A coyote has attacked a two-year-old child in the Metro Vancouver community of Port Coquitlam, resulting in the toddler being sent to hospital with minor injuries.
The B.C. Conservation Officer Service says on Twitter that the attack happened Wednesday after 8 p.m. at Lions Park near the town centre.
The service says Coquitlam RCMP officers killed a coyote near the attack scene, and a search of the park did not turn up other animals.
It says on Twitter the coyote ate “non-natural food sources,” later clarifying that it had consumed peanuts and dog food.
The service says the public should not feed dangerous wildlife under any circumstances, and violators will incur “enforcement action as warranted.”
Wildlife experts say feeding coyotes is one of the biggest causes of attacks, as the animals lose fear of people and may then try to test humans as possible prey.
