Reports of coyote attacks continue Second child injured, pets killed in area of Earle BY DAN NEWMAN Staff Writer Wild coyotes are once again plaguing Middletown, this time biting a 5-year-old boy on the back of his head last week and killing a dog Tuesday morning. The most recent attack came two days ago when a Chihuahua was killed by a coyote on Highland Avenue near Kunkel Park, where the body was eventually discovered. The dog's owner let the dog out at 4:15 a.m., when the coyote made its move. It was also reported that another coyote was spotted in the area as well. In addition, late last week, a coyote was killed near Naval Weapons Station Earle and four others were spotted in the area around the same time. On May 21 around 8:15 p.m., JoAnn Gazette said she was at her Pomo Court home with her husband when she said they both heard screams and ran outside to their two youngest children, daughter Sydney, 8, and son Brayden, 5. After crossing the street to a neighbor's yard, where the children were playing with friends, Sydney said that a coyote had attacked Brayden and she started to yell. The yelling scared the coyote away, but not before it caused a wound that required 50 stitches to Brayden's head and a trip to Riverview Medical Center, Red Bank. Township Administrator Robert Czech said that police spotted a coyote later that night in the area but could not fire at it because it was too close to a home. Gazette said Friday that although her son "is doing much better lately," she's still very disturbed by all that has transpired and that she and her neighbors have had many conversations over the past few days concerning the incident. "We're all a bit nervous because you just never know when it could happen again," Gazette said. "I'm afraid to have my kids out past 7:30 at night now." Czech feels that the coyotes may have never left the area since the first reported incident on April 6, when a 20-month-old boy was grabbed as he played in a backyard on Kings Highway East near Chapel Hill Road. Following that incident, specialists from the state Department of Environmental Protection came to Middletown and set traps. The animal in last month's incident was described as traveling with at least one other coyote. Czech said that the killing of the coyote, an aggressive female, occurred around 4:15 a.m. and was handled by Officer Christian Clark, who used a 40-caliber semi-automatic gun to get the job done. Since then, Czech said that there have been sightings of other coyotes in the area. "The state has expanded its traps and surveillance. About 10 days ago, the traps were pulled, but now they're back out there. This time, though, it's much more aggressive with the traps and surveillance. We really don't know how many coyotes there may be overall," he said. Czech said that the dead coyote would be turned over to the state for rabies testing. He also said that they may not be able to determine if the coyote was responsible for the attacks on either child. Middletown Schools Superintendent Karen Bilbao said that district officials are keeping children indoors during physical education classes and recreation time at three elementary schools and one middle school in the area of the attacks. She also said that there have been no sightings of the coyotes during school hours. The township has asked that residents who own pets that look similar to coyotes such as huskies, German shepherds and malamutes, tie a colorful bandanna around the dogs' necks so they are easily identifiable as pets. This suggestion is meant help to the police distinguish between pets and a possible coyote as they patrol the township. It may also help reduce the number of members of the public who may see a pet and call the police to report it as a coyote, according to township officials. Residents are urged to call police at (732) 615-2100 immediately to report any coyote sightings.