Local teen bitten by coyote in sports park

Billy Pillitteri-Smith, 14, has grown up on a farm, and is accustomed to seeing coyotes.

But he was surprised by how close one came to him and some friends at the Virgil Sports Park Monday evening.

And even more surprised when the coyote, which he described as mostly white and about the size of a German shepherd, charged the group. The boys scattered when they saw it looking like it was in “attack mode,” which he hadn’t seen before.

When they all started running, he was the one who got caught, ending up with a scrape and a puncture wound on his leg.

He was tired after the incident and just wanted to go to bed, but Tuesday, his dad Steve decided a trip to the emergency department was in order.

“Poor Billy,” says his mom Eileen. “He’s had eight needles today. He’s been a real trooper, but that is a lot of needles.”

And there are more to come.

A representative from Public Health arrived at the hospital with a rabies kit, and Billy had the first of the regimen — seven needles in his leg and one in his arm.

He will go back in three days for another, then seven days, 10 and then finally 14 days, says Eileen.

She was torn between not wanting to make a big deal of the incident, and feeling she should warn others about the attack.

She says she has noticed there have been more of them sighted on the farm, but they don’t come too close.

This has been unsettling, she added, “but it could have been a lot worse.”

UPDATE: Tuesday evening, Robert Alexander told The Local, his son Cohen, who had been with Billy at the sports park Monday, was chased by the same coyote. He was with two of his friends, down Line 2. Alexander said it then then terrorized a family at their home in the same neighbourhood, at Line 2 and AnneMarie Drive. "This is very unusual behaviour, I was out for my bike ride and i have come across this coyote three times now," he said." I am afraid this isn't an isolated incident."