Does Massachusetts have a coyote problem?
The eastern coyote population is well-established across mainland Massachusetts. An increase in sightings does not necessarily mean that the coyote population is growing. Coyotes are territorial animals that actively defend their territory from other coyotes. Each territory has a resident family unit
- On July 29, 1998, a four-year-old boy was mauled by a coyote while playing in the backyard of his home on Cape Cod, Massachusetts. His mother beat the coyote on the head to drive it off. A responding police officer pursued the animal into the woods and shot it.
- On August 24, 2011, before noon, a two-year-old Weymouth, Massachusetts girl was walking next to her stroller with her grandmother when a coyote lunged out of some hedges along the sidewalk in a suburban residential area. The animal attacked from behind, knocked the child down, and bit her on the back of her head, leaving a somewhat large wound. The grandmother was having trouble saving her from the coyote, when a neighbor came out of a nearby house and got the pair into the house, shutting the coyote outside, where it stayed, listening, while the homeowner dialed 911. The girl was taken to the hospital to have her scalp stitched.The authorities hunted the coyote but finding nothing, called off the hunt, but later that night police were called back to the area by calls that the coyote had returned. They shot the animal, and although it escaped, it was presumed to have been fatally wounded, but the body was not found, so the girl began a course of rabies treatments. One week earlier, a coyote in the same area tried to attack a landscaper, who successfully fended the animal off, sustaining no injury, so the area coyotes had not been hunted or trapped
- On June 9, 2018, a 17-year-old boy in Swampscott, Massachusetts was mauled by a coyote in a forest. He was subsequently taken to North Shore Medical Center.[57][58]
- On Wednesday, December 12, 2012, at about 2:00AM, in Waltham, Massachusetts, on the campus of Brandeis University, an animal, thought to be a coyote, attacked a student walking back to her dorm. The animal appeared from dense cover and in a very dark location, and quickly disappeared, so the victim did not get a good look. Multiple residents had sighted a pack of coyotes in the area. The woman was treated for a tooth or claw wound.[88][89]
- In May, 2013, in Wrentham, Massachusetts, a woman was with her dog at night when it was attacked by a coyote. The woman was bitten on the hand by the coyote while trying to save her dog. The coyote was not caught, so the woman began treatment for possible rabies.
- On Wednesday, May 14, 2014, in Bourne, Massachusetts, a man was attacked by a pack of three coyotes outside his house while defending his 5-year-old boxer. The pair managed to drive the pack away, but not before sustaining bite wounds. Before the attack, coyotes had killed the man’s cats and attacked his neighbor’s dog. After the attack, the man called animal control officers, who agreed to visit the man’s home to discuss the matter the following morning
- On October 22, 2017, a 22-year-old man in Ashburnham, Massachusetts was bitten by a coyote when he mistook it for a domesticated dog. He was taken to Gardner’s Heywood Hospital for rabies treatment afterwards
- On November 20, 2017, a rabid coyote in North Attleborough, Massachusetts latched onto a woman’s leg when it tried to crawl under her mobile home. She called the police and went back into her home after pointing out the animal to them.
- On April 18, 2018, a coyote in Rutland, Massachusetts pounced on a man who was tending three chickens in his backyard. He successfully fought against it.
On May 15, 2018, a woman in Saugus, Massachusetts climbed a tree when she was assaulted by four coyotes while walking with her Labrador at Breakheart Reservation. She called 911 and fire fighters came to her aid - On April 6, 2019, a coyote in Braintree, Massachusetts assaulted a woman who was walking with her dog. Another person from her condominium complex noticed her injury and called the emergency number. She was sent to a hospital, but recovered at home
We invite you to share any recent coyote attacks in the form below that we may have overlooked. It is crucial for us to maintain an updated list of coyote incidents in Massachusetts. The state asserts that coyote populations are under control, and the MSPCA has been a significant contributor to this issue. We agree that the long-term resolution to coyote conflicts lies in effective conflict prevention. At NockedUp, we emphasize the importance of prevention and proper management of these animals