Coyote attacks on pets rise in Port Aransas

Since 2004, Erin Anglin has lived in Port Aransas. She had no problems with coyotes until 2020 when one of them snatched up her eight-year-old pet Yorkie at her house that's been in her family since 1965. She stayed cautious of letting her other pets outside but was shocked when the incident repeated in May 2023 with her Chihuahua. 

“I had my Chihuahua for nine years, and she just vanished into thin air. All I heard was a scream. It was horrible,” Anglin described to MySA. “I know it was a coyote because they're all over the neighborhood…When my dog was taken, I started hearing about other dogs. It started in the summer, where it was almost weekly.”

Anglin said she wasn't far from her pets in both incidents. She let her Yorkie and Chihuahua play in her fenced backyard while inside her home with the door open. Anglin said the coyote jumped the fence, chased her Yorkie, and led her Chihuahua inside. In the 2023 case, she was unlocking her car with her back turned when the coyote sneaked up and grabbed her Chihuahua.

She isn't the only pet owner who reported they lost their best friend to the coyotes running around the city. Mary Jane Mierzwa Chaffin, who frequents Port Aransas and has a condo in the city, told MySA a coyote grabbed her Boston Terrier in April. Chaffin, who lives in Michigan, said she had her pet for only a few months but grew very attached to her.

Chaffin said her pet wasn't on a leash, adding she doesn't wander and was on her lap while she and her friends sat in her front yard. Chaffin said she put her dog down to go inside to turn on the porch light. When she came back out, she couldn't find her. Security camera footage later showed a coyote's shadow. Chaffin said the coyote moved forward and waited quietly five feet away until she put her pet down.

“Nobody heard it or seen it,” Chaffin said. “…It was a matter of seconds. There were at least five of us sitting right there in that circle.”

Shortly after the incident, Chaffin created a Facebook group called “Port Aransas coyote attacks” to survey the number of pets attacked or killed by coyotes. The group has more than 1,500 members. 

“They're not scared of people, and that's the problem. They're not just out during dusk and dawn. They're out during the day,” Chaffin said after hearing other people's stories in the Facebook group. “…People said they are finding dens on the beach full of dog collars.”

Sheila Whaley told MySA her husband was one of the first people bit by a coyote after trying to protect their 15-year-old Australian Shepherd in July. For more than 15 years, Whaley and her husband have had their RV in Port Aransas. They vacation there and leave their RV year-round. However, the two moved their RV to Rockport after a coyote tried to attack their pet while he was on a leash.

Whaley said their pet – with bad sight and hearing – could smell the coyote coming behind him. He noticed it and bit the coyote by the neck. She said her husband tried to get the coyote away from their pet, who eventually let go of the coyote's neck. The coyote ran away but bit her husband's arm before leaving, Whaley said.

Her husband had three holes in his arm, which Whaley, who works in the medical field, patched up. Her husband had to get three series of rabies vaccine shots. Their pet died three weeks later, which Whaley believes the “fight of his life” caused his demise to come quicker.

“We're done with the island because you can't even sit outside with your animal without fear of being bit,” Whaley said. “…I see them during the day. They're in the streets in packs of three and sixes.”

Chaffin said she sent letters to the City of Port Aransas Mayor Wendy Moore, city council members, and Gov. Greg Abbott, who she said sent a letter back to her saying he would alert Texas Parks and Wildlife. On Thursday, November 30, Moore told MySA the city is aware of the concerns and is working hard within their legal rights and limits to do what they can to minimize any issues between them and wild animals.

Officials have adopted a coyote action plan with the United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services and the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. The overall goal is to educate citizens on how to deal with coyotes when they encounter one. 

In the action plan, one of the specific tactics is coyote hazing. If a coyote frequents an area, the action plan recommends showing they are not welcome. Hazing a coyote – or showing it signs of aggression each time, will usually discourage its presence and help re-establish its fear of humans, according to TPWD. Coyotes follow predictable patterns. TPWD said negative behavior can often be corrected. 

Hazing includes the following: yelling, clapping, blowing a whistle, hitting noisy objects together, or using an air horn. You can also wave your hands, stomp feet, jump, spray water, or throw a small object at the animal with the intent to hit it, according to TPWD.

If you encounter an aggressive coyote, notify city authorities and TPWD to document the incident. A well-structured coyote reporting program will allow community leaders to determine the coyote's level of habituation and make informed management decisions, TPWD said.

Coyotes live with and among people in all urban areas in Texas. Coyotes typically avoid people, according to TPWD. Coyotes are important predators in urban areas and keep other wildlife populations in check (especially rodents and rabbits but also skunks and raccoons), TPWD added.

Responsible precautions allow people and coyotes to safely co-exist within our cities, such as never feeding wildlife, keeping pets on leashes, and hazing. Coyote attacks on people are extremely rare and coyotes usually don't cause conflict, TPWD said. Targeted lethal control is an option in some circumstances when recommended by wildlife professionals.

No hunting license is required to hunt depredating coyotes on private property with landowner authorization, according to TPWD. However, TPWD strongly recommends the use of trained wildlife professionals to trap the individuals responsible for the aggression.