There are many coyotes that live and flourish in the area. They prey on small animals, even when the small fur balls are the companions of loving people who care deeply about their pets. Coyotes do not distinguish between domesticated and feral animals, they treat them equally as food. People gather around the water with their pets and so do the things that would like to eat them. The telephone and utility poles are littered with announcements of lost cat or dogs. Many showing an attentive pet, such as below, that certainly was adored by its owner. But there are not many feel good success stories. Most folks learn quickly to keep their pets indoors at night.
Yet, I have seen a coyote wait patiently for a traffic light in the late afternoon so he could cross a busy boulevard during rush hour. Coyotes, hawks and other predators adapt. Rabbits may be scarce in an urban environment but feral cats and lost puppies are fair play. A coyote doesn't even wait until dark but will brazenly enter a yard to snatch little Fido.
A cruel trick of the modern mindset is to think that humans have tamed nature with our grand edifices and organized structures. Nature adapts to us showing that while some rules may change, the game is still the same.
I hope, for our sake, coyotes will never distinguish between our pets and a more "legitimate" prey.
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