A North Carolina father was returning home with his daughters on Saturday night when they came face-to-snout with a possibly rabid coyote, which charged at their car.
John Schroter, who owns a post-production company, had his 18-year-old daughter Hannah capture on camera their chilling encounter with the deranged animal outside their home near Huntersville and later shared the footage on hisFacebook page.
The resulting 59-second video showing the sickly-looking coyote snarling at the family’s car and attacking the bumper has been viewed more than 35,000 times as of Tuesday morning.
Coyote ugly: The Schroter family of Huntersville, North Carolina, were returning home on Saturday when they came face-to-snout with this aggressive coyote in their neighborhood
Bearing teeth: The animal, which appeared unwell, snarled at the family’s car and then charged at the bumper
Worse for wear: The furry creature had blood in its mouth, likely from a prior injury
Evidence: This photo shows what appear to be either teeth or claw marks inflicted on the vehicle by the possibly rabid coyote
Turning tail: After failing to maul the car, the ill-fated coyote turned tail and scampered away
In a status update that accompanied the video and still photos of the animal, Schroter explained that he was ‘trying to scare it off from attacking the neighbor’s dogs and let it return to nature. But then it returned, bared its bloody teeth and attacked my car.’
John Schroter (pictured with his wife) contacted 911 and summoned help to capture the animal
KHOU11 reported that Schroter and his daughters Hannah and Summer were coming home from Bible study at 10.30pm on Saturday when they were confronted by athe coyote in their town of Vermillion.
The family’s cellphone video begins with the headlights on the vehicle illuminating the coyote trotting shakily along a wooden fence.
‘That’s a coyote for sure,’ Schroter is heard telling his daughters, Hannah and her younger sister, Summer. ‘I’m going to get him.’
When Hannah asks her dad what he means by that, Schroter reassures her that he is just going to ‘scare him or something.’
‘Do we just let it go, like we don’t call anyone?’ Hannah presses him.
‘It’s a coyote, it’s not hurting anyone,’ Schroter replies, before the creature appears directly in front of their car, bears its fangs and tries to maul the bumper.
‘It’s growling!’ Hannah exclaims.
‘He’s bloody, too,’ Schroter notes. ‘He’s attacking my car. He’s probably rabid. Yeah, we gotta call.’
The married father-of-four then called 911 and summoned police. He expressed hope that they would be able to either capture or kill the ‘aggressive’ coyote before it harms someone.
Animal lover: Schroter wrote on Facebook that officers were able to capture and euthanize the sickly coyote that threatened his family
Schroter provided an update on the fate of the coyote that gave his family such a fright.
‘Word on the street is the Huntersville Police Department successfully tracked and killed the coyote last night – just a couple blocks from where I called it in,’ he wrote.
Officers from the Charlotte-Meckenburg Police Department’s Animal Care and Control Division were able to track down the coyote, which was found lying injured in a patch of grass by the side of the road, reported the station WBTV.
The animal was caught with a pole, tranquilized, transported to a shelter and eventually euthanized. Samples from the coyote’s remains were later sent to a lab in Raleigh to be tested for rabies.
Officials speculate that the critter may have been acting in an unusual manner because it was injured.
The same coyote was believed to have been responsible for two other attacks in the community that night, according to the Charlotte Observer. The first incident took place at 9pm when a Vermillion resident reported kicking a coyote that tried to bite his pet dog.
The second incident took place at 11pm when a man said he narrowly escaped from a charging coyote by jumping into his truck and closing the door.