LONGWOOD, Fla. — Several homeowners in the Longwood area say they have been seeing a scary sight in their backyards more and more often: coyotes.

What You Need To Know

  • Some residents in the Longwood area say they have spotted coyotes coming to their backyards

  • Officials with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission say coyotes are well adapted to urban and suburban environments

  • Experts say that if a coyote approaches or is within close proximity, you can haze the coyote to encourage them to move on by making noises, waving your arms, or spraying water from a strong hose

One resident says she first saw coyotes a year ago, but now they have been getting closer and closer.

“They seem to have been taking residence in the backyard — we hear them howling all day and all night in a group, in a pack, and my neighbors have caught them on camera and we're just really worried,” Longwood resident Samantha Taylor said.

She is worried about coyotes hurting her daughter Billie and the family dog Chewie, who usually go out and play in the backyard where they have seen the coyotes.

“We hear it in the news — coyotes killed a dog, coyotes killed the cat — and we want to avoid that," Taylor said. "We have lots of pets in this neighborhood and we don't want something bad to happen."

Taylor said that although her home has a fence in the backyard, she worries coyotes can jump over it. Her husband decided to install a trail camera and they were shocked at what they saw: a pack of coyotes staring right into the camera while making their way through her backyard.

“And then they were gone, and we really didn't hear much about it, but now it's been weeks and weeks of them being here constantly,” Taylor said.

Officials with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) say coyotes are well adapted to urban and suburban environments throughout the U.S.

“We are scared they're getting brave," Taylor said. "They're coming to the fence — we don't want them to hurt our dog."

Taylor said she recently noticed something on Chewie’s ear that looked like a bite, and wondered if coyotes had anything to do with it.

And she is not the only one in the area that has seen the coyotes.  

“All over the neighborhood Facebook page, people are catching them on the ring camera, people are seeing them in their backyards," Taylor said. "Not everyone has a fence — some people have a big open backyard and they've seen coyotes walking through their backyard. They have little children that play in the backyard. It's scary."

Taylor said her family has been trying to reach Seminole County officials, but so far they have had no luck.

“We called animal control at the county, we’ve left voicemails, we have not heard from them yet," she said. "I don't know if that's the right place to go, but we wanted to just get some direction on what we're supposed to do.”

Taylor said her daughter's friend Talia lives next door and said she has also seen the coyotes at her home.

“I was just outside and I saw six coyotes, it was kind of scary,” Talia said. “I was just looking at them, but they are dangerous so I couldn’t come out here.”

FWC officials recommend that if a coyote approaches or is within close proximity, you can haze them to encourage them to move on by making noise, waving your arms, and using a deterrent such as spraying water from a strong hose.