Coyotes in Littleton

Saw a coyote in my front yard this morning. Exciting indeed. It's nice feeling like I have a bit of the wild outside my door. Sometimes, however, that nice feeling is interrupted by concern for the safety of our dogs and cats. Encounters with coyotes have become legendary in my neighborhood and now the folks who walk their small canines do so with rocks in their pockets and whistles around their neck. I've been told stories that were pretty scary, especially the one about the time a lady grabbed her Chihuahua in her arms and ran home with a coyote following her. He was obviously not giving up. She was fortunate that a man driving by saw what was happening and stopped his car to help her. The coyote finally gave up and ran off. This morning even the squirrels were scared as they ran in numbers from the bottom of a Spruce tree in my direction. I think they thought I could save them from being breakfast. I was glad that they felt safe with me.