Kent man attacked by coyotes in his own backyard
»Play Video
KENT, Wash. - A local man was attacked by coyotes in his own backyard and spent most of Friday night in the emergency room.
Now he is now warning others to be on the lookout - and he's especially worried for pets and children in the area.
Faron Scarberry says he moved to Kent about two weeks ago and he's already facing an unexpected danger in the neighborhood.
"I love wildlife," he says, "I like looking out the deck, looking at them. But when they're starting to threaten the animals and people in the neighborhood, it's gone a little bit overboard."
Scarberry says three coyotes attacked him Friday night while he was walking his dog in the backyard.
"They come up toward my face, and I kind of blocked them and pushed them away, and that's when the one grabbed me by the leg," he says.
Scarberry spent most of the night in the emergency room - diagnosed with a coyote bite and scratches. He got 24 rabies shots in his leg and two in his hip.
"It didn't hurt me bad, but I don't want any of the neighborhood kids to get hurt," he says.
Scarberry's property in the Arbor Village neighborhood off Kent Kangley Road backs up to a wooded area and Horizon Elementary School.
The attack wasn't the first coyote sighting at his property this week. His son saw the coyotes a day before. Scarberry says they're coming into the neighborhood at all hours, and got into his backyard through a hole in the fence.
Sgt. Kim Chandler of the state Department of Fish and Wildlife says urban coyote issues are "pretty constant," especially this time of year as they go out looking for food.
"They rely heavily on fruit. All the fruit is gone now, so they're now in scavenging mode - cats, little dogs are a treat, and they'll eat them," Chandler says.
Chandler advises people dealing with coyote problems to keep garbage away and pets inside.
As for Scarberry - he still has appointments for more shots over the next three weeks.
If there's a coyote attack in your neighborhood or one showing aggression, you are urged to contact the Department of Fish and Wildlife. In some cases residents can pay to have the coyotes trapped and removed.
Now he is now warning others to be on the lookout - and he's especially worried for pets and children in the area.
Faron Scarberry says he moved to Kent about two weeks ago and he's already facing an unexpected danger in the neighborhood.
"I love wildlife," he says, "I like looking out the deck, looking at them. But when they're starting to threaten the animals and people in the neighborhood, it's gone a little bit overboard."
Scarberry says three coyotes attacked him Friday night while he was walking his dog in the backyard.
"They come up toward my face, and I kind of blocked them and pushed them away, and that's when the one grabbed me by the leg," he says.
Scarberry spent most of the night in the emergency room - diagnosed with a coyote bite and scratches. He got 24 rabies shots in his leg and two in his hip.
"It didn't hurt me bad, but I don't want any of the neighborhood kids to get hurt," he says.
Scarberry's property in the Arbor Village neighborhood off Kent Kangley Road backs up to a wooded area and Horizon Elementary School.
The attack wasn't the first coyote sighting at his property this week. His son saw the coyotes a day before. Scarberry says they're coming into the neighborhood at all hours, and got into his backyard through a hole in the fence.
Sgt. Kim Chandler of the state Department of Fish and Wildlife says urban coyote issues are "pretty constant," especially this time of year as they go out looking for food.
"They rely heavily on fruit. All the fruit is gone now, so they're now in scavenging mode - cats, little dogs are a treat, and they'll eat them," Chandler says.
Chandler advises people dealing with coyote problems to keep garbage away and pets inside.
As for Scarberry - he still has appointments for more shots over the next three weeks.
If there's a coyote attack in your neighborhood or one showing aggression, you are urged to contact the Department of Fish and Wildlife. In some cases residents can pay to have the coyotes trapped and removed.
Dude has a classy combover.
tmi beergod. its going to keep happening as increasing development takes away animal's range.
 @Julie Beach I'm so sorry. I didn't realize you were the authority on what info should be  shared, and to what constitutes as TMI. This is a pointless story so I thought I'd share a cool story. I'll be sure to run any future posts by you first to make sure if contains the correct amount of info.
My buddy and I were training our bird dogs together at a field on the edge of the town we live in, when a coyote lured my buddy's dog a Brittany Spaniel into a trap. Once it had his dog where it wanted it three other coyotes came out of the tall grass and pounced on her. Luckily my dog an 80 lb solid block of muscle Black Lab saw what was going on and took off to help. At a dead run my dog hit the first coyote so hard it broke its back. Then my dog grabbed the ear of another one and almost tore it completely off. The other coyotes saw what was going on and wanted no part of that and high tailed it. I was proud of my dog that day, didn't know he had that in him, and luckily my buddy's dog escaped with minor injuries. Made me wish I had a video camera that day. Oh and as for the coyote with the broken back, a couple blows from the business end of a shovel put him out of his misery, I'm not completely heartless.Â
@Beergod   We believe you **wink**
I live in Vancouver. I had a small problem with the coyotes a couple of years ago. They were after my cat. The cat led them to my dog. My dog,140lb Rott, handled the problem rather nicely. Clean up was an issue but have not had any more probs with the wildlife.
