With recent reports of coyote sightings in Swift Current, pet owners are being advised to keep tabs on their cats and dogs.

On the Swift Current Missing Pets page on Facebook, people have said they've seen coyotes in the south-east part of town, as well as raccoons.

Kyla Shutzman is an animal health tech with the Swift Current SPCA and said the furry visitors are nothing new.

"Out in the prairies food gets a little scarce, so in the city makes it a little bit easier for them," she said. "If people leave their garbage out they all go and rummage around that and see what they can get, or prey on small rabbits and mice and stuff like that too."

Coyotes can carry a lot of diseases, but there are some simple measures for pet owners to take.

"Basically you want to keep an eye on [the pets] at night time, leave a light on so you can see your pet," said Schutzman. "And if you're going out for walks, keep them on a leash and go around your area. If you've spotted a coyote, just try to avoid that area at night to prevent any meetups with the coyote. Obviously keep your garbage in your garbage bin. Don't just leave garbage lying around because that encourages them to come and scrounge around for some food."

If an animal is salivating a lot, or animals usually out at night - like raccoons and skunks - are roaming around during the day, it's smart to keep some distance... not that people generally want to go near skunks at night anyway.