PHOENIX — A coyote scare in a Valley neighborhood has multiple people posting warnings to their neighbors about watching their dogs in hopes of preventing a tragedy as their own family experienced.
And experts have details on the best practices when it comes to protecting your pets while still respecting Arizona’s wildlife.
"Daisy was our beloved dog. She was a Lhasa Apso, so she wasn't teeny-tiny, but she was a smaller breed,” her owner Jessica Combest said. “She would just go straight out go to the bathroom and come right back in and one night she went to do that, and we were all sleeping, and we heard a real loud thud."
Combest, a huge dog lover, lost her pup Daisy to a coyote. The family woke up to one less puppy in their pack, and now Combest is posting warnings to others who live in her neighborhood.
"I've never seen the number of pets that have been killed, missing, or people looking for them like I've seen in Ahwatukee,” she added.
“Making sure that doggie door is closed before it gets dark. I went on Amazon and put up these blinking lights. They said that'll keep coyotes away because it's a moving light."
Laura Hackett with Liberty Wildlife is suggesting similar steps when it comes to keeping your fur babies safe.
"Make sure you're not leaving garbage around. Make sure you're cleaning up fruits that have fallen, any scraps that might be outside. Take care of your pets. Keep them on a leash and keep them close to you - especially with those extendable leashes. Keep the dogs close. Coyotes are pack animals, and they will swarm in and can get a dog that's as large as one of those small dogs," Hackett added.
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