Man strangles coyote to death after it follows, attacks him: ‘I felt something watching me’

WTVD, JAMES PULLIAM, CNN

By Tom George

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    ROXBORO, North Carolina (WTVD) — A man was taken to the hospital after authorities said he was bitten multiple times by a coyote.

According to City of Roxboro officials, the incident happened at around 7 p.m. in the area of Somerset Drive at the end of a neighborhood surrounded by woods.

Neighbors said they’ve heard and seen coyotes in the distance from time to time, but Friday evening is when James Pulliam came face to face with one himself up close.

He said he was standing in his usual smoke break spot at the end of the entrance leading up to his apartment complex when something felt off.

“I felt something watching me…I just felt like he was hunting me or something,” Pulliam said.

Moments later, out of the woods came a coyote. Pulliam tried kicking and throwing rocks, and in the process fell to the ground, and that’s when the coyote closed in.

“He jumped on me and I caught him in the air, he was biting me, and so when I threw him down and I’m trying to slide out of the way, he just kept coming,” he said.

Pulliam tried yelling, but it didn’t work. That’s when he knew it was turning into a fight for his life.

“I had to rip my left hand out of his mouth, and when I got my left hand out, I just choked him all the way till the police got there,” he said.

Puliam said even then, after 10 minutes, he wanted to make sure the coyote was dead so it couldn’t attack anyone else in the neighborhood.

He went to the hospital for injuries on his left hand, and is doing alright, but he’ll need to go back for more antibiotics.

“They took X-rays and then gave me rabies shots that hurt worse than the attack,” Pulliam said.

Now back home, the legend is already spreading.

“People aren’t going to believe it, though, they’re going to think I’m lying,” he joked.

A neighborhood hero, no coyotes will want to mess with.

“I was afraid, don’t get me wrong, but it’s either me or him,” Pulliam said.

The Person County Animal Services seized the dead coyote for rabies testing.

Wildlife experts recommend making loud noises and waving your arms if you encounter a coyote.

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