SIESTA KEY, Fla. — Neighbors in Siesta Key are on edge after a series of coyote attacks and sightings in the past few weeks. One of the attacks resulted in the death of a small dog.
The incidents have sparked a discussion on community safety and have been described by neighbors and some community leaders as reaching crisis levels.
Officials from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission met with neighbors on Monday to provide information and answer their questions about coyotes and ways to best protect themselves, their children and their pets.
The owner of Coco, the dog that was killed, said he wants to use his story of losing his pet to help bring awareness and solutions to the Coyote problem and save other beloved pets and people.
"I thought Coco was chasing a rat or something and I said to her 'Coco come back here, leave him alone,' because she a little 'Morkie', but she thought she was bad," Michael Hancock of Siesta Key said.
But as Hancock was to discover quickly, it wasn't a rat, instead it was something bigger and deadly for a small animal like Coco.
"I looked off, and there was a coyote with Coco in her mouth, and the coyote was about the size of a good-sized German Shepherd all scraggly looking. The coyote took off up the street, so I chased them up the street and I came back and got the car. There were two of them and they were passing her back and forth and running in between the houses," he said.
By the time he got to where the coyotes were, it was too late for Coco. She's among at least 3 coyote dog attacks in the area.
"I think I was feeling guilty because I didn't protect her well enough. They just dropped her in somebody's front yard and I picked her up and carried her and all the way down the street I said I'm sorry Coco, I didn't know Coco because I would never put my animals in harm's way. I would never do that," he said.
The incident happened in mid-September, however, the coyote sightings have grown since recent hurricanes.
"They've exhausted their food source up there, so now in the evening, they're wandering up into the neighborhoods looking for things to eat. It could just have easily been a small kid that they take down and realize it's not an animal so they leave it alone, but it's probably dead already," Hancock said.
At the meeting with FWC officials, neighbors also hoped for creative solutions including placing coyote warning signs around as is done with alligators.
The FWC presentation titled "Living with Coyotes" was hosted by the Siesta Key Association. Officials provided comprehensive information to help residents understand coyote behavior, safety protocols and strategies for minimizing potential conflicts with these wild animals.
"We are right on the verge of a crisis and we've got to do something about it. It's going to get to a point where somebody's going to get hurt but somebody's child is going to get hurt or worse and then we're going to do something. Let's do something before it becomes a crisis," Mike Smith, Sarasota County Commissioner said.
"I'm hoping that they notify everybody and everyone everywhere and this neighborhood knows that there's a pack of 50 coyotes 1 mile from here and they are wandering into the neighborhood," Hancock said.
Officials are reminding neighbors that this area is a natural habitat for the coyotes and they need to stay extra vigilant while outdoors, especially with small children and pets.