Pet owner warns others after coyotes attack cats in yard

CHARLOTTE — A south Charlotte woman wants to warn others about keeping pets safe after coyotes attacked her two cats outside her home.

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One of her cats has not returned since the attack early Tuesday morning.

“I hope he’s lost,” Christine Griffin said about her missing cat Salem. “He got chased into another neighborhood that he’s not familiar with and was able to get away.”

Griffin does not live in a rural area and wants pet owners to be aware.

“I guess my advice is they can be anywhere,” she said about the wild animals.

New, expanding developments are a reason why people are seeing more coyotes in their neighborhoods, said Melissa Knicely with Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department Animal Care and Control.

“We’re an expanding city,” Knicely said. “We’re taking away a lot of their homes as we’re building.”

She recommends keeping your pets on a leash or in a fenced-in backyard and most importantly, keep the area clear of food.

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Open garbage cans and fallen fruit from trees can attract predators.

“If you feed outside animals like maybe you feed neighborhood cats. Maybe you feed your pets outside. Put it out. Let them eat and then remove it,” Knicely said.