Hannah Ortiz
Jul 1, 2026, 10:56 PM
If your trash cans live along the side yard like mine off Trabuco, pull them in tight against the house and weigh the lids. We had one knocked over twice last week and it turns out the smell alone was enough to keep a coyote circling the cul-de-sac at night. Also worth clearing any fallen avocados or citrus, apparently they'll eat the fruit too, which I did not know. Since we buttoned all that up the nightly visits basically stopped. Still keeping the cats in after dark just to be safe, but the trash thing made the biggest difference for us.
Feng Adeyemi
Jul 1, 2026, 10:56 PM
You're not paranoid, and you're not overreacting to that watching-behavior. Here's what actually works: keep the terrier leashed and close on that trail, and if a coyote stands and stares, don't turn your back and walk away calmly. Instead, get big and loud, wave your arms, throw a rock toward (not at) it. The whistles do almost nothing; a shaken can of coins or your own yelling does more. That bold one near the footbridge has learned people freeze, so we have to un-teach it. Dawn isn't off-limits, but that hour and that spot clearly have a habituated animal, so I'd vary your route for a couple weeks. For the greenbelt, walk it before the kids do and clear any fallen fruit or pet food. They belong here too, but a coyote that respects a raised voice is the safest kind for everyone.
Eun Liu
Jul 1, 2026, 11:10 PM
This is the right call. We're off Trabuco too and the enclosure our HOA makes us use actually helps because the lids latch. The fruit part is real, we had a whole tree drop plums last fall and I swear that's when they started coming through nightly. Still, I'll say it, once they're this comfortable circling a cul-de-sac I think trash alone doesn't fully fix it. Reported ours through Coyote Cacher months ago and never heard a thing back.
Jada Gupta
Jul 2, 2026, 1:54 AM
Thank you for posting the avocado thing, I had no idea. We have two trees that basically carpet the side yard and I've been ignoring it.
Divya Taylor
Jul 2, 2026, 4:35 AM
Quick clarifying question Hannah, when you say weigh the lids, are you using a bungee or just a brick on top? Trying to picture what actually stayed put through a knock-over.
Curtis Lewis
Jul 2, 2026, 7:26 AM
Eun I'm with you. Buttoning up trash is fine and everyone should do it, but a coyote that's already patterning your street at night isn't going to just forget the address because the cans are tidy this week. People act like removing the food removes the animal and it doesn't, they're smart and they come back to check. I've lived in Lake Forest a long time and the ones that lose their fear are a different situation than a coyote passing through.
Jada Gupta
Jul 2, 2026, 10:09 AM
Curtis I hear you but I think buttoning up the block first is exactly how you get them to move along, at least that's what Hannah's whole post is describing. Cleared the fruit here two days ago and it's already quieter, so I'm hopeful. Not saying you're wrong that a bold one is its own thing.
Emilio Sarkisian
Jul 2, 2026, 12:52 PM
For the reporting piece, if Coyote Cacher goes into the void, Lake Forest sightings you can also log through OC's channel and the city passes the real problem spots to their contractor. Won't make one disappear overnight but it does build the record for a specific street, which is the part that actually matters later.
Emily Fujimoto
Jul 2, 2026, 3:31 PM
Did the bungee-cord-plus-pull-cans-in thing this weekend after reading this and we made it three nights with nothing knocked over, which is a record. Small win but I'll take it, thanks Hannah.
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