Wily-er 11-year-old

For those who aren't reading the local NJ press, you may have missed this item:

Wildlife officials are investigating what could be the first coyote attack on a human in New Jersey following a backyard attack on a toddler that was foiled by an 11-year-old.

Playing in the back yard of his Middletown Township home with his 22-month-old nephew over the weekend, 11-year-old Ryan Palludan first thought the animal that bolted into the yard just before dark was a deer.

But when it grabbed little Liam Sadler in its jaws, Palludan instinctively sprang into action, yelling and kicking at the attacker which was later determined to be a coyote.

The article went on to provide further details. But shockingly, the writer neglected to mention whether the wily beast was wearing a dinner napkin, or whether he used falling rocks, rocket-powered skates, dynamite, or any other such aids in his attack. Nor did this shoddy journalist elaborate on just how the 11-year-old was able to prevail in his battle with the predator. We can only assume that it involved luring him off a cliff, the tried-and-true method of defeating coyotes. Or at least injuring them for a while.

(And I still want to know where those freakin' bandaids come from!!!)