@Lordbinder   Yup ..i bet that really happened!   **headshake***
@Manic Peddy come take a step into my backyard and see exactly what happends. Your peddy may end in a stump.
Fix the hole in the fence for gosh sakes. That certainly would help.  It isn't rocket science.  Coyotes can jump 6 feet so keep that in mind.  We have a greenway and creek behind our house in Gresham. I know there are coyotes going by although I have never seen them in the six years we have lived here. This greenway also faces a grade school playyard (with a 4 ft fence) and houses line the other side.
Â
I always walk our dog on a leash for fear of attack even during the day. Â She would make a nice treat to a coyote I am sure. All the little varmints are gone. No more small bunnies, few squirrels, no mice live around the area any more. It makes me sad that the coyotes have cleaned them out. Â There are no predators to thin the coyote poluation. I do think occasionally they should be thinned out. Â The small wild creatures should be protected from the lenient attitude toward the coyote. They deserve protection. They are also a natual species.
Â
An event like this is it is scary. I don't walk at night or twilight not that that always helps. I don't own a gun or that type of weapon but I would be pushing the city or the county to get in there and go after coyotes like this.Â
Â
Mr. Scarberry was attacked!! That is rare and dangerous. What happened with his dog?? If I was him I probably would get a pistol and learn how to shoot these animals. I hope these coyotes are removed one way or another from his backyard. Â Why aren't they being tracked and taken our??? Children's lives are at stake also.
The story says he just moved into the place two weeks ago. Not sure fixing the hole in the fence because of a possible coyote attack, which he likely never even thought would happen, would be high on the list of things to do in a new place in the first 14 days.
Um, you realize that humans have thinned the population out, right? As for a right to exist, if that playground had not been built on feeding ground, there would be more "small varmits."
Â
I've lived with coyotes my whole life, they come right to my back door. My cats evade them just fine, and any human with a brain can prevent an attack. This guy has probably never encountered coyotes before and so went into panic mode, which is the worst thing you can do. A full grown man should be able to chase off a small pack without incident. Your size is your weapon...raise your arms and show aggressive intent...not fear. Predators typically choose easy prey, not prey that fights back. Then again, when trapped a coyote (like any animal) will fight. However, if you see a coyote do not run. Do not tremble. Get angry, and go into fight mode. Coyotes will back off, especially since they are typically small. Now, if you ever find yourself in the same situation with wolves... you're boned.
Never had coyotes come to the house(not that I noticed, anyway) but I have deer everyday; sometimes I have to honk to get in my driveway, and skunks? More than you might believe. Lately 2 coon have been hanging around which makes me worry a little for my cat. He gets along with the skunks, but I m hinking he might think the coons are friendly like the skunks and find out the hard way. If Choo-Hai disapears, two raccoons will also disapear.
hmmm...
Â
 @iamtrogloditeÂ
I had a family of raccoons living in an outbuilding and there was no problem with my cats at all. They all tolerated each other just fine, even in close proximity like 8-10 ft. Raccoons and dogs are mortal enemies though.
@iamtroglodite I get deer, skunks, and raccoons. Rosco the raccoon came around a lot and got pretty bold. Went out to chase him and he stood up to me, until I grabbed a broom. Raccoons and cats usually get along through mutual ignoring. As long as Choo-Hai doesn't try to snuggle you have no worries. If he does, then he might get bit and run and hide.
Â
"man attacked by coyotes in his own backyard"
It was probably they coyotes' backyard first..
Â
 @StealthActivist And where do you live??
Â
 @jsfelsÂ
In Sasquatch's backyard..
If you don,t like wild life move to a high rise. Â This guy does not look like he knows the difference between a Cote and an Aardvark.
"If you don,t like wild life move to a high rise."
Â
IDK, the wildlife in downtown Portland is kind of scary at times.
 @Leinenkugle's Post your Pic and lets see what you look like.
Â
 @jsfels  @Leinenkugle's I have pointed ears, slanted evil eyes,long fur and a tail.  Last seen with a neighborhood cat hanging from my mouth.
