Authorities remain on the lookout for coyote Traps have been set in area of Middletown where toddler was attacked BY DAN NEWMAN Staff Writer MIDDLETOWN - Nearly two weeks after a coyote attacked a 1-year-old boy, the animal was still on the loose Monday and had township and state officials looking for its whereabouts. On Friday, April 6, the animal was spotted off Kings Highway East, near Chapel Hill Road. It wandered into a backyard where the toddler and other youngsters were playing. "Apparently, the little boy was lagging behind the others in the yard and that's when the coyote tried to drag the little boy," Township Administrator Robert Czech said. "The child resisted, and that's when his 11-year-old uncle chased the coyote away and started screaming at it." Czech reported that the boy did incur some scratches, but was otherwise unharmed. He was treated at Riverview Medical Center, Red Bank, and released. Since the incident, local and state officials have tried their best to capture the animal, but have had no success. "We recently set traps in the area where the incident occurred, so hopefully very soon we'll be able to capture the coyote and, potentially, any other ones that are around," said Darlene Yuhas, state Department of Environmental Protection spokeswoman. "There are coyotes all over the state. They're in all 21 counties in the state and we estimate there are about 3,000 of them out there." Yuhas said now is the time of year for coyotes to come out of hibernation because they tend to have offspring and thus tend to forage for food. She also said that some neighbors may have been feeding the animals and that her office is investigating the matter. Czech said that the township is trying to ascertain if this particular attack may be linked to about six incidents involving small pets that were attacked recently in the area of the Earle Naval Weapons Station. "There was a recent report of a cat being attacked and killed, and there were also some incidents where other small animals had problems," Czech said. "The state was contacted about these incidents and that's when they started laying the traps. We know that these animals are nocturnal and they try and hunt for food quite often, so hopefully these traps will help out in our efforts to protect the public." Czech suggested that residents should keep their yards well manicured and try to keep small animals out of their yards. "Coyotes are interested in being near quiet areas that may have trash or tall grass around," Czech said. Yuhas said that the last reported incident of a coyote being on the prowl was in Boonton, Morris County, about eight years ago, when a coyote tried to grab a woman and bit her on the arm while she was walking her dog.