Tucson woman finds her dog in the mouth of a coyote

TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — Several people on the east side have posted to social media about their pets being attacked by coyotes.

Four weeks ago east side resident Debra Simpson shared on NextDoor that she found her dog in the mouth of a coyote. Since then, several others in this area have posted about their pets either being attacked, or killed.

Debra Simpson said she let her dog Molly out, and after one minute she heard a terrible noise.

“I just heard this unbelievable screeching. I can’t even describe what it sounded like. It was so high pitched. That’s when I ran to the back door and saw her in the mouth of this coyote,” she said.

Debi told me Molly was rushed to the pet emergency room. She had some bite marks on her neck, but has made a smooth recovery. Now, Molly's afraid to be outside.

“She just kind of walks around for a little bit, and then she just runs for the door,” Debra said.

Debra was unsure which fence it climbed to get in her backyard. She had no idea coyotes could jump that high.

“I’ve lived in Tucson for 10 years. I’ve always let my dogs outside,” she said. And she wasn’t the only one surprised by what happened based on the comments and other posts.

Still, Mark Hart with the Arizona Game and Fish Department said this behavior isn’t unusual.

“Coyotes can jump 6 feet. So you should never leave your small to midsize pets in your backyard,” said Hart.

Tucson’s desert terrain makes it common for coyotes to be out and about, especially in areas closer to the east side. He recommended purchasing coyote rollers to place on top of your fences and using loud noises to scare them away.

Debra Simpson invested in an alarm to set off if she sees one. “It’s very effective,” she said.

You also could be attracting them without even knowing it. Anything from dog food to fruit on trees could be what’s bringing them in. Mark Hart said they come around most often in April during breeding season. His department found prunes that had fallen from trees had been attracting coyotes.

He urges people to take caution around the Loop after breeding months, called denning, where coyotes create dens in urban neighborhoods in search of food for their pups. He also said people should not help a coyote if one’s been hit by a car. They can bite still, leading to people getting rabies.