. And finally, do not leave pet food on your porch as you can unknowingly attract coyotes.