No, coyotes are not native East of the Mississippi, they only expanded eastward in the last century. https://urbancoyoteresearch.com/coyote-info/north-american-distribution
It is not just small pets that are in danger from urban coyotes. It takes a pretty damn big and/or aggressive dog to stand much of a chance against even a single coyote if the coyote is desperate enough.
It seems a lot of people are confusing rural coyotes behavior with that of suburban yotes. Suburban coyotes tend have much less fear of humans which can cause them to behave much more aggressively. That said, people tend to way overreact to the potential threat they pose. Still, I wouldn't allow them to hang around my backyard.
It is not just small pets that are in danger from urban coyotes. It takes a pretty damn big and/or aggressive dog to stand much of a chance against even a single coyote if the coyote is desperate enough.
It seems a lot of people are confusing rural coyotes behavior with that of suburban yotes. Suburban coyotes tend have much less fear of humans which can cause them to behave much more aggressively. That said, people tend to way overreact to the potential threat they pose. Still, I wouldn't allow them to hang around my backyard.