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An Airdrie woman says she was shocked when she found a coyote she thought she’d struck and killed on the highway stuck in the grille of her car.

Georgie Knox was driving to work in Calgary from her home in Airdrie last week when the animal darted in front of her vehicle.

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She says she heard a “crunch” and thought she’d run the animal over and killed it.

But when she stopped at a traffic light near Calgary’s Foothills Hospital, a construction worker pointed out the young coyote was lodged in her grille and alive.

Knox called provincial fish and wildlife officers to help.

They managed to remove the animal, found it had only suffered minor injuries and released it in the foothills west of Calgary.

Knox said she felt bad when she realized the coyote had been embedded in her grille for almost 35 kilometres at highway speeds.

“I felt horrible when I realized I took him with me all the way from Airdrie. I thought he must be suffering and was going to die, so I was very upset.”

She was astounded at the outpouring of concern.

“It was amazing just to see all kinds of people come together to save this pup’s life. The construction workers, 311 dispatchers, (Calgary Police Service) and finally the Wildlife Enforcement Department.”