Friday afternoon Arlington city officials said rabies test results were negative for a coyote captured Thursday at Parkway Central Park.
Parents picking up their children at Arlington's Jones Academy of Fine Arts and Dual Language, which is immediately south of the park, said there has been a lot of worry amongst some kids about a nearby coyote attack.
“I can tell he’s scared,” parent Angel Rodriguez said.
“I guess one of the kids in her class was one of the victims of the coyote,” grandparent Bobbie Green said. “She became very afraid. Didn’t want to take our walks in the evening. So I’ve had to have discussions with her about wild animals and not approaching them. Certain animals you shouldn’t see during the day.”
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Thursday a coyote believed to be responsible for attacking at least three children in separate incidents was captured at Parkway Central Park.
Arlington Animal Services said other coyotes were observed around the park but that they did not display any concerning behavior at that time and the USDA staff does not consider them a threat to the public at this time. They will continue monitoring the area and assessing citizen reports to determine if more coyotes need to be removed.
“Coyotes that are acting naturally and have that innate fear of people we are not as concerned about,” Arlington Animal Services manager Ashley Woolnough said. “It’s the ones that are actually approaching people and acting aggressively towards people. Those are the ones that we are trying to target.”
According to the city's wildlife sightings map there have been several coyote sightings in and around the park in the last few years.
“I’ve seen it at grocery stores,” Rodriguez said about seeing coyotes around the area. “I’ve seen it in my neighborhood. We think it’s a dog just taking the trash but it’s not.”
People living nearby are glad to know at least one has been removed.
“To know they actually caught the coyote it brought a lot of relief,” Rodriguez said.
To report a coyote sighting in Arlington click here and scroll down to “Wildlife Sighting.”
ARLINGTON COYOTE
WHAT SHOULD YOU DO IF YOU ENCOUNTER A COYOTE?
If you're out on a walk or playing in the park and encounter a coyote, there are a few things you can do to stay safe as we coexist.
- Do NOT turn and run. Instead, look the animal in the eye and back up slowly.
- Make loud noises by yelling or talking loudly. Try to appear bigger than you are by holding out your arms or by holding them in the air. This act of "hazing" can be intimidating and may make the animal afraid to come any closer.
- Create some distance between you and the animal by slowly backing up or by carrying a stick you can use to keep the animal at bay.
- If there is a rock or stone nearby, hold it and/or use it to throw it at the animal to convince it not to follow you.
- When going out for a walk, carry a whistle, air horn, or a can of rocks -- anything that makes a lot of noise could intimidate the animal.
- Animals like coyotes are generally not aggressive toward humans and they try to avoid contact with people. A coyote that has become habituated to humans, or used to being around them, will be less inclined to run away and may be more aggressive toward people. To prevent coyotes from becoming habituated, it's recommended people avoid leaving food or trash around as easy food sources and that people repeatedly haze a coyote to discourage future encounters.
- Texas Parks and Wildlife offers the following resources for coexisting with urban coyotes.
