Coyotes go on the rampage on streets of Chicago

Chicago has long been known for the dangers posed by its gun-toting human predators, as memorably documented by Spike Lee’s 2015 blockbuster “Chiraq”.

But America’s third largest city suddenly faces a worrying new canine threat: thousands of hungry and aggressive coyotes.

This week, a 5-year-old boy and a 32-year-old man were bitten by the wild dogs. The child was attacked by a coyote in the lakefront Lincoln Park, near the city’s Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum. He suffered multiple bites and was said to be in a stable condition.

In a separate incident, the man was walking in Streeterville, a neighborhood near downtown, when a coyote crept up behind him and bit him right on the butt. The second victim was immediately hospitalized but reported to be in a good condition.

Cook County, Illinois, is estimated to have 4,000 coyotes, a population that has grown in recent years. But it seems that a shortage of food is driving an increasing number of the animals into the urban area of Chicago.

The city’s animal control said a dramatic rise in coyote sightings is due to them following the Chicago River in search of food, bringing them ever closer to downtown and making them more aggressive the hungrier they get.

Before the attacks this week, there were several other recent sightings of coyotes on the streets of Chicago, according to USA Today. These included one incident where a coyote snatched a poodle and tried to run away with it, only to be stopped by a determined owner who threw his shoes at the wild predator.

Animal control experts said that residents should keep their dogs on short leashes, and try not to leave garbage out in the open near their homes, as it could encourage the coyotes to come to their yards seeking food.