A coyote, being described as “mangy”, bit a 20-month old boy playing in a backyard in Middletown, New Jersey. The coyote tried to drag the boy off into the woods according to reports. As with most incidents like this, people and authorities attempt to explain away the behavior of a wild animal in ways other than natural.
“It is extremely rare,” said Larry Herrighty, chief of the division’s Bureau of Wildlife Management. “This coyote was reported to be mangy, which may explain the behavior. It could be that the coyote was very hungry because it’s unable to forage normally, so it attacked the child.”
Tom Remington
