Israeli Dad Saves Toddler from Jaws of Coyote in LA

Israeli man snatches his toddler from the jaws of a coyote that was roaming a suburban Los Angeles neighborhood.

By Abigail Klein Leichman, Israel21c

The video of an Israeli father springing into action to save his two-year-old daughter from the jaws of a coyote is going viral across the world.

Ariel Eliyahuo had just taken his daughter, Ariya, out of the car in the driveway of the family’s Los Angeles home in broad daylight when a coyote ran over and snatched the screaming child.

He can be seen running over and picking up Ariya from the sidewalk while yelling in Hebrew and throwing a water bottle at the animal to scare it away.

Shira and Ariel Eliyahuo saw blood on Ariya’s pants, so they rushed her to the hospital, where she received rabies shots.

He told reporters that the toddler is recovering, but both she and her older brother, Yarin, were traumatized by the event in their Woodland Hills neighborhood.

“We don’t live in a zoo; we live in Los Angeles,” Eliyahuo said. “Now I’m really, really, really afraid to let the kids go out, even in the backyard, by themselves.”

California wildlife officials said they are searching for the coyote.