An invasion of coyotes in Cornwall's north end has sparked a petition from concerned residents and could ultimately lead to the animals' demise.
City council will meet Monday night and included on the agenda is a plan from administration to hire a trapper to cull the coyote population in the Eamers Corners area.
Some 40 people have signed a petition requesting something be done about the destructive animals.
"Recently a chihuahua was attacked by two coyotes," reads the petition submitted to city hall. "Now people are afraid to let their pets and kids go outside, let alone go out at night."
It would cost the city as much as $25 an hour for a trapper to collect what is believed to be a coyote population of three to five that has become worrisome.
The city has applied to the Ministry of Natural Resources for permission to kill the animals. Typically provincial law only allows live trapping, with the animals released within a kilometer of where they are caught.
But a municipality may act as a third party on behalf of landowners to hire individuals, usually hunters or trappers, to cull coyotes where they have become a threat, says a report council will receive Monday.
The ministry will have the ultimate decision on the subject, regardless of city council's decision.
