Turns out ‘black coyotes’ wandering around Warwick are just dogs, mayor says

WARWICK, R.I. (WLNE) — Did you see two “black coyotes” wandering around Warwick earlier this week? Well, it turns out — they’re just dogs, according to Mayor Frank Picozzi.

“The animals roaming Oakland Beach were mistakenly identified as coyotes and are in fact dogs,” Picozzi wrote on Facebook.

Picozzi said the dogs are possibly a “wolf hybrid” and that the owner has been found.

“They will be tested,” said the mayor.

Warwick police told ABC 6 News that they’ve been out all morning trying to capture the dogs.

“Due to all the attention the animals are skittish and running away; not allowing us to capture them,” said Col. Bradford Connor.

Connor said they’re working with other agencies to try to get the original owner on scene in “hopes he has luck capturing them.”

Once captured, Connor said, the dogs will be taken to the animal shelter, where they’ll be tested to find out what exact type of animal they are and examined for overall health.

“We are still encouraging people not to feed them or have any physical contact with them,” said Connor.