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Saddle River Mayor, Council Authorize Police To Shoot Coyotes

SADDLE RIVER, N.J. – With the coyote population rising in Saddle River, the mayor and council have authorized police to shoot any coyote that poses a threat to the community.

The Saddle River S mayor and council have authorized police to shoot any coyote that poses a threat to the community.

The Saddle River S mayor and council have authorized police to shoot any coyote that poses a threat to the community.

Photo Credit: Contributed

“The governing body approved a resolution allowing the police to use lethal force within the confines of the law to cull any and all aggressive coyote encounters,” Mayor Al Kurpis wrote in an email to residents.

Saddle River’s deer population is “out of control,” the mayor wrote. And, as coyotes may be natural predators of deer, that population has grown as well. 

Earlier this month, five coyotes surrounded a dog walker and dog on Oak Road, before a passing driver honked and got out of the car to disrupt the situation.

“With the overpopulation of coyotes in the borough, they are now forming family groups in which they hunt for food and share their prey,” he wrote. “They are clearly becoming a threat to our pets and potentially to adults and children.”

The mayor advised residents not to leave pets or small children outside unsupervised, nor food outside. In addition, if people see coyotes, they should back off slowly, make loud noises to scare them, and not run.

“When walking around town, you might want to carry a stick for protection, and a loud device such as a horn or a whistle to scare any aggressive coyotes away,” he wrote.

Those who encounter a coyote, or know the location of coyote dens, should report the information to police at 201-327-5300.

Kurpis said he recently convened an emergency meeting of the Mayor’s Coyote Task Force, and the task force will be developing long term solutions to recommend to the mayor and council.

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