SASKATOON - City Councillor Randy Donauer says Saskatoon’s city council has voted to approve recommendations involving wildlife issues, many of them concerning coyotes in city limits.
- City Hall will do more of a public education campaign, to make the public aware of coyotes in urban settings, and how to relate to them.
- City Hall will communicate hazing techniques, what to do if a coyote approaches, and how to scare them from the area.
- City Hall will contract a wildlife expert who can assess coyote interactions, engage aversion training, monitoring, scaring them from the area, location of dens, trapping, and euthanasia (when necessary)
- City Hall will write a bylaw prohibiting feeding of wildlife in the city (with common sense exceptions, like bird feeders, etc.)”
Donauer says the communications and education pieces will begin immediately.
“They are actively trying to contract a wildlife expert, so hopefully that goes well, and the bylaw is expected this spring.”
The Ward 5 councillor told SaskToday recently he has had a number of conversations with residents of his ward who relayed frightening tales of coyote encounters. He has also seen other posts on social media.
“In 2024, I had dozens of people reach out to me, and the city received a few hundred complaints, which is way more than normal.”
Donauer also notes that he saw several dozens of social media posts on the issue. For 2025, the councillor has only had a few residents contact him so far, but he maintains the year is early so people are worried.
“Last year, I had people threatened by coyotes, some won’t walk without carrying bear spray, a bat, or a golf club. One had to flee into a stranger’s garage, slam the door, and hide inside until the coyote left. There was also a pregnant lady walking on the Meewasin when her dog was attacked by two coyotes. She could not get the coyotes off her dog, so finally ran into traffic on Whiteswan/Spadina during morning rush, when a few residents got out of their cars and scared the coyotes away… police were called and one coyote was euthanized,” adds the city councillor
This year has been no different as he has heard a few cases of people feeling threatened by coyotes, and one woman fled into a stranger’s gated yard and shut the gate to escape.
Donauer’s neighbuorhood and ward he serves are not the only areas in the city that have these concerns, as he states, “Yes, there were coyote complaints all over the city last year. You can see the numbers of complaints over the past few years, and the map of complaint locations in 2024 on the City Council Agenda from March 26, 2025, item 8.3.2.”
Some of the best safety tips Donauer offers city residents include, “If the coyote is not challenging, you leave them alone, or make noise to frighten them. The advice is to stay in a group, make yourself large and confident, make noise, chase them away if you feel confident. However, not everyone is confident doing that, and it doesn’t always work. The problem seems to be exacerbated when people have a dog with them, or are near a den. “
There are a number of factors that contribute to the rise in urban coyote experiences and encounters which may include environmental, weather as well as residents providing food. City residents in some neighbourhoods say the large population of wild rabbits roaming about could also be enticing the creatures in for food sources.
Coyote activity increases in the spring as they establish dens and raise pups, which usually leads to more sightings, especially near green spaces and open areas. During the summer and fall, coyotes will travel together in search of food, while young animals explore their surroundings, also leading to more sightings. Coyotes are more active at dawn and dusk.
