Coyotes Kill Family Dog In Wheaton Park

WHEATON, IL --- A Wheaton family's 7-year-old dog was fatally attacked by coyotes Wednesday night after it ran from its owner's backyard. Riley, a Cockapoo, was reportedly found injured with two coyotes hovering over him not far from the family's home in the Hurley Gardens tennis courts, WGN reports.

Riley's owner, Bernadette Flynn, had let him outside for the night when Riley bolted out through the electric fence system and out of the yard as the coyotes pursued him. After Riley was found, his family took him to a nearby veterinarian, but the dog died en route.

The Flynn family is hoping that Riley's death will help make other pet owners aware of the dangers coyotes present to small animals. Flynn told WGN, "If we had known at all, we would have kept him on a leash every time we took him out.”

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