SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) — Three days a week, you can find Meredith Vellines and her 3-year-old dog, Willie Nelson, walking along the water at Crissy Field.
Vellines says her walks are normally uneventful.
That was until Tuesday.
“Within two minutes of him jumping out of the car, a coyote came out of the bushes, went for the neck, tapped back because of the collar,” Vellines said.
Vellines said she had heard coyote encounters were on the rise near Crissy Field, but never expected it to happen to her.
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Her shock getting even worse just hours later, when she and Willie encountered another coyote on their walk the very next day.
Vellines said, this time, the coyote started following her as she ran down the beach.
“I tripped, I was on the ground. The coyote started circling me. I'm screaming and yelling for help and covering Willie,” Vellines said.
Vellines tells me eventually a park ranger heard her screaming and was able to scare the coyote away.
But after two incidents in the span of two days, Vellines says she's traumatized.
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“Oh I was terrified. I was like…is this how it ends?” said Vellines.
The Golden Gate National Recreation Area, which runs Crissy Field, says at least three dogs are believed to have been killed just within the past 10 days.
Prompting dog owners to take extra precautions.
“I would say a large percentage of the commercial dog walking network is telling their clients that you have to buy these vests, otherwise I'm not going to take your dog,” said Martha Walters of the Crissy Field Dog Group.
The GGNRA says they are taking these incidents seriously.
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On Thursday morning, their team was out at Crissy Field putting up several warning signs.
They're also advising people if they too have a coyote encounter.
“You want to make yourself big. You want to make a lot of noise. If you have rocks or sticks, you want to throw it at the coyote. You want to make the coyote uncomfortable being around people,” said Joshua Winchell with the Golden Gate National Recreation Area.
And as for Vellines, she says after their encounter, she and Willie will be changing up their routine.
“I did read that coyotes are afraid of water, and Willie is an amazing swimmer. So, I think we're just going to stick to water exercises for the time being,” Vellines said.
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