 @jsfels  @Leinenkugle's You are friggin creepy dude......stalk much?
Now thats funny!
I have lived near coyotes for 15 years, and they have never even come close to me. I live in the desert, and they are more than common, almost daily sightings. Many times I see them in my yard - they retreat, they are more afraid of us than we are of them. This is really strange.
 @Kachina That's why. The coyotes in your area are used to humans. These ones are probably not.
@Tyra John @Kachina Don't know of many areas where coyotes don't interact with humans. I doubt this guy built his home, so we can assume humans have made their presence known to coyotes well prior to this. Like I said in another post, this guy probably saw coyotes and panicked. To a predator, anything that panics is food.
http://www.kgw.com/news/Coyotes-attacking-pets-in-SE-Portland--185178222.html Pretty closed to my home, few miles.
Well big guy you were beat up by a 20 lb coyote. that comes no higher than your knees. Man up! No coyote has ever attacked a healthy human standing up. Must be a LA native that wants to eradicate all wildlife. I mow my fields and all the time my5 and 6 year old grandchildren play in the field while Im working. The coyotes, as many as 4 at a time run behind the tractor and catch the mice being thrown up like popcorn. Not one time has one ever even tried to approach the children. They are afraid of all human contact and run at the first sight of them.
 @stinger139 And you know this bunch of crock is true how??? There is a gal in a neighborhood here in broad daylight walking her dog on a lease and a coyote attacked the dog.  She managed to get him and get away.  You certainly need to preference you comments. Â
Â
Growing up on a farm you could see the white tip our dog's tail wagging while she was running around the alfalfa field. It looked like a white butterfly. She was digging up, chasing, and catching the field mice. Â I suspect she killed them but didn't eat them. Â Never wanted to check.
You know, black widows and cobras are pretty small creatures. No reason to be afraid of them if they attack/bite, either, after all, they're smaller than us! If you ever get bit by one, please man up and don't complain!
 @OSUx2 Thanks.  Point made.
 @stinger139 You are speaking of well fed coyotes, in a summer setting. One attack my 13 year old son in mid December with a foot of snow on the ground. Our dogs stopped it. My son came inside and told me and I shot it. They will, and do attack humans And they weigh a darned sight more than 20 pounds when mature.
 @stinger139 Oh, by the way, I agree. Like I said below, if a coyote came up to me big enough to get into my face; well I would run like hell!
stinger139:Thank you! I might as well just go to bed now. I will not hear (or read) anything funnier tonight! I know someone will think I am evil, or something, but I got a visual in my mind of coyotes chasing your tractor yelling "DIBS, I SAW IT FIRST!" as they jump up to catch them like my mutt catching a frisbee. Damn, I almost pissed myself laughing so hard!
Fisher Communications must be getting a deal on articles.
Â
http://www.komonews.com/news/local/Kent-man-attacked-by-coyotes-in-his-own-backyard-185180232.html
Ah, lets move out into a peaceful rural setting with natural areas behind our house and ....D'OH !
You're supposed to roll on your back and make wimpering sounds when this happens. protect your face and neck just in case. they'll stop biting eventually and accept you as the omega in the pack. earn your way to the top by proving yourself with your hunting skills of catching neighborhood cats and small dogs.
@Phuzz ?
time for him to fix the fence to keep the wildlife out of his face. he did have food on a leash and that is what the coyotes wanted for dinner.
While I don't doubt his story, I have to ask....how does a coyote "come up toward my face"?? I mean, was he dumb enough to get on the ground with them??? Did they climb up his leg? Is he only 3ft tall? I totally can see one grabbing him by the leg...but up toward his face??? I wish the story explained it a bit more.
@fracas Possibly while he was trying to pick up his dog. Only reason I can see him getting down that low.
Â
@fracas I didn't get that at first, but... if I ran into even one coyote big enough to get in my face, I would be scared shi-tless!
Golly gee...Have gun..let's go kill somethin'! I can't believe the idiot mentality of some of the commenters on here. You don't use your head to try to think of any other solutions to problems other than to "shoot and kill." I bet the mall shooter and school shooter had the same mentality, only difference is they shot people. It is really scary to see how many mentally challenged people own firearms. I am not against ownership, however, guns should not be in the hands of people whose only purpose in life of having them is to seek out things to "kill." Guns should be used for "our own protection" not to seek out victims! Get a life...don't just take one!
