Small Business Solutions

Lakeview residents continue to sound the alarm about a dangerous pack of coyotes near City Park. A bulletin was sent to Lakeview residents over the weekend after a pack of coyotes ate a family of ducks in the 6800 block of General Diaz. Video showed the coyotes roaming in people’s front yards as well as walking down sidewalks in front of homes. According to Val Cupit with Lakeview Crimewatch, over 20 coyotes were seen at their den on Marconi Drive. Cupit is urging residents in the neighborhood to be vigilant and keep pets and children inside. This is not the first time Cupit has voiced concerns about the coytoes in Lakeview. Just last month, she spoke with WDSU after her pet was killed by a coyote. After that incident, City Park told WDSU they were working with the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries to address the coyote problem. WDSU reached out to City Park about the recent sightings, and received this response: “City Park Conservancy is working with the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, which did a site visit to the Park to survey coyote activity and identify areas in the Park where they may be living.”Consistent with a wildlife mitigation/containment plan supplied by LDWF, CPC is trapping the animals and making areas of the Park less hospitable to coyotes. CPC staff are securing unnatural food sources for these wild animals, including garbage left behind by Park visitors, and practicing deterrent tactics or hazing such as using loud noises to encourage coyotes to leave the area.”CPC is committed to continuing to minimize the presence of coyotes in the Park and asks for the publics help. Park visitors and neighbors are asked to keep pets on a leash, secure their own garbage in bins with tight lids and refrain from leaving food sources like cat food outside.”If a visitor is approached by a coyote, the Humane Society of the United States advises people to be loud and large, yelling and waving arms so the animals know to not approach. Anyone who sees a coyote in their neighborhood should report it to the New Orleans Department of Mosquito, Rodent and Termite Control at 504-658-2400 or mosquitocontrol@nola.gov.”For more information on coyotes, visit the LDWFs website and learn more about Living with Coyotes.”