Citizens of Scottsdale, Arizona are on high alert after multiple coyote attacks have happened in broad daylight. There have been two separate attacks on one year old boys, and thankfully both children only suffered minor injuries. The most recent incident was actually caught on video with a Ring Camera placed in the driveway where the toddler was attacked by the coyote.
The first attack happened in the middle of the day at a playground, where a one year old was harmed while playing. The second attack, which is only a half a mile from where the first attack was reported, happened in the driveway of the family’s home.
The close proximity of the two incidents have led Arizona officials to believe that the same coyote was involved in both attacks. They are now searching for the large coyote that is responsible and have warned homeowners in the area to keep an eye out.
Though known to be predators in the animal kingdom, it has long been believed that coyotes “are more scared of humans” than we are of them. However, this particular coyote seemingly has no fear of humans, and even waited until the mother of the toddler turned her back before attacking the one year old in the driveway. The video of the shocking incident is listed below.
ABC News reported that coyote attacks are incredibly rare, and stated that the two attacks that took place in Scottsdale were the first in the Phoenix area since 2017. A wildlife specialist in the area believes that the attacks could be the result of illegal feeding of the coyote, which could have led it to be more comfortable approaching humans.
The security camera footage below shows a mother and her child walking up the driveway towards their house. As the mother approaches the house, the toddler lags behind, and the coyote emerges from the trees/bushes and attacks. The coyote latched on to the arm of the toddler, then released once the toddler screamed in pain. The mother then runs to her child and picks him up, swiftly taking the child inside as the coyote runs away:
The video is very scary, as most people would never expect for a wild animal to attack that close to their home. These back-to-back incidents are why officials have warned residents in the urban area to be “extra vigilant” in case the coyote were to attack again.
The Game and Fish Department of Arizona has been assisting the Scottsdale Police in patrolling the neighborhood and the surrounding area in search of the violent coyote.
