TRENTON, Mich. – For Richard Widon, his dog is more than a companion. Stewy is family.
"Well he's like a watchdog," said Widon. "It's only him and me and he's a blessing."
He's keeping a closer eye on his Pomeranian after his neighbor's dog was killed by a coyote. It happened last week at the Twin Meadows Apartments on Van Horn Road in Trenton.
When the pet owner let her Pomeranian out in the early morning hours, neighbors say a coyote was watching. Gary Battistone said within seconds the dog was dragged off in the field and killed.
"She had a harness out with a stake in the ground so her dog can roam the yard. She was in for two seconds and the coyote came up and took the dog right out of the collar and the harness," he said.
She and her boyfriend tried to save the dog but it was too late.
"She was torn up. She was torn up pretty bad," said Battistone.
Neighbors say it isn't unusual to see coyotes roaming this neighborhood at night. Battistone's girlfriend was frightened by one.
"She didn't know what to do. She just yelled for me and I come out and I looked at the coyote and he ran out to the middle of the field and stopped and looked back at me," he said.
After the deadly encounter, the roles are reversed: Pet owners are now on guard around this neighborhood.
"Now I am going to make sure I have my back porch light on at nighttime and be outside with him and see if I see anything," said Widon.