The last thing you want to see on your porch is a hungry coyote. But when Princess was discovered, she looked more like an old, beat-up dog than a 4-month-old coyote pup.
She was "curled up in a ball, with crusty skin, and animal control immediately recognized it had mange and caught it and brought it to Gold Country Wildlife Rescue where we began treatment," rescue co-founder Sallysue Stein told ABC10 News.
The pup was emaciated, weighing in at only four pounds, and was suffering from the skin disease mange.
Gold Country bathed the coyote to relieve her itching, and started feeding her high-calorie treats to fatten her up.
Now, the pup has doubled in size; after a month or so of further care, she'll be released back to the wild. And while many on social media applaud the rescue's efforts, not everyone agrees.
“If you read the comments on the Facebook page, some people are saying, why would you release something that's going to eat cats? Just shoot it,” Stein said. “And then there's other people saying, ‘oh my gosh thank you for saving this baby.’”
While the coyote was given the pet name of Princess by animal control officers in Folsom, Gold Country Wildlife Rescue doesn't use the name or think of her like a pet. But there's no lack of emotion.
"I can tell you those release days are ... I tear up just thinking about it. You send them back and you don't know what's going to happen to them,” Stein said, tearing up. “But we've given them a good second chance. That's all we can do.”
Stein may get attached, but with her hard work, it's possible to hope that this coyote pup's first house call will also be her last.