Toronto residents fearful of rampant coyote attacks

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Concern over coyotes is mounting in Liberty Village-Fort York area of the city in the wake six attacks last Monday.

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Garrison Park resident Ruby Kooner spoke to the Toronto Sun by phone Friday explaining her beloved 13-year-old Shih Tzu-Poodle mix Amber was attacked by coyotes in November and died of sepsis on Dec. 13, 2024.

She said area residents are going in circles trying to find a solution with city and provincial officials.

“We were going on a routine walk maybe two minutes from my building,” Kooner said, recalling how she took Amber for a nightly jaunt. “And then we were ambushed by two coyotes – I felt like they appeared out of thin air.”

She quickly grabbed her dog after hearing “its shrill screams” and refused to let the coyotes take her pet, which was left bleeding badly, as the wild animals both snapped at her until a few bystanders rushed to her aid.

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Kooner said she also knows of an attack on a five-year-old dog named Gregorio, owned by area resident Ann Selvanayagam, who lives near the June Callwood Park – just south of the Beltway and Fort York – that occurred Monday.

But there were media reports of five others attacks in the area that same day.

Kooner said the attacks are now coming in “groups” with the coyotes becoming “more stealthy,” seemingly appear “out of nowhere” and encircling dog walkers at dusk and dawn throughout the area between Bathurst St. and Dufferin St.

She also spoke about a 62-pound leashed dog that was attacked with its female owner in Coronation Park on Monday night.

“The owner was using a whistle, aversion tactics, but the coyote was fearless,” Kooner said. “Two men came running over to help her.”

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Kooner and her citizens group now have a detailed map of all the attacks – including times, dates and details of what happened – which they have presented to the city.

She said area City Councillor Ausma Malik, MPP Chris Glover and Carleton Grant, the executive director of licensing for the city, have all been extremely helpful.

However, Kooner feels Animal Services “seems to drag their feet and needs constant pushing to be helpful or affective.”

She said bylaw enforcement officers have been brought into the area, but when they first began patrolling they were handing out $600 dollar tickets to unleashed dog owners.

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Over at the Stanley Park off-leash dog enclosure, at least seven dog walkers and owners were enjoying watching their dogs play Friday afternoon. But they all said they are wary of their surroundings even when leaving the enclosure.

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Dog walker Kristin Freeland – out with Murray, Bailey, two Golden Retrievers, and Benny and Hal, two mixed breeds – said she has seen the coyotes and has even recorded video of one sitting calmly on a hill on Jan. 5.

“I know of one (attack) that just happened outside of the park a couple of weeks ago, unfortunately – on both little dogs and cats,” Kristin said.

“I’ve seen them quite a few times,” she said. “I live over on Dufferin and have seen them right on the street there. And, unfortunately, its almost becoming a daily occurrence.”

Currently, Kooner said they have a large network of residents – 150 to 200 – who are more up-to-date on all the goings on of the coyote attacks and have documented more information about the incidents than the City of Toronto.

jboland@postmedia.com

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