Came across a link to a real coyote diary Tuesday -- off the Echo Park Animal Alliance list. A woman in Wyoming adopted a ten-day old coyote some months ago, and her Daily Coyote blog is a love letter to the small canine, who lives puppyishly with a cat and the author in a one-room cabin. Cute photos of the domestic pet snuggled up in comfy blankets, trying to climb a ladder, kissing the cat -- all ears and snout.

Meanwhile, as for coyotes of Echo Park (the dog kind), I saw one Sunday. It was 8:15 a.m. and I was in my car on Cerro Gordo near Lemoyne. I've seen a lot of dingy-gray coyotes this year, including one that was in awful condition, missing almost all of the fur on his hind quarters (saw that one on Landa).

I was curious if this was the same one, so I pulled over to the base of the driveway where coyote stood still. I waited for him (I'll call him/her "him") to move so I could see his back half. But he wouldn't move while I was watching him. He had a pretty black stripe across his chest. I waited. And he waited. I listened to a song on the radio, and so did he. He fidgeted, and so did I. More time passed. Finally, I had an idea. I blinked -- ostentatiously, the way cats do. It worked. Coyote relaxed his body and walked a few paces in my direction (planning to go past my car). Then he stopped and froze again. I blinked again. He accepted it as confirmation that I meant what I said the first time, and he trotted away. I got a chance to see his backside, which had fur. He looked healthy. But I won't be checking the blogs to see if he's moved into any of the houses around here, sleeping in the bed and posing for pics.