Residents of the North Center neighborhood are on alert, saying coyotes have become more aggressive than usual.
Chicago Animal Care & Control says people feeding the coyotes is likely part of the problem.
Dean Ferenac had a close encounter with a coyote Sunday morning just as he finished walking his dog.
“I haven’t seen fangs before on a coyote,” Ferenac said, “but her mouth was open, and she was looking to hunt. She was standing no more than 6 feet away from us.
Upon encountering the aggressive female coyote, Ferenac did what was recommended – and yelled loudly.
Yet the coyote, Ferenac said, stood her ground.
“They’re not taking any cues to leave,” he said.
Other neighbors agreed that the coyotes do not seem intimidated by the methods people are taught to use to shoo them away.
Since last Thursday, neighbors living on Ravenswood Avenue off Irving Park Road have said they have heard the screams of coyotes approaching people with dogs. The latest incident happened Tuesday morning.
Residents are used to wildlife along train tracks – like the Union Pacific North Metra tracks that run on an elevated trestle between two lanes of Ravenswood Avenue in that area.
The aggression could be linked to a den of coyotes in the area with at least four or five cubs. Video captured one young coyote in the brush.
Chicago Animal Care & Control came out, but the coyotes were nowhere to be found.
Since the coyotes have not attacked, there is not much Animal Care & Control can do. This has left neighbors wondering what can be done with the coyotes that are protecting their cubs.
Chicago Animal Care & Control issued a statement emphasizing that part of the problem might be people feeding the animals. A spokesman said there was a report of someone feeding the coyotes and the cubs from a car on the east side of Ravenswood Avenue just south of Irving Park Road.
They dded that no traps have been set up for coyotes. However, Animal Care & Control does have a Wildlife Management and Coexistence Plan with the Lincoln Park Zoo’s Urban Wildlife Institute. The plan guides how Animal Care & Control responds to calls about wildlife
