There have been a number of coyote attacks around the Las Vegas valley but is there anything residents can do about it?
Owners don't necessarily have to stand back and watch a tragedy as their pets are being killed.
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13 Action News Crime and Safety Expert and retired Las Vegas police Lt. Randy Sutton says under certain circumstances, residents have options to protect their pets from predators.
A man's dogs survived after a coyote attack in Calico Basin. His two small dogs survived after some of the larger dogs chased the dogs away.
But that pet owner might have had a different option whether the threat was coyotes or a rattlesnake.
"Listen, we're gonna protect our pets and if he was armed and he had shot the coyotes, I don't think he'd be facing any legal issues," Sutton said.
Sutton does however recommend people make sure who has jurisdiction over the land where they're hiking and contact them as to be aware on firearm rules.
But what about a neighborhood environment? There has to be a threat.
"You don't wanna shoot a creature just to shoot a creature," Sutton said. "If you need to protect yourself and your pet, then you gotta do what you gotta do and nobody's gonna say anything about it."
Sutton says if a coyote is just walking through someone's backyard and their pet isn't out there and it's not a threat. It's better to go outside and yell at it because it's more afraid of the person than they are of the coyote.
