As a reductionist I'd have to agree, but I like the idea that the coyote was wanting to share that moment while thinking (and not being able to articulate) "Nice view, huh?"
Not totally absurd that animals would have some sort of innate appreciation or sense of beauty -- infants certainly come hard-wired for recognizing symmetry. I wouldn't be surprised if the "awe" that we get from a large landscape or a rothko painting is some sort of reward system biased towards exploration.
I'm not denying that, I just think "spirit" is quite the leap.
Once you realize spirit describes the human wave-function you will stop being uncomfortable with the word.