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Coyote found hiding in middle school bathroom stall

RIVERSIDE, Calif. — Things were a little wild at a California middle school when animal services had to come in and remove a coyote from a bathroom.

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The coyote was discovered on campus at Jurupa Unified’s Mission Middle School, and ran scared into a bathroom stall when it was discovered by staff, the Riverside Department of Animal Services said in a news release.

Staffers told animal control officers that they had seen the coyote before, and had affectionately nicknamed it “Wile E.” in a nod to the character from Warner Bros. cartoons. The coyote had been spotted near the campus, but had not gone onto school grounds before Monday.

The Riverside Department of Animal Services shared a video of an officer removing the coyote from the bathroom. As the officer approaches the stall, you can hear him say: “That’s not a pup. That’s a full grown coyote.”

The male coyote is believed to be nine months old, and was released into open land far away from the school, KABC reported.

“We are pleased that this incident was smooth and all the children were OK, and we were able to get the coyote back to its more natural habitat,” Animal Services Director Erin Gettis said.

Officials said they did not know what drew the animal onto the property, KNBC reported.

At the end of the video shared by the Riverside Department of Animal Services, the officer can be heard saying goodbye to the coyote, saying “Bon voyage.”