NAHANT — Police are urging people to exercise caution around coyotes after a dog was attacked by a pack in Nahant last Monday.
Eileen Peterson told Boston25news that she was cooking in her kitchen at around 5 p.m. Monday when she heard her 12-year-old Labrador Retriever-mix, Buddy, barking from the household’s fenced-in backyard.
“I looked, and I was like, ‘What the heck? I only have one dog,’” Peterson said. “And there (were) a couple dogs in the backyard.”
Peterson told the station she ran outside to find that two coyotes had jumped over a chicken wire fence leading to a golf course behind her home to attack the pup while another coyote hung back on the other side of the gate.
She yelled for her son, who she said “flew down the driveway” to chase the coyotes away.
“Buddy came over to me kind of limping, and I’m like, ‘Oh, he just kind of got hurt.’ Well he came up, got into our bed, and there was a puddle of blood underneath him,” Peterson said.
Buddy, who reportedly suffered multiple gashes to his leg and backside, was taken to a vet to receive treatment and is expected to make a full recovery.
However, Peterson said she thought the outcome could have been far worse.
“He would’ve been dead,” she said. “I think they would’ve ripped him apart because there (were) three of them.”
In response to the attack, Nahant Police have put out a warning on the department’s Facebook page informing residents that coyotes can become more aggressive during their breeding season, which typically peaks between mid-February and early March.
“We remind you to keep an eye on all pets while outside, and please know that coyotes can scale fences up to eight feet high,” police wrote.
Residents are asked to visit the Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife website for more information about coyotes. Police are also asking residents to report overly aggressive coyotes by calling 911 or (781) 581-1212.
Peterson said she wants Buddy’s attack to serve as a cautionary tale to other pet owners.
“For a pack of them to come after a dog that size, that’s not right,” she said.
