3 children bitten by coyotes in Montreal neighbourhood

CTV Montreal: Coyote controversy Ahuntsic-Cartierville residents got a crash course in coyotes as they called for the borough to do more to get rid of the animals.

Three young children have been attacked by coyotes in the same Montreal neighbourhood in the past week.

Montreal police say the first biting incident was reported on July 22, with two more on Friday and Saturday.

The attacks left a five-year-old boy, a five-year-old girl and a three-year-old girl with minor injuries.

All three children were bitten during the evening in Parc des Hirondelles or Parc Gabriel-Lalemant in Montreal’s Ahuntstic-Cartierville borough.

Laura Fiumidinisi says she witnessed the aftermath of one of the attacks, when she says a coyote bit a young girl on the leg.

“Women were screaming and men were just running after it,” she said. “It’s just traumatic, I feel like, especially for kids.”

Local authorities have placed posters around the neighbourhood to inform residents that two coyotes have been spotted nearby and suggest that people stay out of parks after sunset.

These particular animals appear to be more aggressive than typical coyotes, authorities say.

Caroline Bourque, director of operations at Zoo Ecomuseum, said she suspects that people feeding the animals may be contributing to the problem.

She said that the bites “might just be a reaction of frustration, kind of, ‘Hey I should be getting food from you.’”

With a report from CTV Montreal’s Kelly Greig