Coyotes roaming neighborhoods in Rogers City

Courtesy Photo A wild coyote crosses the street in Rogers City on Wednesday. Police are asking people to not leave their children or pets outside unattended because there could be several of the wild animals roaming in areas of the city.
ROGERS CITY — The Rogers City Police Department is asking residents to not leave pets or children outside unattended, as they address complaints about coyotes roaming in residential areas of the city.
Coyotes are wild animals that resemble dogs and are potentially dangerous. Coyote attacks against grown adults are rare, however, but contact with them should be avoided and treated with caution. They can be very dangerous to children and pets.
According to Rogers City Mayor Scott McLennan, Rogers City Police, the Presque Isle County Sheriff’s deputies, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, and a professional wild animal exterminator have been hired to address the wild canines that are on the prowl.
Residents are being warned to not approach the animals or take matters into their own hands and try to shoot them.
Shooting a firearm in the city limits may lead to criminal charges for someone discharging a gun at the animals.
“Just report the animal with a call to local police,” McLennan said. “People should stay as far as possible from the animals. Please don’t shoot at them, because you won’t know where the bullets go.”
McLennan said calls trickled into police a few days ago, but since then, the number of sightings, including from people who have seen the animals in their yards, has increased rapidly.
McLennan said although the wild dogs are nocturnal, many of the coyote sightings have been during the day when people and domesticated animals are out and about.
“The reports have really exploded in the last 24 hours,” he said. “We just really want people to use caution and protect their pets and children.”
McLennan said as of now, it is unknown how many of the coyotes are in the city. He said many of the sightings have been in the area of the Rogers City High School and Brege Street, as well as the south end of Fourth Street, Fifth Street, Sixth Street, and Seventh Street.
Getting rid of the animals may be a challenge as they have been easily seen but are hard to corner or drive out of the city limits, McLennan said. He said even police can’t shoot the animals in the city, so hiring a professional who deals with the handling of wild animals was needed. McLennan said the city is paying for the service, which he said must be done to ensure the safety of residents and visitors to Rogers City.
“We are coordinating with our partners to resolve this issue and keep the community safe,” he said. “We are working as diligently as possible to remove this threat.”
It is not the first time Rogers City residents have had wild animals roaming in or near residential areas. Last year, a young bull elk took up residence in the city and residents became enamored with their new neighbor. Pictures of the elk flooded social media and large groups of people gathered along the shoreline of Lake Huron to see it. Eventually, after several weeks, the DNR and other wildlife experts were able to chase the elk out of town.
Steve Schulwitz can be reached at 989-358-5689 or sschulwitz@thealpenanews.com. Follow him on Twitter @ss_alpenanews.com.