NH teen attacked by possibly rabid coyote

HOPKINTON, N.H. (WHDH) -- A New Hampshire teenager was walking his dog when he was attacked by a coyote.

Jed Aubertin, 15, wasn't worried when he saw a coyote while walking his dog at dusk. They are common, and always stay away. But in a flash, the coyote attacked.

“I kicked my dog and told him to go home, and he did. I squared off with the coyote,” Jed Aubertin said.

Not even having time to reach for his knife, Aubertine basically fought the animal with his bare hands.

“It just kept jumping up and I kept hitting it on the top of the head,” Jed Aubertin said.

Aubertin suffered cuts during the process.

“It clawed me on the side of my neck,” Aubertin said.

“He absolutely thought well on his feet. He stayed, he got the dog cleared for safety purposes and turned and had no choice but to face and defended himself,” said Todd Aubertin, Jed’s father.

“I broke its skull. I could feel the fracture. And I busted some teeth out. It couldn’t have been more than a minute. It seemed like an hour but. I was getting worried though because I didn’t know how much longer I could keep it up,” Jed Aubertin said.

Aubertin knew he was fighting for his life.

“The main thing was to keep his teeth away from my neck. If it got a hold of my extremities I'd probably be done,” Aubertin said.

Thankfully, Aubertin outlasted the animal.

“I held my own against him and luckily he gave up,” Aubertin said.

Since the coyote may be rabid, Aubertin has to receive a course of rabies shots as a precaution.

If you see a coyote contact the Fish and Game Law Enforcement dispatch at (603) 271-3361.

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