The recent sightings of coyotes in the Ottawa region was a hot topic at a committee meeting held by the Community and Protective Services Committee on Feb. 4. Susan Jones, Ottawa’s director of the By-law and Regulatory Services, said that the increasing presence of coyotes has been a concern for a number of years, and while the issue initially arose in Greely, they have now been spotted across the city.

Christine Hartig, the By-law Services Project/Policy Officer, said that a key focus for resolving and getting a hold of the issue of coyotes is to increase public awareness and education. She proposed that more data be collected to identify problem areas.  

Hartig said that the City of Ottawa has been receiving calls regarding coyote sightings but more detail is needed to develop program planning.

“A call center and agency steering group to address wildlife issues would be helpful,” said Hartig. “The call center would get enhanced information and web-based resources and this would be readily available to residents.”

Howard Crerar, a resident of Osgoode, explained to the councillors that the primary concern when it comes to the issue of coyotes is public safety.

“I am concerned for the safety of my daughter,” said Crerar. “We are taking a passive approach by trapping them, I would like us to take a more aggressive approach, like tagging them and finding out where they live.”

Crerar also felt that educating is a good idea.

“The web is not as much of a benefit, we need action in schools,” said Crerar.

Donna DuBreuil, founder of the Ottawa-Carleton Wildlife Centre, also spoke to the council regarding the issue. DuBreuil said that the lack of wildlife strategy is having an impact on the city.

“We need to focus on prevention that is anchored in good planning. How can we deal with the issue if it isn’t anticipated and planned?”

DuBreuil also advocated for increased public awareness on the issue.

“Education in schools is critical,” said DuBreuil. “Is seeing a coyote a reason to kill it?”

DuBreuil urged councillors to take a calmer look at the issue and to not increase hunting to eliminate the problem.

The Ottawa Humane Society’s Director of Operations, Sharon Miko, pushed for a humane approach in dealing with the issue. “We are reviewing the best practices of other North American cities,” said Miko.

Douglas Thew, an Ottawa resident, who described himself as “not a political partisan and not an animal activist,” shared Miko’s view in adopting a humane way of dealing with the coyotes.

“Coyotes are wild, not dangerous,” said Thew. “People may not want to relocate the animals, but we have already begun to do so by going in and ripping up land for houses. We need houses, but we can’t kill these animals. We’ve already relocated the coyotes and we need to finish the relocation in an ethical and moral manner.”

Hartig offered advice in dealing with coyotes.

“Our relationship with coyotes depends on our behaviour, they react to us,” said Hartig. “Don’t feed them, either intentionally or inadvertently. Don’t approach them, or let pets run loose and if you come in contact with a coyote remain calm and don’t run.”

The increased presence of coyotes is not completely unusual around this time of year, since it is their breeding season.

“True threats are very, very rare,” said Hartig. “I spoke to a lady who had observed a coyote for a few hours and once I explained to her what the coyote was doing and why it was there, she no longer felt as threatened. Our approach is to increase public awareness and education, it is rarely necessary to remove coyotes.”