This browser does not support the Video element.
New questions after coyote bites toddler
A coyote previously thought to be put down by wildlife officials is still alive and was reportedly seen roaming around Los Angeles.
LOS ANGELES - In an about-face, wildlife officials who last month announced they had euthanized a coyote who bit a toddler now say the animal survived. Neighbors say it’s been roaming free on the streets around Glenhurst Avenue and Gracia Street in Atwater Village.
What they're saying:
"How this played out was not acceptable," said Rebecca Dymytrk, who rescues wildlife with Wildlife Emergency Services. "They lied, they lied."
She says she went to Atwater Village last week to track a wounded coyote. She spotted the animal limping and realized it was the same coyote neighbors nicknamed Wiley. "I was surprised," she tells FOX 11, adding she reached out on Nov. 8 to tell the California Department of Fish and Wildlife Wiley was still alive. "No response, nothing," she said.
The backstory:
Back on Oct. 16, the agency told us in a statement that officers had euthanized the coyote, and days later confirmed DNA tests showed the animal was the same coyote who bit the toddler. The child was treated and released from the hospital.
We couldn’t reach the agency for comment on Veterans Day, but a spokesperson for Fish and Wildlife told the Los Angeles Times officers shot the animal and believed it had succumbed to its injuries, but never retrieved a carcass.
The statement to the Times added officers went back out this week and euthanized the animal out of concern for public safety.
"I feel sorry for the animal," said Frank Betancourt, who lives in the area. "It should be put down because of what happened."
Local perspective:
But neighbors are also frustrated. Several told us they had complained about Wiley for months. Videos show a coyote they say is Wiley in backyards, on cars and jumping fences.
They say they told animal control and Fish and Wildlife that a neighborhood man was feeding coyotes and Wiley was not afraid of people. Officials last month said the man could face charges, but Dymtryk wants accountability from officials, too.
"Saying we killed an animal when they actually didn’t ... That’s bad," she said. She tells us she doesn’t have much faith this will lead to change at the state agency, but she hopes the city of Los Angeles will start a program to address coyotes and train specialists to investigate, trap and move problem animals.
The Source: This report is based on FOX 11 interviews with a wildlife rescuer and Atwater Village residents, statements from the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, and Los Angeles Times reporting on the agency’s response.