By Neale Gulley
A North Tonawanda man reported that he was bitten by a coyote on Sweeney Street around 1 a.m. Tuesday.
The Niagara County Health Department’s Director of Environmental Health Jim Devald said it is the latest of three suspicious animal reports in as many weeks. In each case a bite was reported.
The man, who is in his 20s, refused immediate treatment for a single puncture wound below the knee, North Tonawanda Fire Department Assistant Chief Joseph Sikora said.
“I guess he was just walking down the street,” he said, “He told us the coyote came out, circled him a couple of times and nipped him in the leg.”
Sikora, an avid gamesman, Devald and Mayor Larry Soos’ Secretary Gregg Schnitzer all said it is the first time they’ve ever heard of such a thing involving a coyote within city limits. Schnitzer sent a memo around City Hall Tuesday to inform officials of what had happened. The health department also issued a press release warning residents about rabies.
The coyote apparently attacked along the 1100 block of Sweeney St., ran off and has not been located.
Gina Browning of the SPCA said such events don’t usually involve her agency.
“Everything I’ve heard from our wildlife department is that coyotes are very highly unlikely to approach people,” she said.
Devald said the incident was reported to his department as required by law, and the man now must undergo post exposure treatment for rabies.
“The intent is to air on the side of caution,” he said. “Rabies is fatal, so you don’t want to make any assumptions.”
The first case of rabies in Niagara County was reported this past week on Ide Road in Wilson where a fox tangled with a man’s dog. The animal was captured, killed and tested positive for the disease.
Last weekend, health officials got word another man driving along Erie Avenue in North Tonawanda spotted a fox, “So he got out to pet it and the fox bit him and ran off,” Devald said, stressing it is never wise to approach a wild animal.
Similar to Tuesday’s coyote incident, treatment involving five shots over the course of 28 days will be required even thought the animal’s health status cannot be confirmed.
