California officer gets school bathroom call, finds a full-grown coyote by the toilet

A California middle school had an especially unusual day when a full-grown coyote ended up in a bathroom.

Video from the incident, which shows an animal services officer responding to the call and finding the animal near a toilet, is now circulating online again, even though the actual event happened in 2022.

What happened?

At Jurupa Unified's Mission Middle School in Riverside County, staff found themselves dealing with a coyote in a restroom. Riverside County Animal Services later released footage showing the animal in the bathroom and its eventual release.

The agency said the coyote had first been seen elsewhere on campus; once startled, it ended up taking shelter in the restroom. School staff reportedly nicknamed the animal "Wile E," according to Outdoors. 

In the video, the animal control officer can be seen opening a stall before saying, "Oh that's not a pup, that's a full-grown coyote. Oh boy, let's get you out of here."

Riverside County Animal Services officer Will Luna used a catch pole to capture the coyote, which was later released in a rural area away from the school. The release was also included in the video where Luna was heard saying, "I found a spot to let him go. It's becoming more and more difficult to relocate them with all the development of new homes … See you later man!" 

Why does it matter?

Wild animals are showing up more and more in human spaces, and human activity is often part of the reason.

Coyotes are highly adaptable, but development, shrinking habitat, traffic, noise, and easy access to food waste can all push wildlife closer to neighborhoods, schools, and shopping areas. 

As BBC Future has explained, close encounters between people and wild animals are often tied to the ways humans reshape landscapes and limit safe space for wildlife.

A coyote on campus is a safety concern for students, staff, and families. And for the animal, being cornered in a bathroom points to stress and disorientation, not aggression for its own sake.

Many wildlife encounters are less about "problem animals" than about overlapping territory in places humans have continued to expand.

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