More Coyotes This Fall? Schaumburg Offers Tips To Protect Pets

SCHAUMBURG, IL — Residents may notice more coyotes exploring neighborhoods this fall as young animals leave their family groups to establish territories of their own, according to the Village of Schaumburg.

The village issued a reminder about coyote dispersal season, encouraging residents to take precautions to protect pets while sharing the landscape with wildlife.

Coyotes may travel in small groups or explore unfamiliar areas, including parks, open spaces and wooded edges. That movement can make them more noticeable in residential neighborhoods.

The animals also help control rodents and other small animal populations, the village noted.

To reduce the potential for encounters involving pets, Schaumburg recommends:

• Keep dogs on a leash outdoors.
• Keep cats indoors.
• Avoid leaving pet food, garbage or other food sources outside.
• Never approach or feed coyotes.

More information about seasonal behavior and precautions is available on the village’s coyote information page.

Coyote activity has prompted similar reminders in neighboring communities. In January 2025, Arlington Heights police reported an uptick in sightings and urged residents to secure trash, leash pets and avoid approaching the animals.

An earlier Arlington Heights advisory, issued during the winter breeding season in 2024, cautioned residents against assuming a backyard fence would keep coyotes out.

In Northbrook, the Sustainability Commission discussed coyotes' role in the local ecosystem during a January 2025 Village Board presentation, describing the animals as adaptable and often misunderstood.

Schaumburg's fall reminder focuses on a different stage of the animals' life cycle: young coyotes moving away from their families and finding places of their own.

More Past Coverage

• Coyote Reportedly Causes Go-Arounds At O’Hare
• Trapped Coyote: Injured Animal Seen Around Glenview