No literally.

Luckily, the Greenburgh Police Department has put out a handy
list of ‘Important Coyote Safety Tips.’ Please pay close attention to #s 9 and 10.
1. Do not feed coyotes
2. If you see a coyote, be aggressive in your behavior - make loud noises, wave your arms, throw sticks and stones.
3. Do not allow pets to run free.
4. Do not feed pets outside.
5. Make any garbage inaccessible to coyotes and other animals.
6. Eliminate availability of bird seed. Coyotes are attracted to the concentration of birds and rodents that come to feeders. If you do feed birds, clean up waste seed and spillage.
7. Fencing your yard may deter coyotes. The fence should be tight to the ground, preferably extending six inches below ground level.
8. Remove brush and tall grass from around your property to reduce protective cover for coyotes.
9. Teach children to appreciate coyotes from a distance.
10. Regulated hunting and trapping increases the "fear" coyotes have towards people.
11. Ask your neighbors to follow these same steps.
Erm, thanks, Greenburgh, this is very helpful. Just a quick word on #10: I looked into this whole “fear” issue a little more, and found the following on The NY State Department’s
“Preventing and Resolving Coyote Conflicts” site –
Some coyotes in suburbia have lost their fear of people. This can result in a dangerous situation. A coyote who does not fear people should be considered dangerous. Coyotes in residential areas quickly learn to associate food with people. Suburban coyote food (garbage, pet food, pets) is saturated with human odor. Human behavior has changed to be non-threatening to coyotes (running into your home after seeing a coyote is behaving like prey). In short, food smells like people and people behave like prey.
Um...word. I guess it’s never a good idea to behave like prey…But seriously, the key here is to make sure the coyotes, as a community, know who’s boss. You’ve gotta fuck with their minds a little. Roll around in a bucket of chicken stock, throw on some mood music, and make a big show of telling amusing or touching coyote stories to your child, outside, at night. This will make the coyotes a little comfortable, a little sloppy on their game. Maybe one of them will come over and see what’s going on. Smile at it. Then pull out your shotgun and slaughter without mercy. After this, it would be wise to hitch that dead coyote carcass to the back of your ‘Ru and, like Achilles before you, drag that bitch all around town. This will send a clear message of dominance to all the other coyotes, and then your bird seed won’t be fucked with any more.