We have lived in Coyote heaven (estimated numbers in the thousands) here in the mountains of Oregon for many years. And, though we have some resident Coyotes on the cattle ranch nightly, they leave the larger animals alone. They will most definitely attack smaller animals if not secured indoors at night.
Some of my sheep raising friends (in the lower elevations), maintain mules, donkeys, or llamas to keep watch on their sheep. Yep, forget the sheep dog, the coyotes fear the mule and donkey like few other things that I have witnessed. I once saw a donkey stomp a coyote into oblivion in less than a minute. You don't mess with "their" sheep.
Here in the West, we can have fairly large coyotes compared with other parts of the country. Some of our local coyotes look like small German Shepherds...though lighter in weight. Though they are a decent-sized predator, and rare stories aside, they leave people alone. I would seriously be more concerned with the neighbors dog than with a pack of coyotes. Having a normal, healthy coyote within pistol range is almost unheard of here in my neck of the woods. Mountain lions can be another story, here.
Coyotes can be extremely resourceful in my experience (explains why they leave people alone). This coyote, below, decided he was tired of walking and boarded a Portland, Oregon, light rail train to his destination. The furry gentleman was less hostile than most of the morning regulars who didn't have time for their coffee. As you can see, he preferred the window seat.
