www.insideHALTON.com · OAKVILLE BEAVER Wednesday, February 29, 2012 · 4 Continued from page 1 Oakvillegreen takes coyote lessons to schools "Don't let your cat outside because cats look like lunch to a coyote," Benneian said. She also told students to keep dogs on a leash and, if confronted by a coyote, people should pick up their small dogs with one hand and wave the other hand and yell. "Once the coyote starts moving away, you can move away, too. Move slowly. Never, ever run and just keep your eyes on it," she said. The youths learned good housekeeping should help keep coyotes away. Around the schoolyard or at home, students were told not to leave litter around because coyotes will come and eat it. Benneian said people should not leave pet food outside either. "If we want to make sure coyotes stay away from people, we need to make sure we don't leave food out they'll get into," she said. Benneian reminded everyone not to feed coyotes on purpose. Students also learned some facts about coyotes. They heard coyotes weigh 13-18 kilograms. Coyotes are naturally afraid of humans and have migrated to this area from the U.S. southwest when wolves were hunted out. Coyotes have program will soon be at local public schools, too. "Coyotes are wild animals. We want to keep them wild. If we want to keep ourselves safe and we want to keep the coyotes safe, we have to remember we're big, scary humans and we're not afraid," she told the group. "You want to be a big, strong, scary human." Benneian said coyotes generally stay away from humans however, if a person is confronted by the animal, the person must never run because it triggers the coyote's prey instinct and it will give chase. Benneian told the students to look the coyote in the eye. If it doesn't turn away, she said a person should wave his or her arms and yell. "You want to be even bigger than you are. You want to make yourself as big as possible. You're a big, strong, scary human. Wave your arms and yell," she said. If that fails, she advised throwing something at the animal. If there are no sticks or rocks nearby, she told students to throw their clothes or backpacks. The students also learned about keeping pets safe. OAKVILLE BEAVER FILE PHOTO ERIC RIEHL / OAKVILLE BEAVER LIVING WITH NEIGHBOURS: This coyote, left, was spotted in northwest Oakville earlier this year. At right, St. Matthew student Cole Culina acts like a `big, strong, scary' human towards a coyote as students role-played during a coyote education session sponsored by the Town of Oakville and presented by Liz Benneian of Oakvillegreen yesterday. been in Ontario for about 100 years, Benneian said. Theymate for life and make their dens on the side of hills or in ravines, near water and in concealed places. Coyotes hunt in open fields and keep rodent populations down as they prey on voles, rats, mice and rabbits. Coyotes rarely attack humans, with only one incident ever recorded in Oakville when a young girl was bitten earlier this year. "Coyotes have been with us for a very long time. They've been our neighbours, but we hardly ever see them because they're timid animals and they try to keep away from humans," Benneian said. "We don't need to be afraid of them. We just need to discourage them from having any contact with us. We don't want them to ever associate us with food. Coyotes have been sharing our town for decades and we need to make sure we're good neighbours." After the presentation, Grade 4 students Connor O'Brien and Liam Beattie said it was educational. "When you see a coyote, yell at it and wave your arms," said Beattie. "If it doesn't go away, throw something at it," added O'Brien. Oakville's Only One Stop Shop for Weight weight loss healthy kids wellness & vitality body blast sport performance NO pills NO gimmicks NO injections NO deprivation NEVER diet again! Loss! I lost 20 Pounds and kept it off! "I just assumed that I was meant to carry an extra 20lbs on my body. MCC has taught me that I not only can lose weight, but I can get into the best shape of my life! With customized meal plans that use Smart weight session · Body composition test · Determine your fat and muscle weight · Receive FREE meal solutions ($50.00 value) *Offer expires March 31, 2012 FREE $ Before real food, and easy to follow exercise programs, I am confident that my Program may be covered by your extended health care After results will last!" Any Nutrition & Exercise Program Offer expiry March 31, 2012 50 OFF metabolic care clinics nutrition · exercise · weight loss 2501 Third Line, Oakville · 905-825-3800 · www.metaboliccareclinics.com