A Swifts Beach couple is warning residents to keep pets safe after two coyotes seriously hurt one of their dogs, a 3-year-old Labrador retriever, early Thursday morning.

Carrie Lawrence said she let Brody, the injured Lab, and her 16-year-old Jack Russell terrier into the backyard of her Lynne Road home at around 6:30 a.m. Usually, the dogs return when she steps on the porch to bring them inside.

“They didn’t come right away, and then my husband came running down the stairs when he heard the coyotes,” she said. “They were on top of Brody, just four feet from the house.”

Brody suffered deep puncture wounds to his hind legs and stomach. On Thursday afternoon, he underwent surgery at a local animal hospital and will be back home soon.

While Brody survived, Lawrence said she hopes other pet owners will take steps to avoid coyotes.

After the attack, Lawrence called the Buzzards Bay Coalition and asked the group to post warning signs along the protected open space it owns that abuts her property. The Coalition promotes the area as a place for passive recreation and dog walking.

“A lot of people walk their dogs there and they should know to take precaution,” she said.

Thursday’s attack wasn’t the first time coyotes concerned the Lawrences. Two weeks ago, they scared off a coyote that had wandered onto the porch.

Last spring, she said a coyote had pups near the walking trail and would bark at people passing by the den. After awhile, the coyote and pups went elsewhere.

In 2013, a serious incident occurred in the neighborhood when three coyotes attacked a few dogs, killing one.

So far, Thursday’s coyote attack is the only one reported this year in Wareham, according to police.

Lawrence said she hopes another one is avoidable.

“I don’t want to see some terrible, tragic accident to happen because no one is aware,” she said.

For information and tips on dealing with coyotes, visit the Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife’s website: http://www.mass.gov/eea/agencies/dfg/dfw/fish-wildlife-plants/mammals/preventing-conflicts-with-coyotes.html.