DISCLAIMER: COYOTES ARE NOT PETS!!!!!
While I discourage wolfdog ownership in the majority of cases, I STRONGLY discourage coyote ownership in all cases. The handful of successful coyote or coydog owners I know have all dedicated their entire lives to caring for their animals and have decades of experience working with canids. They are the exceedingly rare exception, not the rule.

Having said that, coyotes tend to get a bad rap, and it is about time for coyotes to have an image makeover. So I thought I'd share a video of Phoenix, our coyote, to help show the lighter, more lovable side of coyotes than what we're used to seeing. Coyotes are seen as pests by a lot of people because they live in closer proximity to humans than other predators. Consequently, in an effort to survive, they will occasionally kill pets and often come into closer contact with humans than what we're comfortable with. However, the actuality of coyotes is that they are exceedingly intelligent predators who are doing their best to survive in a continually shrinking environment. Their ability to adapt and thrive in urban areas is a testament to their tenacity and innovation, and we need to take a second to realize that we are taking away their land and giving them nowhere to go. Coyotes are predators and will do what they need to in order to survive. Should they happen upon a beloved family pet, they will see a meal; not out of malice, but out of necessity. As pet owners it is our responsibility to keep our animals safe and to realize that the world is made up of more than humans and domesticated animals. Coyotes are not to be blamed for pet deaths, they are only trying to live. We have respect and reverence for other predators, and its about time we extend those emotions to coyotes.

This video features Phoenix, the coyote, and Tanook, a Native American Indian Dog. They are our original odd couple, and are entirely in love with each other despite the enormous size difference. Phoenix was
rescued from a home in which she lived her entire life in a kennel in a bathtub. When she was removed, a HAZMAT team had to be called due to the atrocious conditions in which she was living. As a result of her
rough start, she has a couple strange behavioral ticks that you can see throughout the video. She loves to be pet by those she trusts (specifically butt scratches) but will get uncomfortable and snap with little to warning. She will also rub up on me, put her paw on my arm, and sit in my lap to get me to pet her, but will be displaying teeth and making her silly coy noises throughout. Her behavior is likely due to the entirely conflicted instincts within her. Her brain says she is wild, she was raised by humans, but she was also neglected by humans. The fact that she is willing to have contact at all is a minor miracle and I am grateful every day to have earned her trust and the ability to join in her silly times.