Citizen concerned about coyotes in West Vancouver

The citizen says he wants council to take some action on this matter

A West Vancouver citizen says the council and staff have been largely unresponsive to the proliferation of coyotes and the danger they pose to pets in the community. The citizen has written two letters to the council expressing his concerns about coyotes after the family pet was killed by coyotes.

The citizen says he wants council to take some action on this matter. The citizen said he has also noticed that a sign warning people about coyotes in the Irwin Park school grounds has also been removed and should be reinstated. The citizen wrote to the council after he found out the remains of his cats in the back yard.

“Upon returning home I found pet cat’s fresh remains in the backyard, Two-third of his body was gone. I assumed it was the work of a coyote. A wild animal smell was in the air. My grief was immense,” the citizen wrote. But the personal grief at the loss of pets wasn’t the only motivating factor for the citizen to urge some action from the council. “My immeasurable loss of my companion is not something I would like to go into. My community is no longer safe for our pets. People tell me they frequently see coyotes that seem quite emboldened—brazen is the term that is used. My frustration with this keeps on growing,” he said.

To pursue this, he called the West Vancouver Police department who directed him to phone the conservation office. The local SPCA gave him a number for the Stanley Park Ecology Centre and their “Co-existing withCoyotes program, who informed him that the program’s mandate is to collect the numbers on coyotes and pass on the information to higher authorities.

The citizen says he frequently hears about coyote attacks in the neighbourhood and signs of missing cats are common in areas such as Dundarave. Two of his neighbours reported three cats gone, and another neighbour reported seeing a pack of coyotes at night around a West Vancouver bus stop. “She was deeply troubled to think what might have happened if she was walking alone that night.

“Is anyone keeping track of these issues of public and pet safety and willing to do something about it. I do add public safety to remind you of the story of the four-year old girl who was attacked by coyotes in Surrey,” the citizen wrote. He is urging the West Vancouver council to take steps to control the coyote population, educate the public about the risks and create a clear program to report coyotes in the community. Another West Vancouver citizen wrote to council about an animal that killed their cat and requested action on the issue. “My wife called the Wildlife service but she was told they couldn’t register the report because we had not seen the wild animal. They were not interested in hearing about where we live and didn’t even take out address,” the citizen wrote.

Stanley Park Ecology Centre estimates there are about 2,000 to 3,000 coyotes in the Lower Mainland and they are naturally active during the day time. “You might think they are nocturnal, but they have adapted their behaviour in cities to avoid humans in the day time and will do most of their hunting and travelling at night or during twilight. Have you seen a coyote in the daytime? Please report it using our online report form, or call our info-line 604-681- WILD (9453), according to the centre.