In the beginning of November, a coyote was seen near an Ottawa golf course. The animal looked sick and possibly injured. Since winters in Canada can be rough, the people who found the coyote called the authorities, worried that the animal wouldn’t last through the season. Animal control then set traps to capture the coyote. However, the coyote continued to elude the traps and the people trying to catch it.
By the end of November, the coyote was caught. The people who rescued the animal realized that it was in bad shape. The coyote’s pelvis was broken, possibly from being hit by a vehicle, and it had such bad mange that there was barely any coat left. The mange put the coyote in danger of freezing or getting infected. Even though he had been rescued, it wasn’t a sure thing that the coyote would get through the night.
Once the coyote was brought to safety, it began doing something interesting – smiling! Even though he was still sick and injured, the animal seemed to know it was finally safe. The rescuers treated the coyote to mend its bones and help it grow a full, healthy coat. Over time, the coyote became more and more comfortable with its rescuers and in its new home in the Rideau Valley Wildlife Sanctuary.
The sanctuary will be keeping the coyote until it has recovered. It will be brought back to the wild once it’s strong enough to live there. The rescuers are also trying to limit the amount of human contact the coyote has so that it has a better chance of surviving in the wild.