July | 2025 | Coyote Yipps

CBS: Coyotes reclaiming SF spaces as residents contemplate how to coexist

I want to add to information presented in this news piece by Itay Hod about WHO the coyotes are, in a nutshell:

Summarizing WHO the coyotes are is a huge topic — no different from summarizing concisely who humans are! But right off the bat, they are highly intelligent (I just wrote and posted this about their intelligence: https://coyoteyipps.com/2025/06/25/coyote-intelligence/) and highly social animals who are always interacting, always communicating with each other through eye to eye contact, body language, and vocalizations. They live in organized families which always start with an alpha male and female. The rest of the family includes their offspring which include a couple of yearlings born in previous years who have not dispersed, and then pups born in the current year who will disperse sometime during their second year.

They live on their own exclusive territories and keep other coyotes out, which is one way they limit the population. Territories here in San Francisco run about 2 to 2.5 square miles, and we have about 20 of them which I’ve mapped — and updated: I’ll post this soon. These territories cover the entirety of San Francisco, so you have an opportunity to encounter them anywhere!

As animals, they interact with each other constantly: they play, horse around, tease, care for each other through mutual grooming. The core of their existence is their family life, which, in it’s own way, is similar to ours. Watching them is joyous and often presents soap-opera scenarios. Most coyotes famously mate for life, but true to the individuals they are, some of them indeed *divorce*!

I think probably the most fun thing about them is how their lives are so parallel to our own when it comes to their families: it’s so easy to relate to them! Their families are the most important thing to them and this might help people understand their protective behavior, especially during the denning season which is right now.

Alison Lufkin wants “something, anything, done about the coyotes”. She in fact posits the answer about what needs to be done in her own statements: she learned through a heartbreaking experience, that you must keep dogs leashed in all coyote areas, and it’s best to avoid areas where there has been an increase in coyote activity because this probably means it’s a denning area. Alison learned the hard way through a harrowing experience. But why wait until after the fact? You can avert all encounters by knowing what is going on and knowing what to do the minute you see a coyote through EDUCATION and LEARNING pro-actively about coyote behavior, what to expect if you see one, how to handle encounters. I gave a blitz of about 12 educational slide-talks during the last few months in libraries throughout the city and will continue, including putting out signage in hot spots when needed. I give lots of first-hand information on my Instagram and here on my blog (both go by the same name: coyoteyipps.com), and you are welcome to contact me for help through this blog. But at the same time, I hope everyone else can help spread the word about what to do at coyote encounters. Please read the two articles below and spread the word. Mainly: walk away from a coyote the minute you see one, especially if you have a dog.

Also see:

A Walker’s Guide to Understanding and Dealing with Coyote Sightings: https://coyoteyipps.com/2025/07/03/a-hikers-guide-to-understanding-and-dealing-with-coyote-sightings/
Understanding Coyote Denning Behavior: [http://[https://discoverwildcare.org/understanding-coyote-denning-behavior/]

A Walker’s Guide to Understanding and Dealing with Coyote Sightings

*This is a mother coyote, intensely pacing and intensely eyeing dogs which are about 200 feet away: it’s a dead giveaway that she’s anxious and worried, and that her family is around.*

The guidelines are simple: keep away and walk away from a coyote the minute you see one, especially if you have a dog: respect their need for space.

Most of the time a coyote will simply scurry away from you and your dog, but you have to be prepared for the few instances when this does not happen. In fact, it might be safer to *expect* to run into a coyote if you have a dog and try to understand the situation and know what to do if this happens.

This is pupping season which actualy goes on thru the fall. Coyotes are especially pro-actively protective of themselves and their spaces around densites. They protect a good 1/4th mile radius — it is this entire area that the pups will soon be exploring.

Please keep dogs leashed anywhere there might be coyotes — this is mostly to keep dogs from chasing coyotes, or from running off to where they might attract a coyote’s ire, but please also be aware that a leash does not protect your pet during a coyote/dog encounter, it just allows you to control 1/2 of the equation. Note also that dogs and coyotes do not like each other: all canids, including wolves and foxes, exclude the others from their territories.

We have about twenty coyote family territories here in San Francisco and these cover the entirety of the city: you should be prepared for a coyote appearing anywhere here, and any time of the day, although most of their activity begins at dusk and goes on through dawn.

