"My two dogs were on my property about 20 feet away from my front door … I saw a large animal run by on the street and the dogs started barking. I yelled at my dogs to get back in the house and was able to get the first one inside, but the second dog was just snatched up and had its neck snapped right in front of me," said Nina.

According to Mississauga Animal Services education officer Linda Dent, there have been four reported incidents involving Eastern Coyotes and small dogs this year in Mississauga.

“In three of the instances, the dogs were off leash and one unfortunately slipped out of a harness according to the information that we have been provided," she said.

The City of Burlington has also issued an advisory to residents following a series of attacks on dogs in that city, including one that was caught by a home security camera. The frightening footage shows the coyote running up and grabbing the dog while tied up on a leash in the backyard, then shaking it violently before dropping it after the owner scared it off.

Experts and officials are calling the attacks unusual, both in nature and in number, as coyotes generally avoid close contact with humans. Kathy Duncan, manager of Animal Services in Brampton, says there is no real means of tracking the animals' numbers. She says, however, there is no evidence of a population increase.

Also, while attacks on pets are common, attacks on people are exceedingly rare. According to Toronto Wildlife Centre executive director Nathalie Karvonen, there has been only one confirmed coyote attack on humans in Toronto's history.

Sampson and Karvonen say that when this kind of behaviour presents itself, it's almost always as a result people feeding the animals, which lowers the coyote's natural fear of humans.

"That kind of demand behaviour doesn't escalate over night. When food is introduced as the reward, coyotes actually increase their proximity tolerance to humans," said Sampson. “This is an escalated situation but it can be de-escalated very easily."

Residents in the Brampton neighbourhood where the two people were attacked have sent a petition signed by over 50 people who live in the area demanding that the City remove the animals.

However, Brad White, a professor of genetics and biology at Trent University who has studied the animals for over a decade, says that culling or relocation programs are largely ineffective, as those removed are quickly replaced due to the species' numbers and adaptability.

While the City of Mississauga has posted signs and issued warnings reminding residents to keep their pets on a leash, Brampton has gone one step further by placing live traps in an attempt to catch the animal or animals responsible for biting humans near Mississauga Rd. and Steeles Ave.