Some tender, loving care has coyote pup on mend

Officials suspect the starving creature’s mother died, leaving him on his own.

A sickly 3-month-old coyote pup is on the road to recovery after being found starving and extremely dehydrated in the Coachella Valley.

A woman who discovered the coyote about 1:30 p.m. Friday in the Thousand Palms area brought him to the Riverside County Department of Animal Services. At first the pup appeared near death, said John Welsh, the shelter’s spokesman.

Officials suspect the pup’s mother died, leaving the young coyote on his own, Welsh said.

Veterinarians wrapped the animal in a towel and gave him intravenous fluids and some dextrose — a type of simple sugar — through a large syringe. They immediately saw improvement.

“He really perked up after we provided the dextrose,” Emily Vialpando, a veterinary technician with the department, said in a statement. “He really showed more life and looked around and stretched.”

The pup seemed to be smiling as he snuggled into a plush dog bed and received chin scratches from an animal services employee.

Video shows employees showering the coyote with affection, petting his head and rubbing his large pointed ears as he curls up for a nap.

Shelter officials reached out to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife and the Living Desert Zoo & Gardens in Palm Desert for suggestions on placement of the pup. They were referred to the nonprofit Fund for Animals Wildlife Center in Ramona, which agreed to take the coyote and continue his rehabilitation, Welsh said.

Though the presence of coyotes in urban areas often creates unease — mostly because of the predators’ penchant for snatching small domesticated animals — they play an important role in the ecosystem by helping to keep rodent populations under control, according to the fish and wildlife department.