Coyotes
Report coyote and wildlife sightings to Service Oshawa by calling 905-436-3311 or emailing [email protected].
Coyote sightings are more frequent in the winter during mating periods (January - February), spring during den selection/pup rearing (March - June) and fall during the dispersal of pack members.
Coyote Response
The health and safety of our community is our top priority. In response to the increased sightings and interactions with coyotes, the City has created a Coyote Response Management Plan, but needs your help in implementing it. Read on to learn your role in Oshawa’s coyote response.
City Response
Our Council approved Coyote Response Management Plan supports a safe co-existence with urban coyotes using education, behaviour modification and the implementation of a tiered and escalated approach in response to human-coyote conflicts.
Review the City's Coyote Response Management Plan now.
The City of Oshawa hosted a virtual community information session on co-existing with coyotes that included presentations from:
- Coyote Watch Canada (review the presentation);
- the Ministry of Northern Development, Mines, Natural Resources and Forestry (review the presentation); and,
- City of Oshawa Municipal Law Enforcement (review the presentation).
Watch a recording of the information session on YouTube now!
Additionally, the City:
- Coordinates site visits in common sighting areas with a Coyote Watch Canada Canid Response Team Representative. Coyote Watch Canada is a federal not-for-profit wildlife organization that provides educational programming, a first-response team, on-site field investigation, private, municipal- and provincial-level consultation and digital mapping programs.
- Monitoring sighting locations and installing fencing and signage in common affected areas to discourage interactions. The community is asked to please respect the posted signage, to not approach wildlife, and to report coyote sightings to Service Oshawa.
- Reducing some naturalized areas in the neighbourhood park/locations of concern by cutting back tall grass.
- Removing community garbage containers that are often used to dispose of household garbage and pet waste.
- Responding to Coyote occurrences per the Council-approved Coyote Response Management Plan.
| Other City response tactics |
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How you can help
The City needs your help to support a safe co-existence with urban coyotes.
Do not feed the coyotes, as per the Nuisance By-law.
Feeding coyotes takes away their ingrained fear of humans, which is needed for humans and coyotes to safely co-exist and may lead to attacking small pets or unattended small children. Often, when aggressive coyotes are reported in a neighbourhood it is because someone in the area has fed them.
Community members can eliminate the food source by:
- securing their garbage;
- keeping people and pet food indoors; and,
- cleaning up fallen fruit and spilled bird seed.
Learn other steps you can take to prevent coyotes or if you encounter a coyote:
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How can I prevent coyotes from visiting my yard? |
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| How do I report coyote sightings? |
| The City of Oshawa uses sighting reports to monitor common locations and determine if neighbourhood specific communications and prevention methods are required.
Community members are urged to report sightings to Service Oshawa by:
By reporting wildlife sightings, you are helping the City to monitor common locations. |
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What do I do if I encounter a coyote? |
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Resources
- City of Oshawa Coyote Response Management Plan
- CORP-21-48 Coyotes in the City of Oshawa report
- Free Coyotes in the Urban Landscape online module
- Coyote Watch Canada information, including Frequently Asked Questions
- Ministry of Natural Resources information