An Oshawa councillor is calling upon the city to extend its feral cats program to limit the growing coyote population in the city (see related article below).
“As you know, the city has worked with community groups on Trap, Spay, Neuter and Release program for feral cats for decades,” said Councillor Brian Nicholson, in a letter to city council and officials. He was communicating concerns raised by area residents.
“With the growing coyote population in urban Oshawa, have we considered a similar program for urban coyotes?” he asked.
“A trap, spay, neuter and release program might reduce the ever increasing population of coyotes in urban communities, as it would allow current coyotes to continue to live in their territories when removal alone would simply open up territories for new animals to migrate and set up shop,” he said.
In addition, when undertaking trapping for this type of program, Councillor Nicholson said the city could also look at tagging or installing GPS on the released animals to help monitor their movements and identify problem animals. This has been successful as an option with wolves in other areas.
He pointed out that while the current management plan has some controls regarding dealing with problem animals, it does not take action in reducing or managing the growth of coyote populations in the urban areas of the city. In addition, we need to recognize that a growing coyote population not only impacts residents and domestic animals, but also on non-domestic animal populations as well.
“Perhaps our staff can look at these options and discuss them with Coyote Canada and staff from the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry. A pilot program in Oshawa might offer solutions that could be replicated across the urban areas of the province,” the councillor suggested.