Â
 @TruthSpeaker What is your solution to the coyote population?  "Oh sweet innocent little coyote, come here. Let me feed you my cat.  You are such a nice cute thing. After all you were here first. Oh, there are some children to chase."  So you want to keep the coyotes and let the human population be defenseless?  Coyotes don't equal senseless shooting of people.  If they are a danger in the area they need to be removed one way or another.  Raccoons tearing up the insulation and floor of neighbor's house across the street were trapped and set loose some where on Mt. Hood.  Of course they had to pay. Â
Â
In my last home 4 huge racoons circled my large cat on the back deck one night. Â I told him to get in the house quick. Â He did. Â I know they were looking for him as a meal. A smaller one had been up dozens of times and the cat didn't even blink. Â The racoon pack had recently killed 3 or 4 or my neighbor's chickens a couple of days before. Â Don't leave out food for them cures that.
Â
Â
 @TruthSpeakerÂ
You are very ignorant of the damage that some animals and rodents cause.
Â
Prairie dogs cause lots of damage to crops if left to breed. Because they are food crops poison cannot be used so they are shot. Same with sag rats. Gophers are killed in their tunnels with special traps that are designed to kill.
Â
If these animals were left alone we would have a huge shortage of food and feed for livestock.
Â
Many of these animals used to live in the wild prairie before modern agriculture. Once modern agriculture took over these animals flourished to out of control levels. Killing them is the only way to keep them in check.
Â
Coyotes are also thriving as there is more and more to feed on. Cats, small dogs, rodents from the garbage, and garbage itself. We can let them be and then they will kill a child. What would you propose once that happens?
@RalphCramden  So, what you are saying is that if there is any "chance" that a child could be killed, let's kill the perpetrator. Give me a break! A drunk driving home from the bar could kill your child. Do you go out to the bars every weekened and shoot everyone who is leaving the bar? What about gangs? How many children are killed by gangs? Do you go out and shoot anyone who has the wrong colors on? Using your mentality, then no one should be allowed to own guns either, as these also have killed and continue to kill children and innocent people. Your ignorance obviously has you blinded to the reality of life. Blatant killing is not the answer. Most coyotes do not harm people. That being said, I do agree that occasionally one does attack. That is the coyote that should be taken care of, NOT ALL coyotes because one goes bad.Â
 @Kachina  @TruthSpeaker Oh, so now they have to be called  predators to be dangerous????
@TruthSpeaker Drunks leaving a bar are not predators, stupid maybe, but they are not seeking out something to consume. You obviously have never lived where wildlife is as much a part of the neighborhood as you are. Normal coyotes avoid humans. Hungry, starving coyotes are a danger, and if they advance on me or any other living thing in my yard, they are shot.
Don't take the brown acid, man.
 @TruthSpeakerÂ
Where did you come up with that from my post? Are you on acid?
 @RalphCramden  @TruthSpeaker It is an ignorant comment from someone who has obviously never lived in the country and seen the damage these pests can do.
Â
They probably think I should just let the coyotes and cougars eat my goats and pigs, "they were just hungry!"Â
 @TruthSpeaker Are you kidding me??? If coyotes are becoming so bold as to 1. Threaten my livestock, 2. Threaten my children or pets, or 3. Threaten and BITE me, you had better believe I am shooting them. I am an animal lover myself, but coyotes are dangerous, dirty pests when they get this bold. If they will attack a grown man they won't hesitate to try to drag a child off.
Â
In fact, if I see one anywhere NEAR my stalls it will be a pelt. You can't take chances.
 @WhenCowsAttack  @TruthSpeaker Oh here we go with the Mighty White Protector of all things........I was wondering how long it would take for one of you to show up...
 @Svenghooli  @TruthSpeaker Oh, you're *so* right, I should just hand over my goats and pigs to the coyotes. @@
Â
I love it when people who clearly don't understand country life think they have something pertinent to say about it.Â
@WhenCowsAttack I agree that if a coyote is threatening you then you have the right to kill it in defense. I have no problem with that. What I have a problem with is some of the people on here who want nothing more to do than kill something,..today it is coyotes. I grew up in the desert and we had lots of coyotes. Not once did any of them try to drag me off and eat me. They were extremely fearful of people. I am not saying that one will not attack, as in any group of animals there will be some that will not have the fear of people in them. I just don't think we should all grab our guns and kill every coyote in sight until there are no more. What a shame that would be.Â
@iamtroglodite How true! You would have thought we would have learned by now that eradication is not the answer.
@TruthSpeaker Wish they had figured that out a hundred years ago before the killed almost all the wolves:>(