@BDawg1005:
I am sorry things happen to humans, but I am also sad for the animals. We have taken their habitat and yet it's THEIR fault they're in OUR space. Poor little things have no where to go…
Well….. we have just as much a right to the space as they do -- we ARE ALL a part of the natural environment. The earth, the habitat is OURS as well. It is OUR space as much as it is THEIRs; it's not like we beamed in as aliens from another planet and are trying to take over. We are ALL native to the planet, so I try to be very careful about statements like that.
The difference is, we can try to come up with new ways to live that will provide for them as well as us; to limit our damage to the environment as much as is possible. And we are becoming more and more aware of that, and making more effort to keep natural areas as much as possible.
But we also need to remember that all of the limits to their ability to get enough food in the wild are not our fault either. Some years there is less rain, more rain, more rabbits, fewer rabbits, locust swarms, more heat, less heat, whatever that will affect the availabilty of their food sources. It has been that way since time began. That also sends them into our backyards looking for whatever we may have out, be it bird seed, cat food, or small pets. --- like part of the problem w/the bears in the N. Carolina story. They moved in because the acorns didn't produce this year in great enough quantity to feed the bears.
This year in our area we have more rabbits than I have ever seen in the 16 yrs I've lived in this house. They are everywhere, day and night. My flower beds have been decimated; my garden is struggling {the fence is useless against rabbits}. Therefore our coyote population is also very visible this year, and I expect that next year there will be a lot of little baby coyotes everywhere. If the rabbits hold up for next year, it won't be a problem. But if something happens this Fall/Winter to affect the rabbit population then I suspect that the coyotes will move in on family pets to a much larger degree.
There is likely a balance somewhere, and it will be delicate at best -- as it is for all living creatures {wolves vs deer, coyotes vs rabbits/squirrels, grizzly/salmon}. Too much of one leads to too few of the other; eliminating one leads to too many of the other. We are the only creatures that can in any way make a deliberate attempt to create a balance {and in doing so we sometimes make the problem worse}. It is a tricky thing to try to do, but at least the effort is being made.
Just kidding, I understand what you are saying 
