EDMONTON – An Edmonton woman’s dog was attacked by a pack of coyotes Thursday evening, while they were out for walk near the river valley in Riverbend.
The attacked happened in the area of Herring Cooper Way and Heffernan Drive – near Terwillegar Park – around 8:20 p.m.
The woman and her three dogs were walking on a path near the North Saskatchewan River when she says they were approached by upwards of nine coyotes.
Fire crews say the coyotes went after the smallest of the three pups, chasing it onto the ice.
“She did her best to scare off the animals,” said District Chief Ron Sawchuk with Edmonton Fire Rescue Services. “She went down the embankment and realized that she couldn’t go out there… because of the dangers of the thin ice.”
Sawchuk says the woman then tried to make it back up the 20-foot embankment but couldn’t, so called 911 on her cell phone.
EMS, fire crews, police and Air 1 were called in to assist with the rescue.
“They were successful in getting to the smaller dog. They brought the smaller dog up and immediately brought it over to the EMS. They bandaged the dog up and then it was transported to a veterinary clinic,” Sawchuk explained.
The extent of the dog’s injuries are not known at this time.
Sawchuk says the woman was quite shaken up, but not injured in the ordeal. The other two dogs were not injured.
Residents say this is not the first time they’ve seen coyotes in the area.
“I’ve been surrounded by them. They wake us up in the morning,” said Keri, who lives in the area. “It’s a bit of a problem; enough so that I won’t walk at night by myself anymore, definitely.”
Keri says she has written a letter to the city, but was told coyotes and other animals come with living near a ravine.