饲养野生动物，通常会吸引啮齿动物和小型野生动物，他们都是土狼的自然猎物。例如将残羹剩饭、肉片、宠物食品、鸟食或者面包屑，放在户外给鸟吃。土狼及其他大型野生动物可能被这些食物气味所吸引，常来常往，成为常客。密西沙加有一个动物保护和控制条例，包括对于饲养动物，除鸣鸟之外，最高可罚款$5,000。关于野生动物以及土狼更多信息，请访问mypetmississauga.ca。
Feeding Wildlife Can Cause Coyotes to Become Regular Guests
Feeding wildlife attracts rodents and small wildlife which are coyotes’ natural prey. This includes leaving table scraps, meat, pet food, birdseed or bread left out for birds. Coyotes and other wildlife are attracted to the smell of food and will become regular guests if food is readily available.
Before you leave a carrot for the cute bunny that comes for a visit or leave scraps for the squirrels, consider the danger it could bring. Wildlife is attracted to food and coyotes are opportunistic animals who will eat whatever they can find. Having a regular food source could cause coyotes to become habituated and no longer fear humans.
Apart from having wildlife drop by for a visit, food left out for long periods of time such as birdseed could become laden with bacteria and make animals ill, and human food could make wildlife sick as it isn’t part of an animals’ natural diet.
Animals prefer to live near their food source, so if there is a free buffet then be ready to share your property as a home to animals. Raccoons will try to get into your attic, skunks may burrow beneath your steps, your shed or your deck and settle in to live and raise their families.
Tips to keep wildlife at bay:
· Do not feed coyotes or other wildlife
· Keep garbage/compost in a garage, shed or a durable container with a locking lid
· Put garbage on your boulevard the morning of garbage collection
· Remove bird feeders and seed spillage that attract rodents and their predators; provide food for songbirds for a few hours at a time
· Feed pets indoors
· Clean barbecue grills and tools after each use
· Pick ripened fruit and clean up fallen fruit
The City of Mississauga has an animal care and control bylaw which regulates the feeding of animals, with the exemption of songbirds, with a maximum penalty of $5,000. Visit mypetmississauga.ca for more information on wildlife and coyotes.
