ATLANTIC BEACH, Fla. – On Wednesday night, another coyote attack took place on Atlantic Beach.
A dog owner and his German Shepherd were bitten in the attack that came on the same day another Atlantic Beach resident said he was recovering from a different attack.
Ashton Kennedy told News4JAX he was walking his dog when the coyote jumped out of a wooded area near Jasmine and 6th Street.
He said when the coyote first jumped out, he thought it was a fox.
“Kind of crazy,” Kennedy said. “Kind of unimaginable. I was holding the coyote by his neck and when I let go, it landed down right to my leg.”
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Kennedy said his dog started fighting with the coyote as well, and it even followed them back to his house.
He was bitten on his leg. Medics said he would need a rabies shot.
The Atlantic Beach Police Department and Jacksonville Fire Rescue responded to the incident rather quickly, he said.
Police shot at the coyote, but it’s unclear if the animal was hit. They also believe that it might be multiple coyotes on the loose in the area.
Thomas Cathey said he was still recovering from his shocking attack near Donald Dagley’s Workshop, a junkyard not far from Begonia Street where he works.
The City of Atlantic Beach said it has received multiple reports of coyote attacks in the area that happened over the past couple of days.
According to the city, after Cathey was attacked Tuesday, a coyote approached another person Wednesday morning, before a dog fended off the attack. The city said the dog was injured during the incident.
“It’s abnormal,” Cathey said. “We’ve been around here for years and it doesn’t happen. I don’t know if the animal’s sick or something... He’s in a state of shock or something. He’s not acting normal. Just a bad occurrence and hopefully, they’ll catch it before he hurts a kid.”