HAVERHILL — The sound outside his dark bedroom window was eerie, like a little girl screaming in distress, said 14-year-old Joey Greenwood.

His father, Richard, stepped outside to check the noise and found the family’s dog, Buddy, being attacked by a coyote on the front lawn of their Bradford home. The wild canine was on top of the 27-pound cockapoo, chomping on its throat.

Buddy is being treated at an animal hospital for a damaged thorax and severe flesh loss, said Joey’s mother, Barbara. The dog is not conscious and may not survive, she said.

Wednesday night’s scary experience is spurring Barbara Greenwood to warn her Bradford neighbors to keep their pets inside to avoid Buddy’s fate.

“I’m just concerned,” she said.

Her concerns are justified, based on what wildlife officials are reporting about coyotes in the area. Suburban sprawl has encroached on the coyote habitat, causing more sightings of coyotes as their forests and open space disappear.

Haverhill Conservation Officer Mark Sheehan said coyote numbers also have been growing over the decades, in part because the animal’s only predator — human hunters — are dwindling. Coyotes also are prolific breeders, and their numbers can multiply quickly.

“We’re taking away their only natural predator,” Sheehan said of hunters, though he said motor vehicle collisions are helping. “The population is there to grow if they are not culled out.”

Coyotes also enjoy living around golf courses, which provide wooded cover to stalk prey in the open fairways, Sheehan said. Haverhill has five 18-hole golf courses.

The typical coyote is the size of a small dog but with longer, thicker fur. The largest can weigh 50 or 60 pounds. They primarily eat small rodents, rabbits, deer, birds, frogs and insects, but also will eat fruits, vegetables and pet food left outdoors. They are most often spotted at night or at dawn or dusk.

It is against the law to trap and relocate coyotes, so residents have to learn to live with the animals, said veterinarian Dr. Tumkur Narasimhan, owner of Main Street Animal Hospital of Bradford. He occasionally treats animals harmed by coyotes, he said.

The best way to limit coyote attacks is to properly dispose of food — do not throw food outside for wild animals to eat, and use trash cans with lids.

“As long as we are good in our disposal habits, the attacks won’t happen,” Narasimhan said.

Animal Control Officer Michelle Hamel said coyote sightings are commonplace in Haverhill, seen near Northern Essex Community College, the animal shelter off Primrose Street and the Bradford commuter train station.

She said coyotes look for easy meals, often from garbage or staking out bird feeders, where smaller animals stop to eat, she said.

Sometimes they cross paths with the family pet.

“They are very opportunistic animals,” Hamel said. “They will eat whenever food is available.”

She said owners should always be aware that their pets can be attacked by wild animals anywhere in Haverhill.

“I’m a firm believer that everyone should keep an eye on their pets, because you never know,” Hamel said.

People can easily scare away coyotes with loud noises and bright lights, according to MassWildlife. A water hose also is effective.

The Greenwoods live on Chadwick Road, north of Chadwick Pond in Bradford, a semirural area near the Boxford line, and said Buddy often spent time outside at night.

The attack happened at about 10 p.m. Wednesday.

Joey said he was on the phone when he heard the screaming, looked outside and saw nothing.

“I thought maybe it was down the street, like a little girl or something,” Joey said of the yelping.

He heard the screams again so he warned his father, Richard, who ran outside and saw the wild animal on Buddy, a cross between a cocker spaniel and poodle.

He yelled at the coyote, which ran off. He carried the bloody and muddy dog into the house and then rushed it to Bulger Animal Hospital in North Andover.

“It just seemed unreal to me,” Barbara Greenwood said of the attack.

Sheehan said that in his 20 years as a conservation professional, most coyote attacks involve cats, chickens and very small dogs, such as Chihuahuas.

“That’s not commonplace from what I’ve seen,” Sheehan said of the attack on Buddy. “Very seldom do we ever see a coyote get into an altercation with a large dog.”

He said the coyote may have needed extra food for a litter of pups, or Buddy threatened it somehow.



Coyotes and pets

The coyote’s natural diet includes small animals.

When confrontations between coyotes and larger dogs happen, it is often the coyote exhibiting a territorial defense behavior.

Coyotes are most likely defensive due to the mating and pup birthing period (January through June).

To reduce the chance for conflict between pets and coyotes, pet owners should restrain their pets, either by using a leash during walks or by keeping pets in a fenced-in area.

Keep cats indoors, not only to avoid being attacked by a coyote, but also to avoid the variety of other perils outdoor cats may encounter.

Don’t hesitate to scare or threaten coyotes with loud noises and bright lights. Don’t hesitate to pick up small objects, such as a tennis ball, and throw them at the coyote. If a water hose is close at hand, spray the coyote with water in the face.

Secure garbage in tough plastic containers with tightfitting lids and keep in secure buildings when possible.

Source: MassWildlife