A Scarborough woman recounted yesterday how she and her chocolate Labrador retriever were stalked by two coyotes as they walked along a wooded trail near the Scarborough Bluffs.
Patricia Hornyak said the coyotes attacked her dog, Choco, on Sunday morning and continued to stalk them even after she scared them off with a stick.
“They were following us and not very far behind,” she said yesterday. “I got a stick and just turned and yelled at them, and they scurried off. But the rest of the way out I could sense them. He did too, he kept looking out into the bush.”
Nathalie Karvonen, executive director of the Toronto Wildlife Centre, said the coyotes may have been protecting their territory, rather than looking for a meal.
“Coyotes are interested in little dogs allowed to run off leash because little dogs, to a coyote, are no different than a rabbit or a groundhog. They are not targeting them to be mean, it’s just they are the right size to be food for a coyote,” Ms. Karvonen said.
“Larger dogs tend to be more territorial. If a larger dog is being walked in an area where coyotes live, especially if it is breeding season, the coyote may be very interested in that dog for the safety of its own young or its den.”
The incident was reminiscent of a series of sightings last winter, when a coyote was spotted in the nearby Beaches area several times, attacking a couple of smaller dogs and killing one Chihuahua.
Ms. Hornyak said the city’s animal services department visited her on Sunday, dropping off a pamphlet that suggested residents keep an eye on their children and animals.
“I don’t agree with them that we have to cohabitate with them if they get to the point where they are attacking dogs,” Ms. Hornyak said.
“I think when they start to get close to your pets or maybe your kids, although I haven’t heard that happen, I don’t think it’s a good idea they be left alone.”
She said the coyotes had simply appeared on Sunday and started nipping at the much-larger Choco. Ms. Hornyak said Choco was bitten in the legs and ears, but the wounds were superficial.