The Village of South Holland reminds residents to not leave family pets unattended outside because of increased coyote activity in the area this time of year.

Pet owners should be especially attentive during coyote mating season, which runs January through March. During this time, coyotes travel more distances to find mates and require extra food for this extra travel. They also need extra energy to build dens for pregnant females, who will also then need to stock up on food. Coyotes are particularly aggressive during this time.

Residents should not feed any wild animals such as raccoons or deer. Food left outdoors for any animals encourages coyotes to remain in the area. Trash cans should be well secured and residents should not attempt to compost any meat scraps.

Outdoor animal feeding containers are discouraged. Coyotes will be attracted to and prey on small mammals that are fed outdoors by humans.

Pets should not be allowed to run free, especially at night. Dogs running free attract the attention of coyotes. Cats should be kept indoors, especially at night. According to village ordinance, dogs must be walked on a leash and not tied up outside alone, even if you have a fenced in yard.

According to the Cook County Urban Coyote Research Project, 60% of Coyote attacks on dogs are on smaller breeds such as Yorkshire Terriers, Shih Tzus and Jack Russell Terriers. But they have attacked medium and large breeds of dogs as well.

The Cook County Urban Coyote Research Project researched coyote attacks on humans and did not find any records of attacks on humans within the Chicago metropolitan area or within the State of Illinois; however, over 150 attacks on humans have been reported nationwide in recent years.

Coyotes are most active in the dawn and dusk hours. Residents are encouraged to reinforce the coyotes’ natural fear of humans. Turn on outside lights, make loud noises, and even throw rocks or other nearby objects if you need to. Act aggressively so the coyotes run away.

Six easy steps to avoid conflicts with coyotes (from The Cook County Urban Coyote Research Project):

1. Do not feed the coyotes
2. Do not let pets run loose or be unattended
3. Do not run from a coyote
4. Repellents or fencing may help
5. Report aggressive, fearless coyotes immediately
6. Do not create conflict where it does not exist

More information about these six steps can be found by clicking here.

Further information about the Cook County Urban Coyote Research Project can be found at UrbanCoyoteResearch.com.