A coyote might follow you out of curiosity or to escort you away from an area: Just keep walking away from that coyote without running, picking up a small dog as you go, and dragging your larger dog if you have to. IF the coyote comes critically close — which he probably won’t if you keep walking away from him — you’ll have to scare that coyote away. But the main point is to keep waling on.

If you need to scare away a coyote who has approached to within a critically close range, the best way I have found to scare him off is with a handful of gravel thrown angrily, viciously and louds TOWARDS the coyote (not at him). This disarms them — it’s a little like shrapnell — and makes them pause and reconsider.

Dens are not often marked by the park departments, because they don’t know where they are: coyotes choose secret places, mostly in out of the way spaces.

Focusing on a coyote and walking towards him is what you don’t want to do — it makes them feel like you are after them. So instead, do the opposite!

BTW, I’m a self-taught naturalist, not an academic, with 18 years of every single day observing them: their individual behaviors, their family life, and their behavior towards pets and people.

Stay safe out there, for yours and theirs.

If you prefer reading the above material in bullet point fashion, here it is:

➡️ Walk Away the Moment You See a Coyote
Whether the coyote seems curious or indifferent, just calmly and steadily walk away. Pick up small dogs and keep moving. Don’t stare or approach the animal.

➡️ Coyotes Will Often Avoid You — But Not Always
While most coyotes will scurry off, you should expect an encounter eventually if you walk dogs regularly. Knowing what to do makes all the difference.

➡️Note that SF has about 20 coyote territories, covering the entirety of the city — and I’ve seen pups in 14 of them so far: in other words, a coyote can be seen anywhere and anytime, though mostly from dusk to dawn.

➡️ Dogs and Coyotes Don’t Mix
Coyotes see dogs as rivals — just like wolves and foxes. Being leashed helps you control your dog, but it doesn’t “protect” your pet in an encounter.

➡️ If Followed, Keep Moving
Sometimes coyotes follow out of curiosity or to *escort* you out of the area. Don’t panic — just continue walking away without engaging. This alone will usually diffuse the situation.

➡️ If a Coyote Comes Too Close
However, IF the coyote gets too close, you’ll need to scare it away. A handful of gravel thrown forcefully and loudly toward the coyote can break its focus and send it running. Yell loudly while doing this. It’s like a burst of shrapnel that startles them.

➡️ Dens Are Hidden
Don’t rely on signage — dens aren’t marked and are usually in quiet, hard-to-find places. The best protection is to stay vigilant and give all coyotes a wide berth, especially now.

➡️ Don’t Walk Toward a Coyote
Coyotes interpret this as aggression. Instead, always move calmly and steadily away.

And if you prefer a quick summary checklist, here it is:

See a coyote? MOST IMPORTANTLY: Walk away immediately, especially if you have a dog.
Dogs and coyotes are territorial rivals — they don’t like each other.
Respect their space — don’t approach or stare them down.
Always assume you’ll see coyotes when you’re walking a dog, especially during pupping season and be prepared.
Note that SF has about 20 coyote territories, covering the entirety of the city — and I’ve seen pups in 14 of them so far: in other words, a coyote can be seen anywhere and anytime, though mostly from dusk to dawn.
It’s pupping season (spring through fall) — coyotes are extra protective right now.
Dens are hidden and not marked — stay alert in all natural areas.
Coyotes protect ¼ mile radius or more around their dens — it’s important to know this.
A leash helps you control your dog, but doesn’t protect it from a coyote.
If followed or escorted by a coyote, stay calm and keep walking away.
Pick up small dogs, drag large ones if needed, but keep walking away.
If a coyote gets too close, best scare tactic involves yelling and throwing gravel toward (not at) it.
Never walk toward a coyote — it feels threatening to them. Always move away.

Additional information about the denning season: [https://discoverwildcare.org/understanding-coyote-denning-behavior/]

🧭 About me: I’m a self-taught naturalist with 18 years of daily observations of coyotes — I document their individual behavior, family life, and interactions with pets and people. My advice comes from lived experience, not theory.

And here’s more if you happen to get The Mercury News (subscription is needed): https://www.mercurynews.com/2025/07/03/coyote-safety-parks/