Group+4-+Colorado+State+University

=Colorado State University=

**William Andelt- Professor** Behavioral ecology and management of carnivores.; ecology, management, and monitoring of prairie dogs; managing human-wildlife conflicts.
1. What do coyotes eat? Mostly rodents, rabbits, deer, fruits, and occasionally livestock. 2. Who are their predators? Mostly wolves and humans 3. Why do coyotes attack humans? They become tame in urban areas by not being harvested by humans. People occasionally feed them which promotes tameness. Coyotes often attempt to attack small dogs, generally to protect their pups, especially if they wander near a den (mostly April and May) that contains pups. Thus, people walking with a small dog can elicit an attack. People often are bitten when they attempt to rescue the do. 4. How do coyotes survive in the city? The find food (wild prey, sometimes garbage, and sometimes are fed by humans), water and shelter in urban areas. 5. Can coyotes be domesticated? Yes, if obtain when very young (perhaps 1-2 weeks of age) but coyotes still seem to retain some wildness and unpredictable behaviors. 6. What did they do 100 years ago to deal with coyotes? Coyotes were shot and perhaps poisoned on occasions when they caused problems such as preying on livestock. 7. What kind of problems do coyotes cause by living in the city? As noted above, they sometimes attack small dogs, occasionally but rarely bite people. Coyote of kill free-ranging domestic cats. 8. How big is the problem? The problem of coyotes biting people is fairly small. 9. Do coyotes carry Rabies? Yes. 10. How can coyotes survive both in the city and the wild? Coyotes are very opportunistic. See also numbers 1 and 4 above. 11. What are some solutions to coyotes living in the city? Do not feed coyotes. Do not wander near dens that contain pups. Do not allow small dogs and young children to run free when walking in urban areas where coyotes are often seen. If a coyote approaches, group together and pick up a small dog and a child. Carry a stick so that you can protect yourself if a coyote attacks a small dog. Do not allow domestic cats to run free. Overall, coyotes can be a problem in urban areas, but the problems seems to be somewhat exaggerated because the media has focused on it.