University Park is warning its residents about several recent coyote sightings.
Coyotes have been spotted at the Dallas Country Club and in residential neighborhoods near Turtle Creek during the past month, the city said.
“Residents have called the police department on three or four occasions over the last four to six weeks with coyote sightings,” University Park spokesman Steve Mace said.
The trees, wooded areas and creek beds make University Park prime property for coyotes to prey.
“They're very tough to trap,” Mace said. “It”s not like you have a great deal of success when you put out a cage.”
One of the most recent sightings was on the 16th hole of the golf course at the Dallas Country Club. A jogger spotted the coyote at about 7 a.m.
The jogger called police. Gov. Rick Perry took a different route during an early morning job in February; he shot a coyote that was threatening his dog.
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”I suspect most people in the same circumstance would do the same thing,” said Chuck Payne, manager of Ray’s Hardware and Sporting Goods.
But Payne said he wouldn’t recommend that course of action.
“If you are shooting at a coyote and you are in Highland Park, University Park, or Dallas, you better be darn careful where that bullet is going to go, should it pass through or miss the coyote,” he said.
What do city officials suggest you do if you encounter a coyote?
“Thankfully, coyotes are rather skittish,” said Mace. “If you raise hands or voice, they’ll go away. They don't want human interaction.”
In light of the February shooting, Perry signed a peace treaty with the San Antonio Spurs mascot -- the coyote -- on Thursday. He posted a picture of the peace treaty on his Twitter account.
