A quick-thinking dad didn’t hesitate when it came time to save his young daughter from a stunning daytime attack right in their front yard. Ariel Eliyahuo’s bravery was caught on the family’s Ring security camera positioned outside of their Los Angeles, Calif., house. 

The family had just returned from picking up their young daughter at preschool when the two-year-old was suddenly ambushed as she was walking in their front yard. The video shows the child suddenly hitting the ground with a cry. Eliyahuo, an Israeli citizen, had been gathering the girl’s toys from the family’s vehicle.

I heard the screams and the crying, and I thought she had fallen. Then I saw the coyote there.”

Eliyahuo sprinted toward his daughter with his only weapon – a water bottle he happened to be holding.  The young girl continued screaming as the wild animal began dragging her down back toward the sidewalk. The frantic dad raced to stop the vicious coyote. The video goes on to show the dad as he quickly yanks the girl from the coyote’s mouth, pulling her up into his arms. Then the coyote darted away, before quickly returning to attack again.

Eliyahuo, who just happened to have a water bottle in his hand, suddenly hurls it at the animal. Thankfully, the coyote runs from the water bottle, allowing the frantic father to get his daughter to safety. The toddler was taken to a nearby hospital. Her mother, Shira Eliyahuo, told KTLA,

She has a lot of scratches on her left leg and one of them is really deep. The coyote just kind of dragged her.”

She added that the girl also had bruises on her face from crashing into the sidewalk. The young girl is now home, after having been given a rabies shot, as well as being treated for her injuries, which included a deep gash from the coyote biting her.

Ariel Eliyahuo holds his young daughter. The father recently faced off with a wild coyote that grabbed the young child from her front yard. Photo by Eliyahuo family

Shockingly, the relentless animal came back later that day, just as reporters gathered at the family’s home. After seeing the animal pause in front of the cameras, Eliyahuo, as well as another man from the neighborhood, quickly ran it out of the area. 

Officials from the California Wildlife Information Department said they managed to get a DNA sample from the girl’s wound, and are now searching for the coyote. According to Wikipedia, in the United States, only two fatalities have been caused by coyotes, both coincidentally in Los Angeles.

Sources: Daily Mail ⎸NewsNation