Animal Care & Control successfully rescued a coyote pup who fell into the ice cold water of the bay, and the little nipper received medical treatment and has returned to the wild.
San Francisco coyotes made themselves at home in human neighborhoods under shelter-in-place. And even though people are going out again, the pups growing up are not deterred from trotting about town. Yet one had an unfortunate episode at Fisherman’s Wharf Thursday morning, as SFGate reports that a coyote pup had to be rescued from the bay after taking a spill into the water near Pier 39.
“Earlier we had a call about a coyote in somebody's yard that couldn't find their way out, and we're pretty sure it's the same coyote," SF Animal Care and Control captain Amy Corso told SFGate. "Our officer had to come out to get her out. An hour later we get a call that she's at Pier 39 now.
“At one point her head was stuck between the flats of the dock. When our officer approached, she was so afraid of her, that rather than either get caught by her or run somewhere, she dove in to the bay."
That was not the right move for youngster coyote. But as we see in the video above from KGO, Animal Care & Control was able to commandeer a boat from the sightseeing cruise company Blue and Gold Fleet and corral the little pup in a net.
"We were able to get our boat up, and she scooped [the coyote] up in her net, and we got it out of the water just in time I think,” Blue and Gold Fleet operations manager Amanda Hogarth told KGO.
The coyote was warmed with a towel and, per SFGate, has been released back into the wild. If you see a coyote that appears to be in trouble, do call the SF Animal Care and Control Emergency Dispatch at (415) 554-9400. And do not feed the coyotes people food.
Related: We've Got Seven Baby Coyotes in Golden Gate Park [SFist]
Image: SF Animal Care & Control via Facebook