Beware: Coyotes in the Big Country Want Our Neighborhood Cats

It happened again. The coyotes are back, their haunting yelps and barks echoing through the night, closing in on our neighborhood. With the relentless heat, today hitting a scorching 114 degrees, the coyotes, desperate for food and water, are venturing deeper into town. Their primary targets? Domesticated cats. And thus, the war is on.

Our mission: to protect my wife's beloved cats, the neighbor's cats, and every fur baby in the area. Sadly, the coyotes are hungry, and leaving food out only worsens the situation, inviting them back again and again. Even worse, many homeowners in Abilene and the Big Country might not realize the danger coyotes bring. Beyond attacking pets, they can also spread serious illnesses like rabies.

WARNING: The cat in the video is being attacked by a coyote. The cat ends up okay.

Several years ago, we lost one of our own to these predators. Moo Moo was a black and white Manx, barely two years old, and full of personality. One night, the coyotes came, and in a flash, he was gone. That night left a scar. I remember waking up to the eerie yelps of three very hungry coyotes right outside our house. They had come looking for a meal, and one of our cats was their target. The sound sent a chill down my spine, but I wasn’t going to let them take another.

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I jumped out of bed and charged outside, yelling, hoping to scare them off. But these coyotes weren’t afraid. They stared me down as if daring me to make a move. It was a standoff. Only when I grabbed my bird-shot revolver and stepped outside again did they scatter. The next morning, I learned that several pets in the neighborhood had gone missing overnight, likely victims of these cunning hunters.

Protect your pets by bringing them indoors before sunset!

Since that night, our cats have become strictly indoor pets. I won’t risk losing another like Moo Moo. Yet, just last night, as I returned from the gym, I heard them again, those distinct howls and yelps echoing nearby, a reminder that the danger hasn’t passed.

Living within city limits means firearms aren’t an option for dealing with these cat-killing canines. For now, all I can do is keep our cats indoors, on high alert, and perhaps pick up a few tricks from the Roadrunner cartoon. After all, I do live in Wylie, so a little humor, pardon the pun, goes a long way in this ongoing battle against the Wylie Coyote.