ORLANDO, Fla. – Another cat has turned up dead in College Park following a string of coyote sightings that has threatened pets for weeks.
[RELATED: Coyotes killing pet cats in College Park | Coyote warning signs posted]
An hour after his wife spotted a coyote across the street early Thursday morning, Brian Schanen went outside and found his cat, 10-year-old Fiona, dead outside his house.
Fiona spent most of her life outside and her owners never had a problem until Thursday morning.
"A clear coyote attack," said Schanen. "That was all that was left of the cat, basically an empty carcass and it was very disturbing."
It's just the latest in a string of missing or dead cats in College Park. It's prompted Florida Fish and Wildlife to post signs warning of coyotes in the Orlando neighborhood.
Two weeks ago, Local 6 showed video of a coyote chasing a cat, but still, wildlife experts call "urban coyotes" a nuisance animal, leaving the problem to pet owners. Homeowners can kill a nuisance animal if it threatens people or their property.
Some think that's not the answer in city limits.
"When your neighbor is 10 feet next door, discharging a firearm is pretty dangerous," said Schanen. "We need to get together with a plan to take care of this growing problem because once the coyotes become a little more comfortable with humans then it's not going to take long before it becomes small children."
Schanen now thinks signs are not enough. He wants the city to step in and handle this coyote problem.
Until then, he's planning to walk his dog closely on a leash and carry pepper spray.