Plastic Pipe Slowly Slicing into Coyote's Throat, Rescuers Rushing To Save Her Life
When San Diego resident Katie Ryan sees coyotes wandering around behind her home, they’re usually nothing to be worried about.
Living in Rancho Bernardo, Ryan has been watching the animals travel in packs along the greenbelt in her backyard for years.
But in April 2018, she spotted a female coyote in desperate need of help. The coyote appeared to have recently given birth and had a piece of landscaper’s tube stuck around her neck.
While Ryan explained the animal could still move, she could tell she was struggling to free herself somehow.
“You can tell she’s in a lot of discomfort because of the way she’s shaking her neck a lot,” Ryan said.
For over a month, Ryan and her neighbors worked to trap the animal, but their attempts were entirely unsuccessful.
Recent photos have revealed that the pipe has started digging deeply into the coyote’s skin. The cuts have started to bleed and swell, and if she doesn’t get help soon, she won’t survive.
So Ryan decided to call in a professional animal trapper to hopefully capture the coyote long enough to remove the tubing.
“It’s been a labor of love, not just me but this huge group of people,” Ryan said as they prepared to trap the animal.
“Tonight’s the night because she is so infected and inflamed, she has got to get help now.”
Experts believe the coyote was hunting in a construction zone when she got her head stuck in the tube.
Many people across the US have offered their support with the rescue mission. The operation is still underway, and the Funds for Animals Wildlife Center in Ramona has a plan for the coyote’s rehabilitation after she is trapped.
“If and when the female coyote is caught,” director of the center Matt Anderson said, “we will immediately transport her to our Wildlife Center to properly remove the tube from around her neck.
“We will perform a complete medical assessment and treat her accordingly. It is our hope that she can be rehabilitated with us and that we can subsequently release her back into her native habitat.”
The center specializes in the rehabilitation of coyotes specifically, and they hope that after the capture that they will be able to reunite her with her young.
In the meantime, Ryan has continued to keep an eye on the animal at night and early in the mornings. She has even had conversations with the coyote to let her know that she is here to help.
“She just stared and stared, and I came out and I looked at her and said, ‘We are getting you help!’” Ryan said.
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