A video posted online shows the moment a coyote ambushed a two-year-old girl shortly after she had been taken out of a car seat outside her Los Angeles home.
During the brazen attack, which was captured by the home’s surveillance camera, the coyote grabbed the toddler in its jaws and dragged the child several meters across the sidewalk, before her father charged at the animal and chased it away.
The girl’s father, Ariel Eliyahuo, told local station KTLA that he and his wife Shira just arrived at their Woodland Hills home after taking the child to pre-school when he set her down next to the car.
Eliyahuo said he heard the child screaming for help and initially thought she might have fallen over. But he sprang into action as the coyote bit down on his daughter’s legs and dragged her facedown.
Don't Miss
“I saw blood on her pants and on her leg and where she got injured. It was just terrible,” the stunned father told KTLA.
Shira Eliyahuo told KTLA the attack left her daughter with extensive deep scratches and bite marks on her leg.
Watch the video of the incident below.
COYOTE ATTACK: A frightening wildlife encounter in Woodland Hills! A coyote attacked a little girl and her dad came to her rescue seconds after it happened. pic.twitter.com/nt8GLXM4pu
— Irene Cruz (@ABC7Irene) December 3, 2022
A spokesperson for the California Department of Fish and Wildlife said officials are patrolling the area after receiving numerous reports of an aggressive coyote.
