Portland follows ODFW guidance and the Portland Urban Coyote Project for coexistence, prohibiting feeding, allowing hazing, and reserving lethal removal for animals that pose a documented public-safety threat.
Coyotes are a protected predator under Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife rules and roam most Portland neighborhoods, including forested park edges. Portland Title 13 bars intentional feeding of wildlife, and Title 20 reinforces the rule inside parks. Residents are encouraged to haze coyotes that show boldness through noise, eye contact, and waving objects. Lethal removal generally falls to ODFW and USDA Wildlife Services and is reserved for animals that have bitten people or repeatedly killed pets. Trapping methods are constrained by Measure 18 (1994), which bans most leghold and body-grip traps statewide.
Feeding coyotes can draw nuisance citations under Title 13. Unauthorized trapping or shooting of coyotes inside city limits can trigger ODFW, PPB, and discharge-of-firearm violations.
See how Portland's coyote management rules stack up against other locations.
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