By Lexi Solomon
Source The News & Observer (Raleigh)
Durham County deputies came to a coyote’s aid Monday after getting calls the animal’s head was stuck in a plastic jar.
The Sheriff’s Office Animal Services department began its search several days ago in the Parkwood area in southern Durham.
“Residents of the area kept seeing the animal, which appeared to be in distress because of a plastic bottle or jar on its head,” Capt. Mark Manning said in a news release. “With the object covering its mouth, it was clear it had been unable to eat or drink for some time.”
Despite multiple trips to the neighborhood, deputies couldn’t find the coyote until Monday afternoon, when a resident on Grandale Drive reported seeing it. Deputies restrained the coyote with a catch pole, a long rod with a loop at the end of it, and removed the clear plastic container from its head, the release said.
The coyote was then released back into the area without injuries.
“These Animal Services deputies used their training and compassion to create a positive outcome for this animal and the members of the community concerned about its fate,” Sheriff Clarence Birkhead said in the release. “Working in this division is a calling, and Animal Services consistently goes above and beyond to aid the animals of Durham County and their humans.”
Coyotes are common throughout North Carolina, first appearing in the Tar Heel State in the 1980s and in Durham County in the early 1990s, according to the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission. They have been present in every county in the state since at least 2005.
Coyotes legally cannot be rehabilitated in North Carolina, the wildlife commission’s website states. Anyone who sees an animal in distress should not approach the animal and instead call one of the following numbers:
- The Durham County Sheriff’s Office at 919-560-0900
- The North Carolina Wildlife Helpline at 866-318-2401 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday
- The Wildlife Enforcement Division at 800-662-7137 outside regular business hours
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