Los Alamitos to start killing coyotes tonight

For the second year in a row, Los Alamitos is acting to reduce the coyote population by hiring a pest control service from Chino Hills. Residents have complained about coyotes roaming the streets and attacking pets in backyards, so the city's shelling out $2,500 per week to have the animals trapped and then killed by lethal injection. The OC Register has details:

The company, which starts its work today, catches the night prowlers using a padded trap that snags a coyote's leg and then kills the animal using lethal injection.

The city has received one report of an attack and about a dozen reports of sightings in the past three weeks, officials said.

City officials were happy enough with the results of the eradication program last year to try it again. The California Department of Fish and Game, meanwhile, warns that without the wily predators, the rodent population will rise, which could result in an increase of coyotes a few years down the line.

And just fyi -- the coyote in this photo is in Hidden Valley.

-- Veronique de Turenne

Photo credit: Ricardo DeAratanha / Los Angeles Times

Comments

[Jim Davis]

Most of the comments sound like they are from the (PITA) minded folks. If you have too many termites, rats, ants, coyotes, etc you kill them. I have been depredating predators since the mid 70’s for local municipalities, state of California, Vector control, Federal Government, private individuals and just for fun. All in California. Not all of the above will kill humans or their pets as quickly as the Coyote. Coyote populations have increased greatly over the years, hence the increasing problem. The City is addressing the problem in a logical way. However the cost would be much less if you let a small group of experienced varmint hunters handle the situation.

Wild Tuna

[Ted59b]

No, Coyote tast like dog - only 'gameier'

[Bubba]

Coyotes tast like chicken

[Deanna]

Whatever happened to capture and release in the wild?

How uncivilized Los Alamitos is to capture and kill an indigenous creature such as the coyote. SHAME ON THEM!!!!!

[Elijaham]

True men don't kill coyotes.

[Ted59b]

I lived in the Montana woods, above a field full of pocket gophers. That meadow was disputed territory between two coyote packs. We were part of the land - enough to be able to tell which pack was which and what they were doing. They gave the neighbors fits, but left us alone. Forgive me if this is too indelicate for Southern California sensibilities. If you mark your territory, Coyote will respect your boundaries. Peeing on a few fence posts beats killing an animal for being who (and doing what) the Creator put them here to do. They deserve respect, not cruelty – we are all related

[erik]

I suppose you don't kill spiders,mosquitos or ants in your house either, do you Amy? They are pests as well, and were here well before California was even a state.

[Bill]

Coyote populations often swell out of control due to the restrictions on varminting L.A. county has (no shots fired within 300 feet of a residence) and the attitudes expressed above. Rats are also living creatures "who were here first" -- do you let them trod all over your house? The coyote population is out of control, and much like rats, it needs to be brought down in periods where it outpaces the local food supply or where the animals threaten pets (expensive assets owners invest time and money in) and even children. A child or family pet is more important than a coyote, period. Coyotes are not endagered, are pests, and are predators. They do not belong in an urban area, and we all depend on urban areas. Get a clue. Instead, we're wasting taxpayer dollars on something hunters in the area would gladly do for free.

Btw, I would be really curious where all of the "animals were here first" people who posted above live -- They must all live in floating cities or 400-year old Spanish missions, as clearly they would NEVER live someplace an animal might be displaced from. And I wonder if it was your child or pet who had been threatened, if you would still feel the same way. I've lost 3 cats to coyotes, and have no love for them.

[Jose]

Look at where we are talking about, Los Alamitos. If it was some poor neighborhood, surley nothing would be done. These poor animals should be trapped and relocated deep into uncharted territories. I live in Glendale and coyotes here are aplenty. I have never heard of such extremes to get rid of coyotes like what Los Alamitos is doing, AGAIN!

[Deborah]

I have lived in Rossmoor, right next to Los Alamitos, for 17 years, and it has only been in the last few years that we have been having coyote problems. This is a 50+ year-old community, not a new one "encroaching on their environment". I have spoken to a lot of residents whose beloved cats or small dogs have been killed by coyotes, not for food but apparently for fun as they disembowel the pets, spread the intestines all over the yard and leave the carcasses behind uneaten. I have to keep my two little dogs locked in the house from dusk to after dawn to protect them. I have had coyotes in my walled back yard twice that I know of, once when one was actually sniffing at my kitchen door, the same night that one stalked my neighbor across the road. Those encountered in the daylight are not at all afraid of humans. I don't like the idea of killing the coyotes but I don't see any alternative. Trapping and relocating them is only going to drop the problem in someone else's neighborhood.

[Steve Bernard]

We are encroaching on the coyotes' territory, thus it is not surprising that we come across these animals. To kill them is wrong.

I support every measure and action to give life to these beautiful creatures - they were here first, they provide a necessary component of ecological sustainment and they can remind us of our natural heritage.

It's unbelievable and deeply shaming that the Los Alamitos City officials could even approve such a mis-guided set of actions to kill these animals.

Hmm. Perhaps we should hire some contractor to finish off these officials?

[denise]

Hello, Los Alamitos is a surbuban community in Orange County next to Seal Beach that borders Long beach, right off the 605 freeway, next to El Dorado Park. Not in the foothills where it is typical to see wildlife (bears, mountain lions, coyotes).

With that said, I agree that the animals should not be killed.

Some of the comments above sounded a lot like what I would say. I hate it when animals are killed....

[Ferrari Bubba]

When I lived in the foothills of Tucson, packs of coyotes used to wake me up almost every night with their yelping. I lost a little dog right out of my backyard to them. They even snatched a toddler right out of her mother's arms. That's when I got pro-active with my .243 cal rifle. I must have killed hundreds. I used to save the tails up and sell them at the local swap-meet for $2 each.

The only good coyote is a dead one.

Yer pal, Ferrari Bubba

[June]

Shoot the dumb people that are encroaching on the land of the coyotes, not the coyotes.

[Amy]

There are many other options that can be considerred that dont involve harm or death to these animals. Animals do have rights and these may seem like predetors to some but really they are only looking for food, this is their nature. I would never want to see any children or animals harmed as a result of wild coyotes however this is up to the residents to take the proper precautions. No matter how inconvinient this may be for the time being it still does not justify condemning these animals to death for no reason.They are not acting outside of their nature only trying to live in an environment that they have had to adapt to since their natural habitats have been minimized. Animal rights activists should be all over this! Coyotes have no voice and are helpless against this cruelty(lethal injections), someone needs to step in and help. No one has the right to sentence anyone to death just because they are pests! Am I the only one who thinks this is wrong and disgusting?!

[Ray Stark]

The coyotes will continue to enter people's yards until residents stop encroaching on the coyotes' land. There are many better ways to trap and release these animals without resorting to abject cruelty. Shame on the officials who approved this measure.

[Jeff]

Which came first? The coyotes or the humans? If you build your house in the foothills, expect nature to be present. Coyote has right to that land. Lock your doors and keep your dogs in at night. This is pathetic that these creatures are being killed because of ignorant humans. Go back to school. Study biology. Understand the ecosystem.

[Joe]

Its pathetic, really, that people are allowed to neglect their pets, leaving them tied up outside all day in the summer sun, are then allowed to complain that their "beloved" animal is mauled by the local wildlife...

This would not be a problem if Los Angeles pet owners weren't such terrible dog owners. Long live the coyote, Down with bad pet owners.