West Kelowna woman says coyote lunged at her

Photo: Kirst Racich

Kirst Racich with her seven-month old dog, Vivian, in West Kelowna

A West Kelowna woman says she was charged by an aggressive coyote near Rose Valley Elementary School last week.

Kirst Racich says she was walking her dog on June 18, just before noon, when a coyote lunged at her and her dog. She called the experience "intense."

Racich says she has lived in the Rose Valley area of West Kelowna her whole life and has never seen a coyote act so aggressively.

“I ended up hiding underneath a fence and being stalked for about 15-20 minutes by this thing, and it actually charged at us at one point."

Racich says she called Rose Valley Elementary to let them know, but they had already been alerted that there was an aggressive coyote in the area. At that point, Racich began backing away from the area and eventually began making her way home.

“I've lived in this area for 33 years pretty much and I've never seen a coyote be so aggressive and out during the day. I've seen bears out in the day and usually they just go on with their lives and don't really care but this coyote was not afraid. I've never been so scared in my life,” Racich says.

Coyotes can be aggressive when they are protecting their young and people with small pets are advised to keep them on a leash and keep their pets inside for their protection.

According to the provincial website, If a wolf or coyote approaches you:

• Make yourself look as large as possible - if sitting, stand for example.
• Wave your arms and throw objects at the wolf or coyote.
• Shout at the wolf or coyote in a loud aggressive voice.
• If the wolf or coyote continues to approach don't run or turn your back. Continue to exaggerate the above gestures and slowly move to safety.